State of Black America 2023: Confronting the threat within

“Our sense of belonging and prosperity relies on freedom from violence. That freedom requires confronting the threat that armed violence poses to our democracy and the hate-fueled rhetoric that feeds it. Moreover, keeping voters and elections safe from political violence is necessary to advance free, fair, and secure elections and ballot access.” – Project Code

- Marc H. Morial

There is a fire blazing in the United States of America.

That fire is burning through classrooms, law enforcement, the right to speak, the right to assemble, and the right to vote. It is the fire of hatred, extremism, and domestic terrorism. It is the fire of white supremacy.

This year’s State of Black America® report, “Democracy in Peril: Confronting the Threat Within,” raises the alarm on extremist ideology taking root in the nation’s most vital institutions.

The mainstreaming of extremist ideology is an existential threat to American democracy, the rule of law, and decades of hard-won progress toward an equitable, inclusive, more perfect union. No longer limited to passing out photocopied leaflets on street corners or huddling in corners of the dark web, conspiracy mongers and white nationalists--openly spew their bile across social media and cable television. They weave it into the public policy they impose on their constituents. It corrodes the trust between police, the military, and the communities they are sworn to protect and serve.

Members of the U.S. Congress and state legislators across the country have promoted a conspiracy theory centered on a cabal of Satan-worshipping, cannibalistic child abusers that include fellow lawmakers, Hollywood actors, and business tycoons.

The leaked membership of a violent, anti-government militia group that led the January 6 insurrection included 81 people who either held or were running for public office in 2022, 373 believed to be serving in law enforcement, and 117 believed to be active-duty military.

Restrictions on teaching the history of slavery and the Civil Rights Movement have grown so stringent that students planning a Black History Month in Alabama were not permitted to reference any events prior to 1970.