Southern Poverty Law Center 27164 226056923 2008-07-16T17:10:25Z North Shoreman 1664557 [[WP:UNDO|Undid]] revision 226056253 by [[Special:Contributions/138.202.189.83|138.202.189.83]] ([[User talk:138.202.189.83|talk]]) {{Infobox_Company | company_name = Southern Poverty Law Center | company_logo = [[Image:SPLC Logo.jpg|center|]] | company_type = [[non-profit organization]] | foundation = [[1971]], [[Montgomery, Alabama]], [[United States|U.S.]] | location = [[Montgomery, Alabama]] | key_people = [[Morris Dees]], Director | industry = [[Civil rights|Civil rights law]] | num_employees = | products = | revenue = | net_income = | homepage = [http://www.splcenter.org www.splcenter.org] }} The '''Southern Poverty Law Center''' (SPLC) is an [[United States|American]] non-profit legal organization, internationally known for its tolerance education programs, its legal victories against white supremacists and its tracking of hate groups. The Center is based in [[Montgomery, Alabama]], in the [[Southern United States]]. It was founded in 1971 by [[Morris Dees]], [[Joe Levin|Joseph J. Levin Jr.]], and civil rights leader [[Julian Bond]] as a civil rights law firm.<ref name="CNNpioneer">{{cite news | url=http://archives.cnn.com/2000/LAW/09/08/morris.dees.profile/ | title=Attorney Morris Dees pioneer in using 'damage litigation' to fight hate groups | publisher=[[CNN]] |date= September 8, 2000 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> In addition to free legal service to the victims of discrimination and hate crime, the Center publishes a quarterly ''Intelligence Report'' which investigates [[extremism]] and [[hate crime]]s in the United States. The Center has been criticized for its tactics and financial practices.<ref>"[http://niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=about.Panel%20Discussion:%20Nonprofit%20Organizations%20May%2099 Attacking a Home-Town Icon]" Jim Tharpe, ''[[Nieman Watchdog]]'' 1995. </ref> The Center has been described as a "a controversial, liberal organization" <ref name=Edsall-Silverstein>{{cite news | url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/daily/dec98/southern19.htm | title=Conservative Group Accused Of Ties to White Supremacists | | publisher=[[Washington Post]] |date=December 19, 1998 | first=Thomas | last=Edsall | accessdate = 2006-11-18}}</ref> by columnist Thomas Edsall as it occasionally involves itself in broader issues such as the separation of church and state <ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/11/13/moore.tencommandments/ | title=Ten Commandments judge removed from office | publisher=[[CNN]] |date= November 14, 2003 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref>. ==History== The Southern Poverty Law Center was organized by Dees and Levin in 1971 during a [[desegregation]] case (Smith v. [[Young Men's Christian Association]]<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/legal/docket/files.jsp?cdrID=36 | title=Smith v. Young Men's Christian Association | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= June 11, 1969 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref>), as a law firm to handle anti-discrimination cases in the United States. The organization's first president was [[Julian Bond]], formerly of the [[Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee]]. Bond served as president of the SPLC until 1979 and remains on its [[board of directors]]. In 1979 the Center brought the first of its many cases against the [[Ku Klux Klan]]. In 1981 the Center began its "Klanwatch" (now "Hatewatch") project to monitor and track the activities of the KKK, which has been expanded to include seven other types of hate organizations.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/intel/map/hate.jsp | title=Active U.S. Hate Groups in 2006 | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 2007 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> [[Image:Splc.jpg|thumb|Southern Poverty Law Center Headquarters in Montgomery, Alabama.]] In July 1983 Klan members [[firebomb]]ed the center's office destroying the building and records.<ref name="1983Firebomb">{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40910F73B5D0C728FDDAE0894DB484D81 | title=Fire Damages Alabama Center that Battles the Klan | | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date=July 31, 1983 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> Federal investigators said "the intruders went to work quickly, dousing files, desks and carpets with a ''petroleum based liquid,'' perhaps gasoline mixed with motor oil or diesel fuel and concentrating on the four corners of the 6,000-square-foot building."<ref name="1983Firebomb" /> In February 1985 Klan members and a Klan sympathizer pled guilty to federal and state charges to the fire.<ref name="1985pledFirebomb">{{cite news | url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9903E4DD1239F932A15751C0A963948260 | title=2 Klan Members Plead Guilty To Arson | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date=February 21, 1985 | first= | last= | accessdate = }}</ref> At the trial, "Joe M. Garner and Roy T. Downs Jr., identified as klansmen, and Charles Bailey pleaded guilty to a two-count [[Information (formal criminal charge)|information]] charging them with conspiring to threaten, oppress and intimidate members of black organizations represented by the law center."<ref name="1985pledFirebomb" /> Over 30 people have been jailed in connection with plots to kill Dees or blow up the center.<ref name="Jordan Gruver">{{cite news | url=http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070814/NEWS/708140328/1001| title=Southern Poverty Law Center beefs up security | | publisher=[[Montgomery Advertiser]] |date=August 17, 2007 | first=Kym | last=Klass | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> That same year, Dees became the primary assassination target of [[The Order (group)|The Order]], a revolutionary white supremacist group, for his work with the SPLC.