The Southern Poverty Law Center is accused of paying a member of the chat group that organized the 2017 “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Va.
Steve Helber/Associated Press
In this age of blatantly political prosecutions, the presumption of innocence is more important than ever. So right away, let’s acknowledge that there’s reason to doubt that the Southern Poverty Law Center is guilty of wire and bank fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy, as federal prosecutors allege in an 11-count indictment.
That’s for a jury to decide. But I do know, from firsthand experience, that the SPLC hasn’t always been a trustworthy source of information.
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The Alabama-based nonprofit presents itself as a leading fighter for racial justice, and perhaps it is. But according to the indictment, the group paid leaders of the Ku Klux Klan, the Aryan Nations and other groups millions to act as paid informants. It’s accused of funding the very groups it was supposed to be fighting.
The SPLC concedes it paid informants and says its infiltration of hate groups was important and life-saving work. It accused the Trump administration of a politically motivated attack, which would surprise not a soul, but doesn’t mean the allegations aren’t, at the very least, concerning.
My experience with the SPLC happened about a decade ago, when the group claimed that a Klan chapter was active in Altamont and that a hate group called the Black Riders Liberation Party was operating in Albany. Both communities were placed on the SPLC’s “hate map.”
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Former Mayor Kathy Sheehan, who was an SPLC donor, was able to get Albany removed from the map after the city investigated and found no evidence for the Black Riders claim. That indicated the SPLC lacked confidence in its information, which seemed to be based on little actual proof.
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And what about Altamont? Was the Klan really alive in the lovely Albany County village?
Well, the Loyal White Knights of the KKK were happy to have me speak with the head of their supposed “klavern” in Altamont. I received a call from a man who claimed to be a local Exalted Cyclops, whatever that is, and the grand pooh-bah of the Altamont chapter.
When I asked about the size of the Altamont group, the Cyclops fellow claimed it had 600 members in the “tri-state area.” Wait, what? Sorry, Cy, but there’s only one state in these parts.
It was quickly obvious Cyclops knew nothing about “Al-ti-mint,” as he kept calling it, and that he wasn’t local. Mostly, he just wanted to prattle on about immigrants and the put-upon white man. The call was largely a waste of time.
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When I subsequently asked the SPLC for proof of its claim, a spokesperson said there really wasn’t any and told me the center’s information mostly came from the hate groups themselves. So, if the Klan claims an Altamont chapter, the village makes the map. Cyclops’ word is proof enough.
I can’t think of a less reliable source than a racist eager to hype the size and scope of the Klan’s influence, but that didn’t seem to matter to the SPLC. The spokesman, Mark Potok, essentially conceded that attention was the most important thing.
“What we’re trying to do is educate the public that there are more of these groups than people realize,” Potok told me. “The map is often shocking to people.”
I don’t doubt it. You might also be shocked if I said there’s a rattlesnake under your chair, but that wouldn’t make the claim accurate or justifiable.
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But the SPLC, with assets of nearly $800 million, could benefit from suggesting organized bigotry was thriving in places like Altamont, as scary claims elevated its importance. In that respect, SPLC shared an interest with the hate groups it countered.
“The SPLC is manufacturing racism to justify its existence,” Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche said.
It never occurred to me that the SPLC might have paid someone in the Klan for the Altamont claim, but now I wonder. Among other informants, the group is alleged to have paid $270,000 to a member of a chat group that helped plan the deadly “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Va.
If true, the SPLC mimicked the most ethically dubious tactics of law enforcement, including the FBI’s handling of Shahed Hussain.
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Many of you will know that Hussain was the confidential informant behind a series of dubious terrorism stings, including the Albany pizza-shop scheme that snared a Central Avenue imam and a business owner. Hussain was also the owner of Prestige Limousine, the company that put a dangerous stretch Ford Excursion on the road, leading to the death of 20 innocents in a horrific Schoharie crash.
The problem with paying informants should be obvious. You’re giving ethically challenged people an incentive to tell you something that isn’t the truth. You might even be aiding and abetting their bad behavior.
I’ve had little confidence in the Southern Poverty Law Center since my chat with Cyclops. I trust them less now.
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