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The Demography of the Alt-Right
HighlightsDivorce does seem to increase the likelihood a respondent will believe whites suffer discrimination and the likelihood that a white person will agree with all three of the basic premises of white identity politics.
Higher incomes are associated with lower levels of white racial identity, racial solidarity, and feelings of discrimination.
by George Hawley, @GEORGEHAWLEYUA
A year ago, the so-called Alt-Right (short for "alternative right" and the latest manifestation of the U.S. white nationalist movement) made international headlines in its infamous "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, VA. The rally led to dozens of serious injuries and the death of one counter protester. Scholars and journalists have written much about this phenomenon, trying to discern where it came from and what it means for American democracy. The Alt-Right, and the racist Right more broadly, has proven very difficult to quantitatively and systematically study.
The Alt-Right has proven particularly challenging from an analyst's perspective because of its amorphous nature and the anonymity of most of its adherents. Most Alt-Right activity takes place on the Internet, and fear of public exposure causes most people involved in the movement to rely on pen names.
The Alt-Right as a term seems to be declining in popularity, as the movement has suffered a series of setbacks over the last year. Yet the constituency for explicit white identity politics remains, which is why it is helpful to understand the economic and demographic factors that are correlated with that ideology.
Alt-Right Core Attitudes
Studying the attitudes and demographic traits of people who self-identify with the Alt-Right or a similar ideology is a great challenge. However, if we can pinpoint the attitudes that form the basis of white identity politics, and we can reasonably expect respondents to answer questions about those attitudes honestly, we can begin discerning which people are particularly likely to find such movements appealing.
Movements like the Alt-Right are correctly classified as racist. However, there are elements to these kinds of movements beyond simple racial animus, anxiety, or resentment. Although the racist right can be ideologically diverse and make many different arguments, there are three key sentiments that are widely shared across these movements: 1) a strong sense of white identity, 2) a belief in the importance of white solidarity, and 3) a sense of white victimization. Although someone who rates high on all of these views may not necessarily identify with the Alt-Right or a similar movement, we can anticipate all or nearly all individuals who are involved in white identity politics to share these attitudes.
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https://ifstudies.org/blog/the-demography-of-the-alt-right
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