Why People Join Hate Groups Essay, Research Paper

Why Do People Join Hate Groups?

Why do people join hate groups? What makes them different from Joe Smoe that you just passed on the street? The First step to answering these questions is to know a little more about hate groups. Hate groups are, quite plainly, groups of people, that hate those that are different than them, simply because they are different. With a long history behind them, they have several different ways in which to recruit new members. Generally, these recruiting techniques include are not necessarily the satanic rituals many people would imagine, but a range of methods from concerts to just getting friendly. One of the most notable features of a hate groups is the constant presence of danger which is very apparent to those unfortunately souls who happen to be the objects of hate groups aggression, also called a hate crime.

Even taking into consideration the keen ability of hate groups draw people in, few people in their right mind would actually join such a groups. So what causes people to do such a thing? One of the fastest growing numbers in hate groups is the amount of young people. There are numerous possible reasons for this. There are those that say that it is cause by everyone’s favorite scapegoat – the media. But millions, if not billions, of people what television every day, and not all of them join a group that commit violent acts against others, simply due there different race or culture. A more likely reason is a need for young people to belong. There seems to be a psychological need for people, especially those that are younger, to reject people in order to be accepted by people. But contrary to popular belief, young people aren’t the only ones that make mistakes. All age levels of people are involved with hate groups. Involvement with hate groups could be due to their upbringing as a child. It could also accounted for by the sense of power and self-esteem that comes with hating others. Or lastly, it could be due to a lack a responsibility, a need to blame one’s problems on a nameless member of a minority. Are these the things that separate an average man and a bigot enough to commit atrocities against another human being simply due to a small different