We have to look at white supremacists differently, not as monsters but as broken men and women who are capable of doing monstrous things. I am proof that people can change. We have to be careful not to treat these folks as enemies who can't be saved. If we do that, we'll create more of them.
Christian PiccioliniWe need to make sure that our children know different kinds of people, eat different kinds of food, and learn our true history. The way most schools teach history is wrong. If they talk about slavery it's typically just for a couple of days and the lessons almost never address the systems that have hindered people of color for more than 250 years. This has to change.
Christian PiccioliniThere are a lot of people being duped with misinformation, and they're all rejoicing over Donald Trump. And having a white nationalist be his chief strategist and have a racist be your attorney general, this is a really dangerous situation for our country.
Christian PiccioliniIt's a cause for great concern because a lot of people have said and done repulsive things in terms of racism and misogyny and marginalizing people - it's really come to fruition, something I've spent the last 21 years of my life trying to expose and educate people on. This really is kind of a dream scenario for white nationalists at the moment.
Christian PiccioliniActually, I don't think most people join white supremacist groups because of the ideology or dogma. They gravitate to these groups because they've hit potholes in their lives and there are things they can't figure out how to navigate on their own. This might be bullying, parental abuse or neglect, mental or physical illness, or, for adults, unemployment.
Christian PiccioliniWe've seen hate groups rise across the country. But we've also seen an increase in the average person, who looks like your doctor, your lawyer, your mechanic, your dentists, starting to say the same types of rhetoric. Sometimes it's a little bit more polished, something the average person who has underlying racism can attach himself to. I'm less concerned about skinheads and Klansmen now than the average person who feels emboldened, and the militia and sovereign-citizen groups who are certainly tied to white supremacist organizations, training in paramilitary camps.
Christian Picciolini