Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon is bringing a representative from the
Southern Poverty Law Center to help raise awareness about the presence
of the state's hate groups, the Nativist movement and White-supremacist
organizations.
The Montgomery, Ala.-based non-profit organization identifies,
monitors and investigates hate activity across the United States.
According to the center, the number of hate groups nationwide has
risen 54 percent since 2000, fueled by opposition to non-White
immigration, the economic recession and the election of the nation's
first Black president.
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