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F4061FF63D5D0C748DDDA00894DD484D81&n | title=Death List Names Given to US Jury | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date=September 17, 1985 | first= | last= | accessdate = }}</ref> Radio host [[Alan Berg]] was killed by the group outside his Colorado home; he was the number two on its list.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40713FC35580C7B8CDDA80994DF484D81 | title=Jury Told of Plan to Kill Radio Host | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date=November 8, 1987 | first= | last= | accessdate = }}</ref> In 1987 the group won a case against the [[United Klans of America]].<ref name="UKA1987Times">{{cite news | url=http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/58240562.html?dids=58240562:58240562&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Feb+13%2C+1987&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&edition=&startpage=2&desc=The+Nation+Klan+Must+Pay+%247+Million | title=The Nation Klan Must Pay $7 Million | publisher=[[Los Angeles Times]] | date=February 13, 1987 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> This included a $7&nbsp;million judgment for the mother of [[Michael Donald]], a black lynching victim in Alabama.<ref name="UKA1987Times" /> In 1987 the Klan again targeted Dees and planned to bomb the SPLC.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F4071EF73E580C7A8CDDA80894DF484D81 | title=Five Tied to Klan Indicted on Arms Charges | publisher=[[New York Times]] | date=January 9, 1987 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> [[Image:Civil Rights Memorial fountain.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The [[Civil Rights Memorial]] in [[Montgomery, Alabama]]. ]] In 1989 the Center unveiled its [[Civil Rights Memorial]] designed by [[Maya Lin]].<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F20614F83E5A0C778EDDAB0894D9494D81 | title=Monument Maker | publisher=[[New York Times]] | date=February 24, 1991 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> The Center's "Teaching Tolerance" project was initiated in 1991, and its "Klanwatch" program has gradually expanded to include other "anti-hate" monitoring projects and a list of reported "hate groups" in the United States. In October 1990, the SPLC won $12.5&nbsp;million in damages against [[Tom Metzger]] and his [[White Aryan Resistance]] when a Portland, Oregon, jury held the neo-Nazi group liable in the beating death of an Ethiopian immigrant.<ref>{{cite news | url= | title=Metzger Leaves Former Home A Mess, but its Undamaged | publisher=[[The Oregonian]] | date=September 19, 1991 | first= | last= | accessdate =}}</ref> While Meztger lost his home and will not be publishing any more material, the full amount of the multi-million dollar reward was not recovered.<ref>{{cite news | url= | title=Metzger Home Worth Only A Tiny Fraction of $12.5 Million Sum | publisher=[[The Oregonian]] | date=August 28, 1991 | first= | last= | accessdate =}}</ref> In 1995 a group of four white males were indicted for plans to blow up the SPLC.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E04EEDA1539F937A25752C1A963958260 | title=4 Are Accused in Oklahoma of Bomb Plot | publisher=[[New York Times]] | date=November 14, 1995 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> A 1996 ''[[USA Today]]'' article claimed that the Southern Poverty Law Center is "the nation's richest civil rights organization", with $68&nbsp;million in [[asset]]s at the time.<ref name=AStone>Andrea Stone, "Morris Dees: At the Center of the Racial Storm," ''USA Today,'' [[August 3]] [[1996]], A-7</ref> Starting in 1971, the SPLC set aside money for its [[Financial endowment|endowment]] in future programs, which is currently $111 million in order "to carry on the struggle for tolerance and justice — for as long as it is needed."<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/center/splcreport/article.jsp?aid=41 | title=Endowment Supports Center's Future Work | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= June 2003 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> In May 1998, three white supremacists were arrested for allegedly planning a nationwide campaign of assassinations and bombings targeting "Morris Dees, an undisclosed federal judge in Illinois, a black radio-show host in Missouri, Dees's Southern Poverty Law Center in Alabama, the [[Simon Wiesenthal Center]] in Los Angeles, and the [[Anti-Defamation League]] in New York."<ref>"Group is accused of plotting assassinations, bombings. 2 others will plead guilty Thursday." ''[[St Louis Post-Dispatch]]'' (MO) (May 13, 1998): pB1.</ref> Several [[neo-Nazi]] groups held a rally in front of SPLC headquarters in early 2003.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?pid=215 | title=40 to Watch | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= Fall 2003 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> In July 2007, the SPLC filed suit against the [[Imperial Klans of America]] (IKA) in [[Meade County]], where in July 2006 five Klansmen allegedly beat [[Jordan Gruver]], a 16-year-old boy of Panamanian descent at a Kentucky county fair.<ref name="GruvermontgomeryJuly">{{cite news | url=http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070814/NEWS/708140328/1001| title=Southern Poverty Law Center beefs up security | | publisher=[[Montgomery Advertiser]] |date=August 17, 2007 | first=Kym | last=Klass | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> Since filing the suit the SPLC has received nearly a dozen threats "promising the most dangerous threat" ever faced.<ref name="GruvermontgomeryJuly" /> A [[July 29]] letter allegedly came from [[Hal Turner]], a white supremacist talk show host.