White supremacy facts for kids
White supremacy is the belief that white people are better than all other races. The words "white supremacy" are sometimes used to describe a political idea that shows the social and political dominance of whites.
White supremacy is a form of racism. It is not to be confused with different political and moral differences that people of any race may hold. White supremacists also want racial separation, which means people of different races living apart. White supremacy has often resulted in anti-black racism and antisemitism (Anti-Jewish hate). Native Americans, Asians, multiracial people, Middle Eastern people, Roma Gypsies, Muslims, mestizo or indigenous Mexicans, non-white Latinos and LGBTQ+ people are also targeted by white supremacists.
The different groups who are in favour of white supremacy do not agree on who is white, nor on which group is their worst enemy. White supremacists often consider Jews to be the biggest threat to their cause, because they think Jews are able to mix much more easily than other ethnic groups.
History
Politically, socially and economically, white supremacy was common in the United States before the American Civil War and for many years after. This is also true for white supremacist regimes in South Africa and Rhodesia and of parts of Europe at different time periods. White supremacy was very important for Nazi Germany's Third Reich. The size of white supremacy's influence on Western culture, and the way it has changed the way that society works are still being argued about. In some parts of the United States, many people who were thought by other people to be non-white could not vote and were not allowed to be part of the government. They were also not allowed to work in most government jobs. They were still not allowed to do this, even into the second half of the 20th century. White leaders in places like the United States and Australia often thought of Native Americans and Indigenous Australians as stopping society from going forward, rather than as people who lived there in their own right. Many European-settled countries which are beside the Pacific Ocean limited immigration from Asian and Pacific countries. Many U.S. states banned marriage between races, through "anti-miscegenation laws" until 1967, when these laws were changed. South Africa had a white supremacist regime, called Apartheid, until 1994. Rhodesia had a white supremacist regime until 1980.
White supremacists have become linked with a racist part of the skinhead subculture. Though when the skinhead subculture first began in the United Kingdom in the late 1960s, it was mostly influenced by the Jamaican rude boys and British mods. By the 1980s, a big white supremacist skinhead faction had formed.
White supremacist movements and ideas
White supremacist groups can be found in most countries and regions with a large white population, including North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand. This also includes areas where most people are not white, such as South Africa and Latin America. In all of these areas, their views represent a small amount of the population, and the amount of people who are active in the groups is quite small. The militant (similar to a military force) approach taken by white supremacist groups has caused them to be watched closely by governments and police. A lot of the things that white supremacists say can influence people to hurt or kill people. This is called hate speech. Some countries have laws against hate speech. Some countries also have laws that ban or limit some white supremacist organizations. However, white supremacist groups are very different to each other. This means that it is hard to ban them all.
Religious movements
The Christian Identity movement, which is regarded by most other Christians as heretical is closely tied to white supremacy. The Ku Klux Klan's reasons for wanting racial segregation are not mainly based on religious ideals. But, some Klan groups are openly Christian Protestant because of they are descended from people from Northern Europe and Germany. Some white supremacists say that they follow the Odinist religion, although most Odinists reject white supremacy, and white supremacists make up only a small part of those who support Odinism (belief in the gods of Norse mythology). Some white supremacist groups, such as the South African Boeremag, put parts of Christianity and Odinism together.
The World Church of the Creator, now called the Creativity Movement promotes a federally-recognized racist religion called Creativity. The basic ideology is based on the idea of a healthy and stong mind in a healthy and strong body in a society in a healthy and strong environment. The religions purpose is the "survival, expansion and advancement of the white race" and "building a whiter and brighter world." Central to this is a unique "holy war" referred to as "RAHOWA" is which members of the white race must take steps to preserve their white race. They believe that all races are at war with each other for territory and natural resources and their war is a religious war. They are not Christian and essentially atheistic agnostic.
Related pages
- Apartheid, a system of rule by white people in South Africa
- Master race, the belief that one race is or ought to be dominant
- Antisemitism, racism against Jews especially by white supremacists
- Anti-Mexican sentiment, many white supremacists are against mestizo Mexican immigration to the United States
See also
In Spanish: Supremacismo blanco para niños
