The Insidious Influence of the SPLC

[Belk]

Apparently the FBI agrees with my view since they stopped using it a while back.



How about the way they decided to label Hirsi Ali and Nawaz as anti - Muslim extremists. One is a Muslim reformer and the other is a women's rights activist who is critical of the way women are treated in the Muslim world because she grew up in it, including FGM.

It would appear that Hirsi Ali did hold and advocate some extremist views. It appears that lately she has moderated her stance so perhaps they will take her off. I agree that Nawaz does not appear to be an extremist and likely should not be on the list.

 

[AllButNone]

That's not true.

In support of your position...

At the same time the FBI removed links to the SPLC, it also removed links to the ADL, which, as Rion's link shows, was also touted by the right wing media in the same way the media touted the SPLC's removal.

Amusingly, here's a speech Comey made just a few months ago, concernign the ADL.

The speech doesn't match the right wing narrative. At all. On the contrary, it seems like the FBI has emphatic support for the ADL and its mission and maintains quite a bit of cooperation.

Whether or not it's the same for the SPLC is unclear, but if it remains this positive on the ADL despite the ADLs removal from the FBI webpage, there's little reason to think removal from the FBI webpage is evidence of anything other than the FBI succumbing to some right wing pressure to publicy distance itself.

Indeed, The Daily Caller provided what seems to be the FBIs official position on the matter.

“Upon review, the Civil Rights program only provides links to resources within the federal government,” an FBI spokesman told The Daily Caller in 2014. “While we appreciate the tremendous support we receive from a variety of organizations, we have elected not to identify those groups on the civil rights page.”​

Although the Daily Caller jumps into speculation as to why the FBI removed those organizations, Comey's speech seems to make clear that in the case of the ADL, it wasn't due to any loss of respect or cooperation.

So why, then, would the removal of the SPLC from an FBI webpage be evidence of anything?

 

[Rion]

That's not true.

ETA: linkie to FBI page:

Public Outreach: The FBI has forged partnerships nationally and locally with many civil rights organizations to establish rapport, share information, address concerns, and cooperate in solving problems. These groups include such organizations as the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, American Association of University Women, Anti-Defamation League, Asian American Justice Center, Hindu American Foundation, Human Rights Campaign, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, National Center for Transgender Equality, National Council of Jewish Women, National Disability Rights Network, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, National Organization for Women, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, The Sikh Coalition, Southern Poverty Law Center, and many others.

(emphasis added)​

Here is their page on Charles Murray who they criticize as a White Nationalist (hey, what's wrong with that?).

Ayaan Hirsi Ali - how is she not an anti-Muslim extremist?

Here is their write-up on Maajid Nawaz, including "But major elements of his story have been disputed by former friends, members of his family, fellow jihadists and journalists, and the evidence suggests that Nawaz is far more interested in self-promotion and money than in any particular ideological dispute. He told several different versions of his story, emphasizing that he was deradicalized while in Egypt — even though he in fact continued his Islamist agitation for months after returning."

The Southern Poverty Law Center does present documentation for what they say - afterwards you can disagree with the conclusions they draw if you wish.

Yeah, right - tell me, who is listed as a resource on their Hate Crimes website?

If they are so disreputable, why has the FBI "forged [a partnership with them] to establish rapport, share information, address concerns, and cooperate in solving problems"? It doesn't sound to me as though they agree with your view.

What? You can't not read the original source when you're looking to see if they are biased. How would you know what they were writing about these people unless you actually read it? I linked to what they actually said so people for themselves could see if what they were saying was biased or not, or to what degree.

We already went through all that two and half years ago. Here, read all about it.

You linked to their cherry picking.

It would appear that Hirsi Ali did hold and advocate some extremist views. It appears that lately she has moderated her stance so perhaps they will take her off. I agree that Nawaz does not appear to be an extremist and likely should not be on the list.

She's a woman who was abused by people within her religion and became an atheist as a result. She then began to receive regular death threats for being an apostate while living in the Netherlands. I don't think that you can ignore the context of her comments. If she had been a former Catholic who was abused by a priest and then said the things she has said, no one would bat an eye. Like many firebrands, she's not exactly great at nuance, and a fair assessment can be found here:

Is Ayaan Hirsi Ali an Anti-Muslim Extremist?

 

[KCfromNC]

Figured out a possible reason for this random attack on the SPLC. Pence recently met with Focus on the Family and promised them support from the administration. The FRC, which is part of that organization, is labeled a hate group due to their consistent anti-homosexual propaganda and lobbying.

Weird that the message would make it here so quickly, but I guess getting the word out from the Trump admin is a really important hobby for some.

 

[Cearbhall]

I really don't get why people continue to give this group the time of day.

I don't know why people give Focus on the Family the time of day. Who cares if a group is mainstream? The United States isn't somehow immune from having mainstream ideological problems. That status just makes it more alarming.

 

[essentialsaltes]

it has managed to blur the lines, besmirching mainstream groups like the FRC, as well as people such as social scientist Charles Murray and Somali-born Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a critic of Islamic extremism.

I really don't get why people continue to give this group the time of day.

Just because a group is mainstream does not mean that nothing is wrong with them.