<ref name="GruvermontgomeryJuly" /> ==Tolerance.org== The SPLC's initiatives include the website [http://www.tolerance.org Tolerance.org]. The website has been a past winner of a [[Webby Award]] which is a set of awards presented to the "world's best websites."<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.tolerance.org/about/index.html | title=Tolerance.org: About us | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 2005 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> The website houses multiple initiatives: * Daily news about groups and individuals working for tolerance and fighting hate; * Guidebooks for adult and youth activists; * Practical resources for parents and teachers; ("Teaching Tolerance")<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.tolerance.org/teach/index.jsp | title= Teaching Tolerance | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 2005 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> and * Entertaining and educational games for young children. According to the SPLC "Teaching Tolerance provides educators with free educational materials that promote respect for differences and appreciation of diversity in the classroom and beyond."<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.tolerance.org/teach/about/index.jsp | title=About Teaching Tolerance | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 2005 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> "Teaching Tolerance" is aimed at two different age groups of students with separate materials for teachers and parents. One portion of the project targets elementary school children, providing informational material on the history of the civil rights movement.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.tolerance.org/pt/index.html | title=Planet Tolerance | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 2005 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> The center's material for children includes a publication entitled "A fresh look at multicultural 'American English'" that explores the cultural history of common words. A project website designed for elementary school children includes an interactive program that allows users to "explore" political topics such as school mascots with [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] names, the [[Confederate flag]], and popular music and entertainment. It alleges that many of these highlighted events exhibit cases of racial, [[gender]], and [[sexual orientation]] insensitivity. A similar educational program aimed at teenagers in the middle and high school age groups includes a "Mix it Up" project urging readers to participate in various school activities that encourage interaction between different social groups.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.tolerance.org/teens/about.jsp | title=Mix it up:Our Story | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 2005 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> Other features of the teenager educational project include political activism tips and reports highlighting examples of student activism. A monthly SPLC publication for teens promotes a highlighted political movement, normally focusing on minority, [[feminist]], and [[LGBT]] youth organizations. The program also provides publications to students such as "Ways to fight hate on campus" suggesting ideas for community activism and [[Diversity (politics)|diversity]] education. "Teaching Tolerance" also provides advice and materials for parents aimed at encouraging [[multiculturalism]] in the upbringing of their children. [http://www.tolerance.org/101_tools/index.html] A guide published by the project urges parents to "examine the 'diversity profile' for your children's friends," move to "integrated and economically diverse neighborhoods," and discourage children from playing with toys or adopting heroes that "promote violence." The publication also advises parents on the use of culturally sensitive language such as promoting gender-neutral phrasings such as "Someone Special Day" instead of the traditional [[Mothers Day]] or [[Fathers Day]] and urges them to ensure "cultural diversity reflected in your home's artwork, music and literature." ===Documentaries=== The SPLC also produces [[documentary film]]s. Two have won [[Academy Awards]] for documentary short subject: "Mighty Times: The Children's March," in 2005[http://www.oscars.org/77academyawards/winners/11_doc_short.html], and "A Time for Justice, America's Civil Rights Movement" in 1995.[http://www.directcinema.com/dcl/title.php?id=248&list=35,234,86,99,248] Five others have been nominated. ==Notable cases== The Southern Poverty Law Center provides free legal services to the victims of hate crime, and has won many notable [[Civil law (common law)|civil]] cases with large money awards for the plaintiffs.<ref>"Bringing the Klan to Court," [[Newsweek]], May 28, 1984</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0715FB3E580C728EDDA80994D1484D81 |title=Two Sides of the Contemporary South: Racial Incidents and Black Progress |publisher=[[New York Times]] |date= [[November 21]] [[1989]] |accessdate = 2007-09-18 }}</ref> In addition to providing free magazines and videos on race relations to more than 50,000 schools, Dees and the SPLC "have been credited with devising innovative legal ways to cripple hate groups, including seizing their assets."<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0616FC395D0C718DDDAC0894DE494D81 | title=Conversations/Morris Dees; A Son of Alabama Takes On Americans Who Live to Hate | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date= May 12, 1996 | first=Kevin | last=Sack | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> The first SPLC case was filed against the [[Young Men's Christian Association]] (YMCA) in [[Montgomery, Alabama]] who "continued to segregate children, going so far as to ban kids who swam at an integrated pool from city-wide meets." In 1969, the YMCA refused to allow two African American children to its summer camp, and the SPLC sued on behalf of the children's parents.