List of symbols designated by the Anti-Defamation League as hate symbols

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This is a list of hate symbols, including acronyms, numbers, phrases, logos, flags, gestures and other miscellaneous symbols used for hateful purposes, according to the Anti-Defamation League.[1] Some of these items have been appropriated by hate groups and may have other, non-hate-group-related meanings,[2][3] including anti-racist meanings.[4]

Acronyms[edit]

Acronym Origins Meaning
ACAB[4] Skinhead subculture "All Cops Are Bastards"
AKIA[5] Ku Klux Klan "A Klansman I Am"
AYAK[6] Ku Klux Klan "Are You A Klansman?"
FGRN[7] Ku Klux Klan "For God, Race, and Nation"
GTKRWN[8] General white supremacy "Gas the Kikes; Race War Now"
HFFH[9] Hammerskins "Hammerskins Forever, Forever Hammerskins"
HSN[10] Hammerskins "Hammerskin Nation"
ITSUB[11] Ku Klux Klan "In The Sacred Unfailing Being", a reference to God
KABARK[12] Ku Klux Klan "Konstantly Applied By All Regular Klansmen"
KIGY[13] Ku Klux Klan "Klansman, I Greet You"
KLASP[14] Ku Klux Klan "Klanish Loyalty, A Sacred Principle"
LOTIE[15] Ku Klux Klan "Lady Of The Invisible Empire", in reference to a female Klan member
OFOF[16] Volksfront "One Front, One Family"
ORION[17] General white supremacy "Our Race Is Our Nation"
RAHOWA[18] Creativity (religion) "Racial Holy War"
ROA[19] Volksfront "Race Over All"
SS[20] Nazi Germany "Schutzstaffel" Note: "SS" not specifically listed
SWP[21] Californian prison system "Supreme White Power"
WP[22] General white supremacy "White Power" or "White Pride"
WPWW[23] Stormfront (website) "White Pride Worldwide"
ZOG[24] Anti-Semitism "Zionist-Occupied Government"

Numerical[edit]

Number Origins Meaning
1–11[25] Aryan Knights Representing the first and eleventh letters of the alphabet, A and K, meaning "Aryan Knights"
100%[26] General white supremacy "100% White"
109/110[27] General antisemitism White supremacists claim that Jews have been expelled from 109 nations throughout history; by calling for America to expel Jews as well, they aim to make the USA the "110th". This number is sometimes combined with the numeric code 1488, creating 1488–110.
12[28] Aryan Brotherhood Representing the first and second letters of the alphabet, A and B, meaning "Aryan Brotherhood"
13[29] Aryan Circle Representing the first and third letters of the alphabet, A and C, meaning "Aryan Circle"
13/52 and 13/90[30] General white supremacy The number 13 refers to the purported percentage of the U.S. population that is African-American. The number 52 refers to the alleged percentage of all murders committed in the U.S. that are committed by African-Americans. Some white supremacists use the number 50 instead of 52. The number 90 refers to the percentage of violent interracial crime allegedly committed by African-Americans.
14[31] David Lane (white supremacist) Shorthand for Fourteen Words, "We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children"
14/23[32] General white supremacy The Fourteen Words and 23 Precepts - rules for the Southern Brotherhood prison gang
14/88[33] General white supremacy The Fourteen Words and the eighth letter of the alphabet, H, repeated twice, standing for "Heil Hitler"
18[34] Combat 18 Representing the first and eighth letters of the alphabet, A and H, meaning "Adolf Hitler"
21–2–12[35] The Unforgiven (prison gang) Representing the twenty-first, second, and twelfth letters of the alphabet, U, B, and L, meaning "Unity, Brotherhood, Loyalty"
23/16[36] General white supremacy Representing the twenty-third and sixteenth letters of the alphabet, W and P, meaning "White Power" or "White Pride"
28[37] Blood & Honour Representing the second and eighth letters of the alphabet, B and H, meaning "Blood & Honour"
311[38] Ku Klux Klan Representing the eleventh letter of the alphabet, K, repeated three times, meaning "Ku Klux Klan"
318[39] Combat 18 Representing the third letter of the alphabet, C, and 18, meaning "Combat 18"
33/6[40] Ku Klux Klan The thirty-three represents three elevens, as K is the eleventh letter of the alphabet, and three of them make "KKK" – the six represents the sixth "era" of the Ku Klux Klan
38[41] Hammerskins Representing the third and eighth letters of the alphabet, C and H, meaning "Crossed Hammers" a reference to the logo of the Hammerskins
43[42] Supreme White Alliance If one substitutes numbers for the letters in Supreme White Alliance's initials (19, 23, 1), then adds those numbers together, the total is 43.
511[43] European Kindred Representing the fifth and eleventh letters of the alphabet, E and K, meaning "European Kindred"
737[44] Public Enemy No. 1 (gang) The numbers 737 correspond to the letters P, D, and S on a telephone keypad; the initials PDS stand for Peni Death Squad, another name for the group
83[45] Christian Identity Representing the eighth and third letters of the alphabet, H and C, meaning "Heil Christ" or "Hail Christ"
88[46] General white supremacy Representing the eighth letter of the alphabet, H, repeated twice, meaning "Heil Hitler"
9%[47] General white supremacy The percentage of the world's population that is purportedly white

