Utterly horrifying, shocking and disgusting this book is as necessary to read as it is difficult to stomach. David Neiwert, a journalist who has had the unenviable task of researching and reporting on American racist and right wing extremist groups for decades, brings his vast experience and knowledge to bear on the dangerous phenomenon of the “Alt-Right”. As exhausting and infuriating as it is to read about the numerous hate groups that have formed in America it is also crucial to understanding the apparently spontaneous mobs of Tiki Torch wielding racists we all witnessed in Charlottesville in August of 2017. What seemed like an out of the blue explosion of hate and vitriol really had its roots in various right wing, anti-government minded organizations from the 80’s and 90’s. These groups, long exiled to the fringes of society and awareness have shown a disturbing resurgence and shift to the mainstream in the wake of innovations like the internet and social media and, of course, the incendiary, hateful presidential campaign of Donald Trump. While I do disagree with one claim the author makes in his conclusion, that empathy and understanding are our most potent and essential tools to stand against the rising tide of MAGA hatted, pepe idolizing young neo Nazis (and I only disagree because I think it downplays the imminent physical danger these groups pose, especially to minorities and women), this book is an indispensable history of and treatise on this terrifying and newest wave of hate plaguing our country.
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Unfuckingbelievable!!! Such an amazing book that I don't know what other way I can convey it. ( )

Unfuckingbelievable!!! Such an amazing book that I don't know what other way I can convey it. ( )

It's surprising how far back Neiwert starts this book, but it makes sense. Movements built on eliminationism, misogyny and racism have been around for a long time. In this context, Neiwert is able to illustrate that extreme right-wing movements have always helped skew American political discourse and theory towards extremism even as the fringe championing it was publicly denounced.

What you have as a result is more of a historical look at the ingredients that constructed and fueled the rise of the Alt-Right and it makes Neiwert's analysis far more useful and interesting than shallower reads such as Angela Nagle's Kill all Normies. The "this" of the proverbial rant against pro-Trump/Fascist political forces is not just a sudden radicalization or disaffection of the right. Neiwert gives you two big tools: history and analysis of authoritarian psychology to explain the appeal that extermination, hatred of women and fear of minorities will always hold in a country where the right-wing traditionally absorbs such sentiment as almost normative. ( )

Neiwert explores how the American far-right has been growing since the 1990's and how that growth and influence has been accelerated by the presidency of Donald J. Trump. It's useful for insights into the nature of such groups, but the analysis is marred by the shrill leftist partisanship of the author. That said, it's a good overview of "alt-right" networks, personalities, and history. As a thumbnail sketch of a social movement, I'd recommend it. I'm far less likely to recommend some of the progressive assumptions that form key vectors of Neiwert's reasoning, such as his endorsement of the notion that all forms of discrimination are equivalent. ( )