<ref name="SPLC-YMCA">{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/legal/docket/files.jsp?cdrID=36 | title=Smith v. Young Men's Christian Association | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= June 11, 1969 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> In the course of SPLC's lawsuit, Dees "uncovered a secret 1958 agreement between the city and the YMCA in which city officials gave the YMCA control of many city recreational activities."<ref name="SPLC-YMCA" /> In 1972 the court ruled that Montgomery had given the YMCA control with a "municipal character," and "ordered the YMCA to stop its discriminatory, segregationist practices."<ref name="SPLC-YMCA" /> In 1981 the SPLC took the Klan to court to stop racial harassment and intimidation against [[Vietnam]]ese fisherman.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0C17FC3C5C0C768EDDAD0894D9484D81 | title=Klan Inflames Gulf Fishing Fight Between Whites and Vietnamese | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date= April 25, 1981 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60610F93D5C0C718CDDAC0894D9484D81 | title=Klan Official is Accused of Intimidation | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date= May 2, 1981 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> In May 1981 the courts sided with the Vietnamese fisherman and the SPLC, forcing the Klan to end harassment.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70B13FE3F5C0C768DDDAC0894D9484D81 | title=Judge Issues Ban on Klan Threat to Vietnamese | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date= May 15, 1981 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> Also in 1981 the SPLC won a case which "ordered an Alabama county to pay salaries to the staff of its first black probate judge, continuing a practice that, in violation of state law, had been in use for more than two decades."<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70F14FE385C0C7A8EDDAB0994D9484D81 | title=Black Judge in Alabama Wins Staff Salary Case | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date= December 29, 1981 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> [[Image:kkk-donald-cartoon.jpg|thumb|right|150px|An inflammatory cartoon that was used as evidence in the civil trial resulting from [[Michael Donald]]'s murder.]] In 1987 the SPLC successfully brought a civil case, on behalf of the victims family, against the [[United Klans of America]] (UKA) for the 1981 lynching of [[Michael Donald]], a nineteen year old black man in [[Mobile, Alabama]].<ref name="SPLC-Donaldlawsuit">{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/legal/docket/files.jsp?cdrID=10 | title=Donald v. United Klans of America | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 1988 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> Unable to come up the $7&nbsp;million awarded by the jury, the UKA were forced to turn over its national headquarters to Donald's mother, who then sold it and used the money to purchase her first house.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0714FB3A550C728EDDAB0894D0484D81 | title=Paying Damages For a Lynching | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date= February 21, 1988 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> On [[November 13]], [[1988]] three white supremacists who were members of East Side White Pride and [[White Aryan Resistance]] beat [[Mulugeta Seraw]], an [[Ethiopian]] man who came to the United States to attend college, to death.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/USAToday/access/56028630.html?dids=56028630:56028630&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Oct+24%2C+1990&author=&pub=USA+TODAY+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&edition=&startpage=02.A&desc=Lawyer+makes+racists+pay | title=Lawyer makes racists pay | publisher=[[USA Today]] |date=October 24, 1990 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> In October 1990 the SPLC won a civil case on behalf of the deceased's family against WAR's operator [[Tom Metzger]] and Tom's son, John Metzger for a total of $12.5&nbsp;million.<ref>The jury divided the judgement against the defendants as follows: Kyle Brewster, $500,000; Ken Mieske, $500,000;, John Metzger, $1 million; WAR, $3 million; Tom Metzger, $5 million; in addition, the jury awarded $2.5 million for Mulugeta's unrealized future earnings and pain and suffering.</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30613FD34540C758EDDA90994D8494D81 | title=Sending a $12.5 Million Message to a Hate Group | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date=October 26, 1990 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> The SPLC does not charge for their work, and Seraw did not share any money won with the SPLC because the Metzger's did not have millions, but rather the family only received assets from the Metzger's $125,000 house and a few thousand dollars.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30614F63E550C768EDDAB0994D8494D81 | title=Assets of White Supremacist Are Target of Legal Maneuver | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date=December 25, 1990 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> The Metzgers declared bankrupcty, and WAR went out of business. The cost of trial, in the hundreds of thousands of dollars<ref>Morris Dees and Steve Fiffer. ''Hate on Trial: The Case Against America's Most Dangerous Neo-Nazi''. Villard Books, 1993. page 116</ref> was absorbed by the SPLC and the [[Anti-Defamation League]].<ref>Morris Dees and Steve Fiffer. ''Hate on Trial: The Case Against America's Most Dangerous Neo-Nazi''. Villard Books, 1993. page 277</ref> Metzger still makes payments to Seraw's family.