Phrases[edit]

Phrase Alternate phrase(s) or examples Meaning
"Anudda Shoah" "Anuddah Shoah" A phrase used to mock the concept that Jewish people regularly talk about the Holocaust; "Annuda" is a spelling of "Another" as if spoken with a heavy Yiddish accent, and "Shoah" is a Hebrew word meaning "Catastrophe", and it is regularly used in reference to the Holocaust. As such, the phrase can be read as: "It's like another Holocaust!"
"Anti-Racist Is a Code for Anti-White" A phrase implying that opponents of racism are secretly trying to eliminate white people, and that being anti-racist is no different than hating white people.
"Blue-Eyed Devils"[48] A racial slur originating from Asia to refer to people of European ancestry, it has been adopted by some white supremacists who began to refer to themselves as "Blue-Eyed Devils".
"Blut und Ehre" A German phrase translating to "Blood and Honor", it was used as a political slogan by the Hitler Youth.
"Crazy White Boy"[49] A generic phrase used by white supremacists to identify themselves to other white supremacists.
"Day of the Rope" A phrase referring to a fictional event in the neo-Nazi book The Turner Diaries. In the novel, the "Day of the Rope" is an event where mass lynchings took place against minorities, journalists, race-mixers and politicians, all within the span of a day.
"Diversity = White Genocide"[50] A slogan implying that growing cultural diversity will bring about "White Genocide".
"Featherwood" The female equivalent to a "Peckerwood", or a member of a white supremacist street or prison gang.
"Hate" "H8" White supremacists used the word to openly proclaim their hatred to people unlike them.
"Hate Edge" "NS Straight Edge", "sXe", "XXX" A white supremacist offshoot of the Straight Edge movement.
"I have nothing to say"[51] "5 Words", "Five Words" White supremacists claim that these five words should be the only words spoken to police officers.
"It's Okay to Be White" A phrase originating on 4chan in 2017, it was created with the purpose of putting it on fliers to be put in public places. Originators assumed that "liberals" would react negatively to such fliers and condemn them or take them down, thus "proving" that liberals did not even think it was "okay" to be white.
"Love Your Race" A phrase used by white supremacists to encourage racialism.
"Meine Ehre Heißt Treue" "Unser Ehre Heißt Treue" A German phrase translating to "My Honor is Loyalty". It was originally a motto used by the Waffen SS.
"Muh Holocaust" An antisemitic meme used to imply that Jewish people "whine" about the Holocaust. The word "Muh" means "My".
"Non Silba Sed Anthar" "NSSA" A Latin/Gothic phrase translating to "Not Self, But Others", a phrase used by the Ku Klux Klan.
"Peckerwood" Originally a racial epithet aimed at white people, it was adopted by white supremacists. A "Peckerwood" is a member of a white supremacist street or prison gang.
"Sieg Heil" "Hail Victory" A German phrase translating to "Hail Victory". It was one of the most widely used slogans by the Nazi Party.
"Six Gorillion" "Muh Six Gorillion" A phrase making reference to the six million Jewish people killed in the Holocaust. The "million" is replaced with the nonsensical "Gorillion", implying that the number of Jewish deaths caused by the Holocaust is greatly exaggerated.
"The Goyim Know, Shut It Down!" "Da Goyim Know" A mocking antisemitic phrase meant to be understood as spoken by a panicked Jew responding to an occurrence that would ostensibly reveal the "Jewish plot" to manipulate non-Jewish people (A.K.A. "Goyim").
"We Wuz Kangs" "We Wuz Kings",

"Kings N Shiet"

A phrase, written as if spoken in exaggerated African-American Vernacular English, saying "We Were Kings". This phrase mocks the Black Egyptian hypothesis. More specifically, it mocks the idea held by some people of Sub-Saharan African descent that their ancestors were Pharaohs of the Egyptian civilization. The use of mock-vernacular is meant to contrast supposedly "uneducated" African-Americans with supposedly "civilized" Ancient Egyptians.
"White Lives Matter" "WLM" A phrase meant to combat and oppose the Black Lives Matter movement.
"You Will Not Replace Us" "Jews Will Not Replace Us", "YWNRU" A reference to the popular white supremacist belief that white people are in danger of extinction due to increasing birth rates among non-white people and decreasing birth rates among white people.

