Report: Hate groups on rise; 2 in Mesa

Mesa, Arizona - The number of hate groups across the country went up 54 percent since 2000, two of which are in Mesa, according to statistics released in a quarterly report Thursday by the Southern Poverty Law Center, a nonprofit headquartered in Alabama that regularly tracks such groups.

The Mesa groups mentioned are the Nationalist Coalition, identified as a neo-Nazi group, as well as the Vinlanders Social Club, identified as a racist skinhead group. There are 19 groups spread across Arizona. Another East Valley group - the National Socialist Movement - is in Apache Junction, the report states.

According to the law center, the rise in such groups can be attributed in large part to anti-minority and anti-immigration sentiment, combined with the recent faltering economy. One more factor: Barack Obama's successful bid to become the first black president of the country.

"Barack Obama's election has inflamed racist extremists who see it as another sign that their country is under siege by nonwhites," said Mark Potok, editor of the Intelligence Report, in a prepared statement.

Tough economic times historically provide fertile ground for extremist movements, the report states.

The top three states in the country are California, with 84 hate groups, 66 in Texas and 56 in Florida.

Hate groups tracked in the report include white nationalists, neo-Confederates, neo-Nazis, skinheads and black separatists.

The Southern Poverty Law Center is an advocacy organization that started as a civil rights law firm that later began tracking hate groups.

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