Erneut habe ich eine Befragung gefunden, die Erkenntnisse zu Kindheitshintergründen von Rechtsextremisten bietet:
Speckhard, A. & Ellenberg, M. (2021, 17.05.): White Supremacists Speak: Recruitment, Radicalization & Experiences of Engaging and Disengaging from Hate Groups. ICSVE Research Reports.
32 (2 weiblich) aktive oder ehemalige Extremisten/Rassisten (die meisten aus den USA, 3 kamen aus Kanada, 3 waren Deutsche, 1 war britisch und 1 aus Neuseeland ) wurden zwischen Oktober 2020 und April 2021 befragt. Sie stammten aus Gruppierungen wie Aryan Nations, Aryan Brotherhood, Christian Identity, Creativity Movement, National Socialist Movement [NSM], Proud Boys, Ku Klux Klan [KKK], various Skinhead groups, Volksfront und Unite the Right.
Die Autorinnen fassen an einer Stelle zusammen:
"This particular sample of white supremacists had a much higher level of adverse childhood experiences than to be expected in the general population and were as a result more vulnerable to groups that gave out the expectation of belonging or familial relations and who conferred on new members a sense of purpose and significance. If this result bears out in larger samples, it shows that addressing childhood abuse and neglect is an important measure for preventing recruitment to white supremacism" (Speckhard & Ellenberg 2021).
Auch zahlenmäßig wurde einiges erfasst:
- 18 (56 %) wuchsen mit jemandem im Haushalt auf, der ein Suchtproblem hatte.
- 16 (50%) hatten selbst ein Drogenproblem.
- 16 (50%) berichteten über eine dysfunktionale Familiensituation (z.B. Inhaftierung eines Elternteils, sich als Außenseiter in der Familie fühlen, sich von Elternteilen abgelehnt fühlen usw.).
- 16 (50%) berichteten von einzelnen traumatischen Erlebnissen wie z.B. Vergewaltigung oder eine Krebserkrankung in der Jugend.
Direkte Gewalterfahrungen in der Familie wurden leider nicht zahlenmäßig erfasst, allerdings wurde Interviewauszüge als Fallbeispiele aufgeführt, die eine deutliche Sprache sprechen:
„[My stepfather] had a drug problem […] He was very angry, I see now. He was a born-again Christian. If you were bad, he would spank you“ und „Both my parents were addicted. My father was a Vietnam vet, later became a plumber. [He was] an alcoholic [and had] problems from the military. [He] drank a lot and [was] fairly abusive“ (Speckhard & Ellenberg 2021).
Sie Suche nach Zugehörigkeit und Familienersatz war eine entscheidende Motivation für den Anschluss an die extremistische Gruppe (was auch andere Befragungen immer wieder zeigten):
"The most commonly expressed motivation was the desire to belong (n = 24) alongside a sense of dignity and positive identity that comes with belonging" (Speckhard & Ellenberg 2021).
Einzelne Akteure beschreiben dies wie folgt:
- "I went to one of their rallies in Mississippi. They put that [arm] around me, we’ll take you in and take care of you. You had a bad life, we’ll take care of you, and they did."
- "Growing up in [a] shit household, I needed a place to belong, that family aspect, to be better than what I was."
- "Family. There was a lot of friendship and family, you could talk with them about everything, and they were going to help you."
Im Schlussteil fassen die Autorinnen erneut und sehr deutlich zusammen:
"The individuals in this study make clear that we cannot simply pull violent extremists from our society like weeds and expect no reappearances. This study makes clear that white supremacist recruitment in large part relies on the unmet needs of those who join and to do away with this type of violent extremism we must address the societal problems that made them vulnerable initially. Drug abuse, poverty, family dysfunction, and child maltreatment all contributed to serious vulnerabilities that left the interviewees with deep unmet needs for a sense of meaning, significance, and purpose in their lives. They felt desperate to belong, to be accepted, to be valued, to have their dignity established and to be given a sense of purpose" (Speckhard & Ellenberg 2021).