Hate group logos[edit]

Group Image Status Notes
Advanced White Society[52] Inactive;

Legacy

American Front Active
Identity Evropa Inactive;

Rebranded as the American Identity Movement

Aryan Brotherhood Current
Atomwaffen Division Current
Bound for Glory Active
Daily Stormer Book Club Current
European Kindred Active
Ku Klux Klan Active
Mississippi Aryan Brotherhood Active
National Socialist Movement (United States) Current
New Black Panther Party
Patriot Front Current Patriot Front is an American white supremacist, neo-fascist, and American nationalist hate group. Part of the broader alt-right movement, the group split off from the neo-Nazi organization Vanguard America during the aftermath of the Unite the Right rally in 2017.
Skrewdriver[53] Inactive;

Defunct

British white supremacist band, broke up in 1993, but still popular amongst the far-right, especially in Britain. They have been the subject of at least one parody group, "Jewdriver".[54]
Stormfront (website) Active Stormfront is a neo-Nazi Internet forum, and the Web's first major racial hate site. The site is primarily focused on propagating white nationalism, antisemitism, Holocaust denial and white supremacy.
Brothers of White Warriors[55] Prison gang whose most common symbol is an Iron Cross containing the group's initials, jail bars, and a swastika
Aryan Cowboy Brotherhood[56] Active

Flags[edit]

Flag Image Notes
Confederate battle flag/
Confederate States Navy jack (1863–1865)
(lighter blue field)
Although this was not the national flag of the Confederate States of America, it was later used by racist groups to attack Black people in the American South. This flag is also commonly-known as the "Rebel flag".
Flag of South Africa (1928–1994) During the time when the flag was used, South Africa implemented the apartheid system, which ordered all Black citizens to use poor-quality facilities, making life more difficult and dangerous for Black and Coloured South Africans. It was later used by racist groups to show their opposition to multiculturalism and hatred of non-White people.
Vinland flaga The Vinland flag was appropriated by racist groups from English-speaking parts of Canada and America to represent their Norse origins. It is also used by non-racist Norse neopagans.
Volksfront flag
Imperial German Reichskriegflagge This flag is used by modern Neo-Nazis, especially in Germany and the United States, to bypass the legal ban of the Nazi flag. Because of this usage, its use is considered as a crime within seven states in Germany. In the other nine German states, misuse of the flag for fascist purposes is punishable with a fine.
Nazi Party flag As the flag of Nazi Germany, it has become notorious in the Western world as representative of the exterminations under the Holocaust, and Nazi hatred of other races and people considered "weak" or "inferior".
Northwest American Republic

Gestures[edit]

Gesture Image
Nazi salute
88 (hand sign)
Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (hand sign)
White Power sign (OK gesture)

Miscellaneous symbols[edit]

Symbol Image Explanation
Anti-Antifa imagery[57] Commonly used as memes or symbols by white supremacists to mock Antifa activists.
Anti-SHARP imagery[58] Used by racist skinheads to target and demean anti-racist skinheads (SHARPs)
Arrow Cross Based on the symbol of the Arrow Cross Party, a Hungarian fascist political party.
Celtic crossa
Crossed grenades Based on the symbol of the SS-Sturmbrigade Dirlewanger, headed by Oskar Dirlewanger, the namesake of the brigade.
Iron Cross
(German military award of the Third Reich era)
St. Michael's Cross Based on the symbol of the Iron Guard, a Romanian fascist political party.
Odal (rune) The Odal rune was used during Nazi Germany for two Waffen SS divisions. Likewise, racist neopagan groups also used the odal rune to represent a mythical "Aryan" past. It is also used by non-racist Norse neopagan groups in religious ceremonies.
Siegrunes
Tyr Runea
Jera Runea
Swastika
Triple seven Triskelion[citation needed] Symbol of the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging, an Afrikaner neo-Nazi organization in South Africa.
Valknuta[citation needed]
Wolfsangel
Triple parentheses Used by neo-Nazis online around a person or organization's name to signal that they are secretly Jewish.
Totenkopf
Black Sun (Sonnenrad)
Mjölnira (Thor's Hammer) Racist neopagan groups use the Mjolnir to represent "Aryan" mysticism. However, the symbol is also used by non-racist and anti-racist Norse neopagan groups as a symbol for their religion or to worship Thor.
Nazi eagle
Fasces Initially used as the symbol of authority among Ancient Romans, the symbol was adopted as the fascist symbol due to its acceptance in the public compared to the Nazi Swastika.
Identitarian lambda
Triangular Klan symbol
Burning cross
Noose Nooses were used by racist groups in the United States to threaten Black people, representing lynching.
Crucified Skinhead symbol
Pepe the Frog Cartoon frog character first created in 2005, which has been co-opted as a racist meme since the late 2010s.
Moon Man[citation needed] Racist parody of McDonald's Mac Tonight mascot.
Bowl cut / Dylann Roof The bowl cut is associated with Dylann Roof, who launched a mass murder attack at the Emanuel AME Church, Charleston, South Carolina in 2015.
Ku Klux Klan robes[citation needed]
Pit bull[59] A common subject of neo-Nazi memes as stand-ins for black people, implying their inherent violence/criminality.[original research?]
German Soldier[60] White supremacists often wear tattoos featuring World War-II era German Soldiers.
No Race Mixing sign[61] Typically portrayed as a multiracial couple with a red circle/bar superimposed over the depiction.
Not Equal/Unequal/Not Equal To[62] Mathematical sign "≠" was adopted to imply racial differences, especially white supremacists.
The Happy Merchant