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.pe.com/localnews/rivcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_D_hate25.3563952.html | title=Hate-crime case award will be hard to collect, experts say | publisher=[[The Press-Enterprise]] |date= August 24, 2007 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-25}}</ref> In May 1991 Harold Mansfield Jr., a black sailor / war veteran in the [[United States Navy]], was murdered by a member of the neo-Nazi ''Church of the Creator'' (now called the [[Creativity Movement]]) (COTC). SPLC represented the victim's family in a civil case winning a judgement of $1&nbsp;million from the church in March 1994.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/legal/docket/files.jsp?cdrID=28| title=Mansfield v. Church of the Creator | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 03/07/1994 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> However, the church transferred ownership to [[William Luther Pierce|William Pierce]], head of the [[National Alliance (United States)|National Alliance]], to avoid money being paid to Mansfield's heirs; the SPLC filed suit against Pierce for his role in the fraudulent scheme, and won an $85,000 judgment in 1995.<ref name="SPLC-Pierce">{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/legal/docket/files.jsp?cdrID=27 | title=Mansfield v. Pierce | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 03/07/1994 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> The amount was upheld on appeal and the money was collected prior to Pierce's death in 2002.<ref name="SPLC-Pierce" /> According to a former member of the Alliance when SPLC sued Pierce was worried it would be the end of the hate group.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?pid=618 | title=Inside the Alliance | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= Winter 1999 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> The SPLC won a $37.8&nbsp;million verdict for [[Macedonia Baptist Church]],a 100-year-old black church in [[Manning, South Carolina]], against two Ku Klux Klan chapters and five Klansmen ([[Christian Knights of the Ku Klux Klan]] and Invisible Empire, Inc.) in July 1998.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10B14FF3A5D0C768EDDAE0894D0494D81& | title=Klan Must Pay $37 Million for Inciting Church Fire | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date= July 25, 1998 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> The money was awarded stemming from arson convictions in which the Klan burned down the historic black church in 1995.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/legal/docket/files.jsp?cdrID=29 | title=Macedonia v. Christian Knights of the Ku Klux Klan | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= June 7, 1996 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> Morris Dees told the press, "If we put the Christian Knights out of business, what's that worth? We don't look at what we can collect. It's what the jury thinks this egregious conduct is worth that matters, along with the message it sends."<ref name="MacedoniaChurch"> "Klan Chapters Held Liable in Church Fire; Jury Awards $37.8 Million in Damages," ''Washington Post'' July 25, 1998</ref> According to the ''[[Washington Post]]'' the amount is the "largest-ever civil award for damages in a hate crime case."<ref name="MacedoniaChurch" /> In September 2000 the SPLC won a $6.3&nbsp;million judgment against the [[Aryan Nations]] from an Idaho jury who awarded punitive and compensatory damages to a woman and her son who were attacked by Aryan Nations guards.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://archives.cnn.com/2000/LAW/09/08/morris.dees.profile/ | title=Attorney Morris Dees pioneer in using 'damage litigation' to fight hate groups | publisher=[[CNN]] |date= September 8, 2000 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> The lawsuit stemmed from the July 1998 attack when security guards at the Aryan Nations compound in Idaho shot at Victoria Keenan and her son.<ref name="AryanNations">{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/legal/docket/files.jsp?cdrID=30&sortID=0 | title=Keenan v. Aryan Nations | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 2000 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> Bullets struck their car several times then the car crashed and an Aryan Nations member held the Keenans at gunpoint.<ref name="AryanNations" /> As a result of the judgement, [[Richard Girnt Butler|Richard Butler]] turned over the 20-acre compound to the Keenans who then sold the property to a philanthropist who subsequently donated it to [[North Idaho College]], which designated the land as a "peace park."<ref name="ButlerObit">{{cite news | url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F50D1EF93C540C7A8CDDA00894DC404482 | title=Richard G. Butler, 86, Dies; Founder of the Aryan Nations | publisher=[[New York Times]] |date= September 9, 2004 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-22}}</ref> [[Image:Moore monument.jpg|150px|right|thumb|[[Ten Commandments]] monument commissioned by [[Roy Moore]].]] In 2002 the SPLC and the [[American Civil Liberties Union]] filed suit against [[Alabama Supreme Court]] justice [[Roy Moore]] for authorizing a two ton display of the [[Ten Commandments]] on public property.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/11/13/moore.tencommandments/ | title=Ten Commandments judge removed from office | publisher=[[CNN]] |date= November 14, 2003 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> Moore, late at night and without telling any other court justice, had installed a 5,280&nbsp;pound (2400&nbsp;kg) [[granite]] block, three feet wide by three feet deep by four feet tall, of the Ten Commandments.