Sounds Like Hate
Southern Poverty Law Center
Sounds Like Hate is a podcast from the Southern Poverty Law Center that tells the stories of people and communities grappling with hate and searching for solutions. You will meet people who have been personally impacted by hate, hear their voices and be immersed in the sounds of their world. And, you will learn about the power of people to change – or to succumb to their worst instincts. Sounds Like Hate was nominated for two People’s Voice Webby awards in 2022.
Season One takes a deep dive into the realities of hate in modern America: how it functions, how it spreads, who is affected and what people are doing about it.
Season Two examines the distorted history of the Confederacy some people accept as truth and how the people we love the most could be guided toward violent extremist beliefs.
Season Three reveals the harms done to individuals and our democracy by hate and extremism – while also showcasing the hope and resilience of the people fighting back. Hear from the unsung heroes who have pushed back against voter suppression in the South, who have stood up for the rights of trans children in the foster care system and who have taken on the unlawful militias who target migrants, often in cahoots with U.S. Border Patrol agents.
Two of the series in this season were nominated for a prestigious Webby award.
In Season Four, we explore the many manifestations of white supremacy in our current moment – from Confederate memorials to the Jan. 6 insurrection. We begin with a special episode marking the one-year anniversary of the extremist assault on the Capitol, which examines clues scattered openly across the nation by antigovernment networks and white supremacists – and shows how SPLC analysts were sounding the alarm well before the attack. Then, we continue our “Monumental Problems” series by taking you inside Virginia Military Institute (VMI) and its racial reckoning. We investigate how students are impacted by VMI’s dangerous and pervasive glorification of the Confederacy – which casts a long shadow of white supremacy over the school. Student and alumni activists’ demands for change are part of a broader struggle in the South and beyond. The story at VMI is about confronting our nation’s past and the legacy of slavery in order to build a more inclusive democracy for us all.
Season One takes a deep dive into the realities of hate in modern America: how it functions, how it spreads, who is affected and what people are doing about it.
Season Two examines the distorted history of the Confederacy some people accept as truth and how the people we love the most could be guided toward violent extremist beliefs.
Season Three reveals the harms done to individuals and our democracy by hate and extremism – while also showcasing the hope and resilience of the people fighting back. Hear from the unsung heroes who have pushed back against voter suppression in the South, who have stood up for the rights of trans children in the foster care system and who have taken on the unlawful militias who target migrants, often in cahoots with U.S. Border Patrol agents.
Two of the series in this season were nominated for a prestigious Webby award.
In Season Four, we explore the many manifestations of white supremacy in our current moment – from Confederate memorials to the Jan. 6 insurrection. We begin with a special episode marking the one-year anniversary of the extremist assault on the Capitol, which examines clues scattered openly across the nation by antigovernment networks and white supremacists – and shows how SPLC analysts were sounding the alarm well before the attack. Then, we continue our “Monumental Problems” series by taking you inside Virginia Military Institute (VMI) and its racial reckoning. We investigate how students are impacted by VMI’s dangerous and pervasive glorification of the Confederacy – which casts a long shadow of white supremacy over the school. Student and alumni activists’ demands for change are part of a broader struggle in the South and beyond. The story at VMI is about confronting our nation’s past and the legacy of slavery in order to build a more inclusive democracy for us all.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Oct 22, 2020 • 46min
Baseless: Part II
Rinaldo Nazaro, the leader of The Base, and Eric, a young recruit, reveal chilling insights into the world of paramilitary white supremacy. They discuss their strategy to exploit societal chaos for an organized takeover. The conversation dives into how the group recruits teens through online platforms and the importance of family support in deepening radicalization. Insights from infiltrations highlight the group’s training methods and their focus on survivalism, raising urgent questions about legality and the growing threat of their schemes.
Oct 15, 2020 • 42min
Baseless: Part I
Rinaldo Nazaro, founder of the extremist group The Base, and investigative reporter Ryan Thorpe share chilling insights into a network plotting for a race war. Through secret recordings, they reveal how Nazaro recruits and trains members, often from military backgrounds, framing their mission as survivalist. Thorpe recounts his undercover journey into this paranoid world, detailing vetting processes and in-person meetings that exposed disturbing paramilitary plans. Together, they explore the alarming connections between The Base and other extremist groups.
Sep 21, 2020 • 41min
Not Okay: Part II
In part two, we return to Randolph, Vermont, as activists nationwide protest the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Sean Reed, Rayshard Brooks, Ahmaud Arbery and countless others by police and vigilantes. As tensions escalate, what will happen when a battle erupts to remove the Galloping Ghost, the school’s mascot resembling a KKK knight on a horse? Can educators protect students of color from ongoing racist threats?
Sep 14, 2020 • 41min
Not Okay: Part I
Not Okay takes us inside Randolph Union High School in Vermont, where 95% of students are white. The high school is at the center of two linked battles that are tearing their community apart: whether to remove a mascot some say bears a disturbing resemblance to a hooded Klu Klux Klansman charging on a horse and whether to fly the Black Lives Matter flag.
Aug 17, 2020 • 37min
Getting Out: Part II
Part two takes Samantha’s story from the privacy of chatrooms to the corridors of power. What was the cost of her neo-Nazi separatist views? How did she contribute to the spread of deadly lies? And why did she decide to get out?
Aug 10, 2020 • 39min
Getting Out: Part I
Getting Out begins with the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017. But this isn’t about that white supremacist rally — it’s about a woman named Samantha, who worked behind the scenes to support this violent alt-right march. This chapter leads us through the story of how Samantha became the women’s coordinator of Identity Evropa, a white nationalist group, and why she decided she had to get out.
Aug 4, 2020 • 59sec
Introducing Sounds Like Hate
Join award-winning journalists, producers and filmmakers Geraldine Moriba and Jamila Paksima — who are behind the new SPLC podcast, Sounds Like Hate — as they tell the stories of people grappling with the rise of hate across country.
