Experts: Dallas Shooter Was Covered with Signs of Extremism
2023-05-10
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1Mauricio Garcia killed eight people and hurt many others when he shot into the car parking area outside a shopping center near Dallas, Texas on Saturday.
2News reports say Garcia showed signs of extremism and had permanent pictures and letters painted on his skin.
3These images are called tattoos.
4He also wore the letters "RWDS" on a part of his clothing.
5The tattoos are described as "Nazi."
6The term comes from the name of the party that controlled Germany under Adolf Hitler in the 1930s and 40s and is linked with racial hatred and violence.
7Reports say Garcia put information online suggesting that he was interested in Nazi images and white supremacist ideas.
8But many people might not know what the letters "RWDS" mean.
9The Associated Press recently reported on the meaning of the letters, or acronym:
10Extremism experts say RWDS stands for "right wing death squad."
11Oren Segal is vice president of the Center on Extremism at the Anti-Defamation League, a nonprofit group based in New York City.
12The group fights antisemitism, extremism and hate.
13Segal said the term first appeared in the 1970s and 1980s when people were describing paramilitary groups that killed the political opponents of dictators in Central and South America.
14The term reappeared about 10 years ago when extreme American groups of the political right started to use RWDS to express their opposition to the extreme political left "more broadly," Segal said.
15Heidi Beirich is co-founder of the group Global Project Against Hate and Extremism, a nonprofit based in Montgomery, Alabama.
16She said the group in the U.S. called the Proud Boys started using the letters most often.
17Photos of Proud Boys leaders have shown them wearing the letters.
18But the Anti-Defamation League said the Proud Boys are not the only ones to wear the RWDS letters.
19Some people were wearing them in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017.
20In August of that year, a white pride rally turned violent, and one woman was killed.
21The New York Times newspaper said social media service Facebook banned groups that used the RWDS acronym after the death in Charlottesville.
22But one expert said the letters and the phrase "right wing death squad" are being used more often.
23Jon Lewis is a researcher for the Program on Extremism at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
24He called the letters "a rallying cry" and said they "cut across and far beyond any individual group."
25Lewis said the groups look favorably on dictators such as Chile's Augusto Pinochet who died in 2006.
26He said the groups want to use the powers of government to carry out "violent genocide" against opponents.
27One professor said that people who wear symbols and acronyms like RWDS do not always know what they mean and where they come from.
28Cynthia Miller-Idriss is director of American University's Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab in Washington, D.C.
29She said something like RWDS spreads on social media.
30While "nobody is accidentally going to have a 'Right Wing Death Squad' patch," she said, "they don't always know exactly" what it means.
31People might wonder why a person named Mauricio Garcia, who was Hispanic, would support white supremacist ideas.
32Enrique Tarrio, a former Proud Boys leader, is Cuban-American.
33Miller-Idriss said people who do not consider themselves to be white can still be interested in white supremacist ideas.
34She said it is the same for women who support "male supremacist movements."
35Tanya Hernandez is a professor at Fordham University in New York City.
36She wrote a book about Latinos who have unfair ideas about Black people.
37She said Latinos are often seen as "unwanted others" in American society.
38But they want to find a way to fit in.
39So, Hernandez said, "what better way to make a claim...than to be part of the enforcement, the policing of whiteness within a white supremacist hate group?"
40I'm Caty Weaver. And I'm Dan Friedell.
1Mauricio Garcia killed eight people and hurt many others when he shot into the car parking area outside a shopping center near Dallas, Texas on Saturday. 2News reports say Garcia showed signs of extremism and had permanent pictures and letters painted on his skin. These images are called tattoos. He also wore the letters "RWDS" on a part of his clothing. 3The tattoos are described as "Nazi." The term comes from the name of the party that controlled Germany under Adolf Hitler in the 1930s and 40s and is linked with racial hatred and violence. Reports say Garcia put information online suggesting that he was interested in Nazi images and white supremacist ideas. 4But many people might not know what the letters "RWDS" mean. 5The Associated Press recently reported on the meaning of the letters, or acronym: 6Extremism experts say RWDS stands for "right wing death squad." 7Oren Segal is vice president of the Center on Extremism at the Anti-Defamation League, a nonprofit group based in New York City. The group fights antisemitism, extremism and hate. 8Segal said the term first appeared in the 1970s and 1980s when people were describing paramilitary groups that killed the political opponents of dictators in Central and South America. 9The term reappeared about 10 years ago when extreme American groups of the political right started to use RWDS to express their opposition to the extreme political left "more broadly," Segal said. 10Heidi Beirich is co-founder of the group Global Project Against Hate and Extremism, a nonprofit based in Montgomery, Alabama. She said the group in the U.S. called the Proud Boys started using the letters most often. 11Photos of Proud Boys leaders have shown them wearing the letters. 12But the Anti-Defamation League said the Proud Boys are not the only ones to wear the RWDS letters. Some people were wearing them in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017. In August of that year, a white pride rally turned violent, and one woman was killed. 13The New York Times newspaper said social media service Facebook banned groups that used the RWDS acronym after the death in Charlottesville. 14But one expert said the letters and the phrase "right wing death squad" are being used more often. 15Jon Lewis is a researcher for the Program on Extremism at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. 16He called the letters "a rallying cry" and said they "cut across and far beyond any individual group." Lewis said the groups look favorably on dictators such as Chile's Augusto Pinochet who died in 2006. He said the groups want to use the powers of government to carry out "violent genocide" against opponents. 17One professor said that people who wear symbols and acronyms like RWDS do not always know what they mean and where they come from. 18Cynthia Miller-Idriss is director of American University's Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab in Washington, D.C. She said something like RWDS spreads on social media. While "nobody is accidentally going to have a 'Right Wing Death Squad' patch," she said, "they don't always know exactly" what it means. 19People might wonder why a person named Mauricio Garcia, who was Hispanic, would support white supremacist ideas. 20Enrique Tarrio, a former Proud Boys leader, is Cuban-American. Miller-Idriss said people who do not consider themselves to be white can still be interested in white supremacist ideas. She said it is the same for women who support "male supremacist movements." 21Tanya Hernandez is a professor at Fordham University in New York City. She wrote a book about Latinos who have unfair ideas about Black people. 22She said Latinos are often seen as "unwanted others" in American society. But they want to find a way to fit in. So, Hernandez said, "what better way to make a claim...than to be part of the enforcement, the policing of whiteness within a white supremacist hate group?" 23I'm Caty Weaver. And I'm Dan Friedell. 24Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press. 25_________________________________________________________________ 26Words in This Story 27tattoo -n. pictures or words permanently written on a person's skin with ink 28Nazi -n. a member of the National Socialist German Workers Party which ruled Germany from 1933 to 1945; an insult used to say a person is very bad 29white supremacist -n. a person who believes that the white race is better and should rule other races 30anti-semitism -n. the hatred of Jewish people 31broadly -adv. widely 32pride -n. a feeling of self-importance 33rally -n. a public meeting to support a cause or person 34symbol -n. any sign or image that represents another idea or belief 35patch -n. a small piece of cloth that is placed on clothing 36__________________________________________________________________ 37We want to hear from you. Have you heard of RWDS before? 38Here is how our comment system works: 39Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.