<ref name="glassroth">[http://fl1.findlaw.com/news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/religion/glsrthmre111802opn.pdf ''Glassroth v. Moore''] ([[PDF]]) (M.D. Ala. 2002).</ref> After refusing to obey several court rulings Moore was eventually removed from the court, and the statue was removed as well. On April 20, 2007 a civil jury in [[Linden, Texas]] awarded $9&nbsp;million in damages to [[Billy Ray Johnson]], a mentally disabled black man, who was beaten and dumped along a desolate road by four white men in September 2003. The lawsuit was brought on Johnson's behalf by the SPLC.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/news/item.jsp?aid=250 | title=Center Wins Justice for Billy Ray Johnson | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= April 20, 2007 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> Four white males took Johnson to a party where has was knocked unconscious then dropped on his head, referred to as a [[nigger]], and left in a ditch bleeding.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.texasmonthly.com/2007-02-01/feature4.php | title=The Beating of Billy Ray Johnson | publisher=[[Texas Monthly]] |date= February 2007 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> Due to the event, "Johnson, 46, who suffered serious, permanent brain injuries from the attack, will require care for the rest of his life."<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/legal/docket/files.jsp?cdrID=47&sortID=0 | title=Johnson v. Amox et al. | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= 09/19/2005 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> At a criminal trial the four men received sentences of 30 to 60&nbsp;days in county jail.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/localnews/2007/04/19/ex_jailer_denies_part_in_assault_cover_up.php | title=Ex-jailer denies part in assault cover-up | publisher=[[Texarkana Gazette]] |date= April 19, 2007 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> The jury hoped that the verdict would improve race relations in the community stemming from a [[United States Department of Education]] investigation and other controversial verdicts. During the trial one of the defendants, Cory Hicks, referred to Johnson as "it".<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-04-26-texas-town_N.htm | title=A jury's stand against racism reflects hope | publisher=[[USA Today]] |date= April 26, 2007 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> In July 2007 the SPLC filed suit on behalf of [[Jordan Gruver]] and his mother against the [[Imperial Klans of America]] (IKA) in [[Meade County, Kentucky]] where in July 2006, five Klansmen savagely beat Gruver, a 16-year-old boy of Panamanian descent, at a Kentucky county fair.<ref name="SPLCGruver">{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/legal/docket/files.jsp?cdrID=69&sortID=2 | title=Jordan Gruver and Cynthia Gruver vs. Imperial Klans of America | | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date=July 25, 2007 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> According to the lawsuit, five Klan members went to the [[Meade County Fairgrounds]] in [[Brandenburg, Kentucky]], "to hand out business cards and flyers advertising a 'white-only' IKA function."<ref name="SPLCGruver" /> Then, unprovoked two members of the Klan started calling the 16-year-old boy of Panamanian descent a "[[spic]]".<ref name="SPLCGruver" /> Subsequently, the boy, (5-foot-3 and weighing 150 pounds) was beaten and kicked by the Klansmen (one of whom was 6-foot-5 and 300&nbsp;pounds). As a result of the beating, the victim received "two cracked ribs, a broken left forearm, multiple cuts and bruises and jaw injuries requiring extensive dental repair."<ref name="SPLCGruver" /> In February 2007, [[Jarred Hensley]] and [[Andrew Watkins]] were sentenced to three years in prison for beating Gruver.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070815/NEWS01/708160361 | title=Reputed Klan leader denies role in Meade Co. beating | publisher=[[Louisville Courier-Journal]] |date=August 15, 2007 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> ==Intelligence Report== The SPLC's ''Intelligence Project'' monitors hate groups and extremists in the United States with their ''Intelligence Report''.<ref name="SPLC-Intelligence Report">{{cite web |url=http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport |title=Intelligence Report |publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |accessdate = 2007-09-18 }}</ref> The report is published quarterly since 1981 and provides information regarding organizational efforts and tactics of hate groups. In addition to the Report, the SPLC publishes ''HateWatch Weekly'' that follows racism and extremism.<ref name="SPLC-hatewatch">{{cite web |url=http://www.splcenter.org/intel/hatewatch/hatewatch.jsp |title=Hatewatch Weekly |publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |accessdate = 2007-09-18 }}</ref> =="Hate group" listings== {{main|List of purported hate groups}} The SPLC says "All hate groups have beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics.... Listing here does not imply that a group advocates or engages in violence or other criminal activity."<ref>[http://www.tolerance.org/maps/hate/index.html SPLCenter.org: Hate Groups Map<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The SPLC categorizes these groups as [[Black separatism|black separatist]] (such as the [[Nation of Islam]]), [[Ku Klux Klan]], [[Neo-Nazism|neo-Nazi]], [[Christian Identity]], [[White power skinhead|racist skinhead]], [[neo-Confederate]], and ''other''. Some organizations described by the SPLC as hate groups object to this characterization, particularly those in the ''other'' category. [[As of 2005]], there were 161 organizations in the [[United States]] categorized as ''other''.