McAleer - Cure for Hate: A Former White Supremacists Journey from Violent Extremism to Radical Compassion

THE

CURE

FOR

HATE

THE

CURE

FOR

HATE

A FORMER WHITE SUPREMACISTS

JOURNEY FROM

VIOLENT EXTREMISM

TO RADICAL COMPASSION

TONY McALEER

THE CURE FOR HATE

Copyright 2019 by Tony McAleer

Foreword copyright 2019 by Daisy Khan

Introduction copyright 2019 by Dv Baron

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any part by any meansgraphic, electronic, or mechanicalwithout the prior written permission of the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may use brief excerpts in a review, or in the case of photocopying in Canada, a licence from Access Copyright.

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The publisher gratefully acknowledges the support of the Canada Council for the Arts and the British Columbia Arts Council for its publishing program, and the Government of Canada, and the Government of British Columbia (through the Book Publishing Tax Credit Program), for its publishing activities.

Arsenal Pulp Press acknowledges the xmkym (Musqueam), Swxw7mesh (Squamish), and slilwta (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, speakers of Hulquminum/Halqemylem/hnqminm and custodians of the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories where our office is located. We pay respect to their histories, traditions, and continuous living cultures and commit to accountability, respectful relations, and friendship.

Cover and text design by Oliver McPartlin

Edited by Shirarose Wilensky

Copy edited by Linda Pruessen

Proofread by Alison Strobel

Printed and bound in Canada

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication:

Title: The cure for hate : a former white supremacists journey from violent extremism to radical compassion / Tony McAleer.

Names: McAleer, Tony, 1967 author.

Identifiers: Canadiana (print) 20190122870 | Canadiana (ebook) 20190122951 | ISBN 9781551527697 (softcover) | ISBN 9781551527703 (HTML)

Subjects: LCSH: McAleer, Tony, 1967 | LCSH: ExtremistsCanadaBiography. | LCSH: White Aryan Resistance. | LCSH: White supremacy movementsCanada. | LCSH: RacismCanada. Classification: LCC FC104 .M33 2019 | DDC 320.56/9dc23

This book is dedicated to all the men and women that I have caused harm to in the past that I may not have the opportunity to address. I am truly sorry for the harm I have caused.

In loving memory of Stephen Francis

Hate is too great a burden to bear.
I have decided to love.
Martin Luther King Jr., Where Do We Go from Here?
address delivered at the eleventh annual Southern Christian
Leadership Conference, August 16, 1967

CONTENTS

by Daisy Khan

by Dv Baron

FOREWORD

ITS SAID THAT HISTORY never repeats itself, but it does rhyme. In our current moment, with the return of xenophobic ideologies and eerily familiar far-right symbolism, we are forced to wonder what history has in store for us next. How could so many ordinary people be swayed by discredited and violent ideas? Even if we are personally averse to discrimination and cruelty, will our friends and neighbours refrain?

Ive been lucky enough to know Tony McAleer for years, and in such a bewildering time as ours, we need a reliable guide like him. Because our era prizes excess over expertise, we need to hear from those who know the mindset of the loudest and most extreme voices, and who can advise us on how to penetrate the noise and reach the hearts that can be reached. Although you might not guess it by merely looking at us, Tony and I have more than one thing in common: we are committed to understanding hate, educating about hate, and eradicating hate, using the most cutting-edge research and the power of our own very different stories.

Its remarkable that, despite our vastly separate backgrounds, Tony and I have arrived at a point of deep agreementthat all extremisms, regardless of their varying language and symbols, are overwhelmingly similar. Whether from the far right or far left, whether religious or secular, extremist ideologies reveal the same core traits, such as an us versus them mentality, a rewriting of history and religious doctrine, and a profound victim complex. In my own experience, I have witnessed how prejudice against Muslim communities has been exploited by extremist recruiters, who poison the minds of young peopleusually religious novicesto believe that the defence of their own people requires violence against others. I have seen the great tradition of Islam weaponized for political purposes by groups such as Al Qaeda and Daesh, and by their far-right counterparts who share an equally impoverished view of the faith of 2 billion people. Like Tony, I see the need to explain these fanatical trends without excusing them.

This book offers a close-up example of how prejudice, propaganda, and, especially, shame create an environment in which such a weaponization of ideas can thrive. It is no accident that white supremacist extremists portray themselves as proud, militant, and unstoppableas Tony explains, this is precisely the technique that allows so many of them to cover up their history of childhood trauma and societal powerlessness that they have internalized for years. In the same way, I have seen extremist fringes of the wide Muslim world attempt to compensate for the collective dishonour of colonization, demonization, and discrimination. When people are treated as if they do not deserve love, they are at risk of seeking false love in the camaraderie of gang violence and cultish isolation. By recounting the details of this process in his own life, Tony enlivens an academic subject with his vital testimony.

Most importantly, Tony offers us lessons for how to turn the tide of radicalization, one person at a time. Through his own disengagement from violent politics, and through the exceptional work of Life After Hate, he shows us that the best methods of counter-extremism involve the very principles of human dignity, radical compassion, and honest justice that the lost seek to undermine. With such wisdom in our tool kit, we do not need to be dominated by fear and fanaticism, and together we can write the next chapter of history.

Daisy Khan

July 2019

Executive editor, WISE Up: Knowledge Ends Extremism

Author, Born with Wings: The Spiritual Journey of a Modern Muslim Woman

Founder, Womens Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality

INTRODUCTION

HIS FORCED SMILE AND desire to crack jokes didnt hide his discomfort, so I got to the point.

Look, Tony, I said, we only have an hour, and youve spent the first fifteen minutes doing your best not to say something, something I think you really want to say. So lets stop wasting both of our time. Im here to help, assist, even guide, but I cant do that if you dont tell me why youre here.