(Alternate names: Jew Face/Le Happy Merchant/Merchant face)[63]

See: A. Wyatt Mann
Trollface (Racist versions)[64]
Boots and Laces Steel-toed work boots are a popular symbol among subcultures related to music. White Power Skinheads, also called Boneheads, may specifically wear them with red or white laces, usually “ladder laced” (uncrossed).[65], but regular lacing also can be seen. It is important to keep in mind that various subcultures, such as Punks and Metalheads, wear boots that can be laced in "ladder lacing" way, in various colors.[66]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

Informational notes

a.^ ^ ^ ^ This symbol, while sometimes used as a hate symbol, is also used as a religious symbol for many pagans, and should not be assumed to be a hate symbol in all contexts.

Citations

  1. ^ "Hate on Display Hate Symbols Database". Anti-Defamation League. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
  2. ^ "Okay Hand Gesture".
  3. ^ "Life Rune".
  4. ^ a b "ACAB". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  5. ^ "AKIA". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  6. ^ "AYAK". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  7. ^ "FGRN". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  8. ^ "GTKRWN". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  9. ^ "HFFH". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  10. ^ "HSN". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  11. ^ "ITSUB". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  12. ^ "KABARK". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  13. ^ "KIGY". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  14. ^ "KLASP". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  15. ^ "LOTIE". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  16. ^ "OFOF". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  17. ^ "ORION". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  18. ^ "RAHOWA". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  19. ^ "ROA". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  20. ^ "SS Bolts". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  21. ^ "SWP". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  22. ^ "WP". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  23. ^ "WPWW". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  24. ^ "ZOG". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  25. ^ "1-11". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  26. ^ "100%". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  27. ^ "109/110". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  28. ^ "12". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  29. ^ "13". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  30. ^ "13/52 and 13/90". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  31. ^ "14". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  32. ^ "14/23". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  33. ^ "14/88". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  34. ^ "18". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  35. ^ "21–2–12". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  36. ^ "23/16". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  37. ^ "28". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  38. ^ "311". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  39. ^ "318". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  40. ^ "33/6". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  41. ^ "38". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  42. ^ "43". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  43. ^ "511". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  44. ^ "737". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  45. ^ "83". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  46. ^ "88". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  47. ^ "9%". ADL. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  48. ^ "Blue Eyed Devils". ADL. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  49. ^ "Crazy White Boy". ADL. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  50. ^ "Diversity = White Genocide". ADL. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  51. ^ "5 Words". ADL. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  52. ^ "Advanced White Society". ADL. Retrieved September 1, 2022.
  53. ^ "Skrewdriver". ADL. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  54. ^ "This Jewish Punk Band Existed to Spite Neo-Nazis". Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  55. ^ "Brothers of White Warriors". ADL. Retrieved September 1, 2022.
  56. ^ "Aryan Cowboy Brotherhood". ADL. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  57. ^ "Anti-Antifa Images". ADL. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  58. ^ "Anti-SHARP Imagery". ADL. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  59. ^ "Pit bull" Anti-Defamation League
  60. ^ "German Soldier". Anti-Defamation League. Retrieved February 19, 2024.
  61. ^ "No Race Mixing". Anti-Defamation League. Retrieved February 19, 2024.
  62. ^ "Not Equal". Anti-Defamation League. Retrieved February 19, 2024.
  63. ^ "The Happy Merchant". Anti-Defamation League. Retrieved February 19, 2024.
  64. ^ "Trollface (Racist Versions)". Anti-Defamation League. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  65. ^ "Boots and Laces".
  66. ^ "What Do Doc Marten Lace Colors Mean?". June 17, 2022.