<ref>[http://www.splcenter.org/intel/map/hate.jsp?T=29&m=4 SPLCenter.org: Hate Groups Map<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> As of 2008, several of these have been moved into new categories, such as "Racist Music" and "Anti-Immigrant". ==Neo-Confederate movement== The Southern Poverty Law Center is the principal group reporting on the [[neo-Confederate]] movement. A 2000 special report by the SPLC's Mark Potok in their [[magazine]], ''Intelligence Report'', describes a number of groups as neo-Confederate. The SPLC has also carried subsequent articles on the neo-Confederate movement. "Lincoln Reconstructed" published in 2003 in the ''Intelligence Report'' focuses on the resurgent demonization of [[Abraham Lincoln]] in the [[southern United States]].<ref name="SPLC-Lincoln">{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=52 | title=Lincoln Reconstructed | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= Summer 2003 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> The article quotes Father Alister Anderson, national [[chaplain]] of the [[Sons of Confederate Veterans]] as giving an invocation which recalled "the last real Christian civilization on Earth", and also denounced "hypocrites and bigots", who dismiss "the righteous cause for which our ancestors fought."<ref name="SPLC-Lincoln" /> In the SPLC article "Whitewashing the Confederacy", George Ewert claimed that ''[[Gods and Generals (film)|Gods and Generals]]'' presented a false, pro-Confederate view of history.<ref name="SPLC-Whitewashing">{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?sid=47 | title=Whitewashing the Confederacy | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= Summer 2003 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-09-18}}</ref> [[David Horowitz]]'s ''[[Front Page Magazine]]'' responded, as part of what is known as the [[Southern Poverty Law Center#David Horowitz Freedom Center|David Horowitz Freedom Center controversy]]. The David Horowitz Freedom Center itself was identified as a neo-Confederate group by the SPLC.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=50 | title=Into the Mainstream | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= Spring 2003 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> The [[Southern Legal Resource Center]] (SLRC) has been identified by the SPLC as a neo-Confederate organization, and it was criticised for misleading its supporters in order to get donations.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=26 | title=Cashing in on the Confederacy | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= Spring 2003 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> The SLRC was criticized because its founder, Kirk D. Lyons' pre-SLRC defended controversial [[far right]] figures such as [[Tom Metzger]] and members of [[Aryan Nations]].<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=251 | title=In the Lyons Den: Kirk Lyons, a white supremacist lawyer whose clients have been a 'Who's Who' of the radical right | publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center |date= Summer 2000 | first= | last= | accessdate =2007-08-17}}</ref> ==Controversy and criticisms== The SPLC has attracted controversy surrounding its methods of identifying and monitoring "hate groups", allegedly exaggerating the level of threat from such groups. In the wake of harsh criticism, SPLC has received dozens of death/bomb threats.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.al.com/newsflash/regional/index.ssf?/base/news-30/1187126078243850.xml&storylist=alabamanews | title=SPLC beefs up security | | publisher=[[Associated Press]] |date=August 14, 2007 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-11-18}}</ref> The SPLC was described by [[Thomas Edsall]] of the [[Washington Post]] in 1998 as a "a controversial, liberal organization that tracks conservative militia and '[[Christian Patriot|patriot]]' organizations" that has uncovered much information on extremist groups.<ref name=Edsall-Silverstein>{{cite news | url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/daily/dec98/southern19.htm | title=Conservative Group Accused Of Ties to White Supremacists | | publisher=[[Washington Post]] |date=December 19, 1998 | first=Thomas | last=Edsall | accessdate = 2006-11-18}}</ref> Groups, such as the [[Council of Conservative Citizens]] (CCC), claim the SPLC's criticism that the CCC is tied to "White Supremacists" is inaccurate.<ref name=Edsall-Silverstein>{{cite news | url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/daily/dec98/southern19.htm | title=Conservative Group Accused Of Ties to White Supremacists | | publisher=[[Washington Post]] |date=December 19, 1998 | first=Thomas | last=Edsall | accessdate = 2006-11-18}}</ref> Professors of [[sociology]] Betty A. Dobratz, PhD ([[Iowa State University]]) and Stephanie L. Shanks-Meile, PhD ([[University of Nebraska-Lincoln]]), authors of ''The White Separatist Movement in the United States: "White Power, White Pride”'' wrote about SPLC and several other “watchdog” groups: “What the ‘watchdog’ groups focus on is at least partially influenced by the fact that these organizations depend on public financial support, and the public is likely to contribute to groups that they perceive are struggling against some major threat to America. We relied on [[SPLC]] and [[Anti-Defamation League| ADL]] reports for general information, but we have noticed differences between ways events have been reported and what we saw at rallies. For instance, events were sometimes portrayed in Klanwatch Intelligence Reports as more militant and dangerous with higher turnouts than we observed.”<ref>Betty A. Dobratz, Stephanie L. Shanks-Meile, ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=r59bGyH4lOAC The White Separatist Movement in the United States: "White Power, White Pride!"]'', [[The Johns Hopkins University Press]], 2000, 1-3.