Cyber Racism

Daniels (City Univ. of New York) focuses on manifestations of white supremacy and, to a lesser degree, gender disparity on the Internet. She is especially interested in offering a preliminary analysis of how the discourse of the white supremacist movement has been translated from print into the digital era. Recommended. * CHOICE *
[Daniels] raises real issues about free speech and community life, particularly as the United States seems to uphold markedly different values from much of the rest of the world. This has implications for post-colonial worldviews and theologies. Daniels, a frequent contributor to literature about white supremacy in the United States, focuses on the utility of the internet to spread racialized (and other) hate speech, arguing that newer media are not immune to the social constructs of American life. In fact, Daniels argues that the ability to “cloak” hate language on the internet increases opportunities to draw unsuspecting young people into the orbit of racist, anti-Semitic, and homophobic world views. The world looks more and more threatening to those who believe in the supremacy of their white group over all others. This book may not show us how to respond, but it surely show us the need to do so. * Journal of Religion, Media and Digital Culture *
[A]nalyses of and opposition to right-wing racism and terror...is to be welcomed, particularly when it is politically progressive, theoretically rich and contains original research into a relatively unexplored and increasingly important medium. For these reasons, Daniels’s book is essential reading. * Patterns Of Prejudice *
White supremacy never sleeps, as pathbreaking sociologist Jessie Daniels again demonstrates. We see how cyber racism spreads like a sprawling cancerous growth across the Internet, as old white-racist groups get reinvigorated and new groups form and thrive all in the interest of aggressively spreading supremacist doctrines to yet more millions across the globe. -- Joe R. Feagin, Texas A&M University
Pathbreaking look into new avenues for white supremacy in a digital age. -- Kathleen M. Blee, University of Pittsburgh; author of Inside Organized Racism: Women in the Hate Movement
In Cyber Racism, Jessie Daniels provides a powerful corrective to rosy accounts of the World Wide Web as inherently progressive or liberatory. By carefully tracking both overt and cloaked hate activities on the web, Daniels reveals the dark underbelly of cyberspace: far-reaching white supremacist organizations that are utilizing the web to spread racism, hatred, and violence. The book convincingly tracks the global dimensions of white supremacy, while also illustrating the myriad ways in which racism intersects with issues of nationalism, gender, and literacy. -- Tara McPherson, Associate Professor of Cinematic Arts, University of Southern California and author of Reconstructing Dixie
Cyber Racism is a wonderful text and an excellent addition to the field. I'm excited to use it in class! -- C. Richard King, Washington State University
I've known Jessie Daniels (for nearly a decade) to be a thoughtful and well-informed observer of the social nuances of online behavior. She's been carefully tracking one of the dark sides of life online, and Cyber Racism promises to be a landmark. -- Howard Rheingold, Stanford University
Jessie Daniels' Cyber Racism is a well-written, insightful, and exhaustive examination of white supremacy online. I recommend this book to anyone who seeks to understand how hatemongers can have so much influence on our society in the digital era. -- Jack Levin