</ref> ===Fundraising criticism=== From February 12 through 14, 1994, a series in the ''[[Montgomery Advertiser]]'' by [[Dan Morse]] alleged that the Southern Poverty Law Center practiced financial mismanagement, poor management practices and misleading fundraising practices. The newspaper summarized its investigation as producing evidence of "a complex portrait of a wealthy [[civil rights]] organization essentially controlled by one man: Morris Dees."<ref>Dan Morse. "A complex man: Opportunist or crusader?", ''[[Montgomery Advertiser]]'', February 14 1994</ref> The paper took a random sampling of donors, and found out that the average donor did not know the Center was so well funded.<ref> Dan Morse and Greg Jaffe. "Critics question $52 million reserve, tactics of wealthiest civil rights group", ''[[Montgomery Advertiser]]'', February 14 1994</ref> Yet the articles were not all negative, with the authors noting "Other Law Center lawsuits forced cotton mills to improve conditions for workers" and the Center "developed new strategies for defending suspects on death row."<ref> Dan Morse and Greg Jaffe. "Critics question $52 million reserve, tactics of wealthiest civil rights group", ''[[Montgomery Advertiser]]'', February 14 1994</ref> In response to the criticism, Joe Levin told the paper: "The ''Advertiser's'' lack of interest in the center's programs and its obsessive interest in the center's financial affairs and Mr. Dees' personal life makes it obvious to me that the ''Advertiser'' simply wants to [[smear]] the center and Mr. Dees."<ref> Dan Morse and Greg Jaffe. "Critics question $52 million reserve, tactics of wealthiest civil rights group", ''[[Montgomery Advertiser]]'', February 13 1994, page 15A</ref> The SPLC investigative series was a finalist for a [[1995]] [[Pulitzer Prize]].<ref>[http://niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=about.Panel%20Discussion:%20Nonprofit%20Organizations%20May%2099 Panel Discussion: Nonprofit Organizations]</ref> A 1996 article reported [[Stephen Bright]] of the [[Southern Center for Human Rights]] stated that Dees "is a fraud who has milked a lot of very wonderful well-intentioned people. If it's got headlines, Morris is there."<ref name=AStone/> Yet, more recently in 2007 the ''Montgomery Advertiser'' has praised the SPLC efforts for helping to teach tolerance in schools.<ref>"SPLC teaching materials earn top honor from education publishers", ''[[Montgomery Advertiser]], June 20, 2007''</ref> In November 2000, ''[[Harper's Magazine]]'' published an article titled "The Church of Morris Dees" by [[Ken Silverstein]], which was critical of the SPLC.<ref name=Silverstein>Ken Silverstein, "[http://www.harpers.org/archive/2000/11/0068709 The Church of Morris Dees]," ''[[Harper's Magazine]],'' 1 November, 2000, No. 1806, Vol. 301; Pg. 54 ; ISSN: 0017-789X. </ref> In it Silverstein wrote "Morris Dees doesn't need your financial support" because "the SPLC is already the wealthiest 'civil rights' group in America." Furthermore, Silverstein claimed "Back in 1978, when the Center had less than $10&nbsp;million," but then it sought 50&nbsp;million dollars and again "upped the bar to $100&nbsp;million" to allow the Center "to cease the costly and often unreliable task of fund raising." However, in 2000 "the SPLC's treasury bulges with $120&nbsp;million, and it spends twice as much on fund-raising — $5.76&nbsp;million last year — as it does on legal services for victims of civil rights abuses." In fact, Silverstein cited the [[American Institute of Philanthropy]] who in 2000 gave "the center one of the worst ratings of any group it monitors, estimating that the SPLC could operate for 4.6 years without making another tax-exempt nickel from its investments or raising another tax-deductible cent from well-meaning 'people like you'." The charity evaluation organization [[Charity Navigator]] gives SPLC an overall rating of three out of four stars.<ref>[http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm/bay/search.summary/orgid/4482.htm Charity Navigator Rating - Southern Poverty Law Center<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> According to Charity Navigator: program expenses are 68.2%, administrative expenses are 14.2%, and fundraising is 17.4%.<ref>[http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm/bay/search.summary/orgid/4482.htm Charity Navigator Rating - Southern Poverty Law Center<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The Center states that "During its last fiscal year, the Center spent approximately 65% of its total expenses on program services. The Center also placed a portion of its income into a special, board-designated endowment fund to support the Center's future work." At the end of the fiscal year, the endowment stood at $201.7&nbsp;million."<ref>[http://www.splcenter.org/donate/financialinfo/financial.jsp SPLC Financial Information]</ref> ==References== <!--See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref(erences/)> tags--> {{reflist|2}} ==External links== *[http://www.splcenter.org Southern Poverty Law Center] &ndash; Official website *[http://www.tolerance.org Tolerance.org] &ndash; Official website *[http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/ Intelligence Report] &ndash; Official website * [http://www.learningtogive.org/papers/index.asp?bpid=160 Briefing Paper on SPLC] from Learning to Give *[http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm/bay/search.summary/orgid/4482.htm Ratings] from the [[Charity Navigator]] [[Category:Anti-neo-Nazi organizations]] [[Category:Anti-racist organizations]] [[Category:Legal defense organizations]] [[Category:Southern United States]] [[Category:Civil liberties advocacy groups in the United States]] [[Category:Organizations established in 1971]] [[de:Southern Poverty Law Center]] [[fr:Southern Poverty Law Center]]