Racist flyers have been found in at least two counties in southeastern Wisconsin — Washington and Ozaukee Counties — with messages promoting closing the border to undocumented immigrants.
There's been a sharp increase in the use of racist propaganda by white power groups in Wisconsin. Between 2023 and 2024, there was a 5% increase.
That’s according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. It’s a legal advocacy organization that specializes in civil rights, and in combating hate and extremism.
The message found on flyers in Zip Loc bags read: "Would you open your home to a fugitive you don’t know? Then, why should we open our borders?"
The Aryan Freedom Network is the group responsible. It’s a neo-Nazi group, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. That means the group shares a hatred for Jewish people, and a love for Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany.
Jeff Tischhauser researches the white power movement for the Southern Poverty Law center. He says the Aryan Freedom Network has become more active in Wisconsin in recent months.
"Our hunch is that they maybe successfully recruited some people and now they’re trying to make a play for territory; just like a gang would, right? So, they’re trying to say hey we’re here now, we’re here in bigger numbers. Come and join us. Or for the targeted communities get out of here, basically," he says.
The Southern Poverty Law Center is tracking about five white power activist groups in Wisconsin who use flyering as a tactic.
Tischhauser says that the use of racist propaganda in Wisconsin has increased.
"Since 2018, this tactic has exponentially grown as a way for these groups to sow fear in targeted communities as well as produce propaganda online," Tischhauser says. "And we’ve tracked about a 1,000% in Wisconsin, there’s been a 1,000% increase in the use of racist propaganda by groups since 2018."
Tischhauser says deportation rhetoric, like the Aryan Freedom Network uses, has always been a tactic of white power activists, especially in their push for policy that supports “getting rid” of people they consider illegal.
But what’s different about them using that rhetoric today, Tischhauser says, is that that same rhetoric is mirrored by the Trump Administration. He says they feel emboldened.
"They’re ... cheering each other on as they see the rhetoric but also policy goals that they’ve had for decades being picked up by the Trump administration," Tischhauser says. "It’s kind of their job as they see it to make sure the Trump administration holds to the commitments that the candidate Trump made on the campaign trail."
Tischhauser says one of the reasons groups use flyers as a tactic is to sow fear.
"Sometimes they feel like they’re going into the so-called lion’s den of these perceived liberal areas, or these areas where they perceive that either Jewish folks live, or Black folks live, or migrants live, right? So, they amp themselves up to target these areas with racist flyering because they know residents are going to see this and become terrified or scared," Tischhauser says.
He adds that there is immense emotional trauma that comes along with seeing these flyers, and that’s what these groups want.
White power activists also leave flyers to direct people to social media content.
"They’re also producing propaganda of their flyering runs. And they post these videos to places like X, to places like Gab, to places like Telegram, these social media platforms with low moderation. These groups are posting to try to attract recruits to try to show people within the white power movement that use these platforms that, 'Hey our group is better than this other group because we’re out there doing something,'" Tischhauser says.
Tischhauser says with the “anything goes” climate on social media platforms, white power activists have more reach.
"It’s really like a — almost like a shopping mall for people who are already radicalized. They get to choose what type of group they want to support," Tischhauser says. "They get to choose what type of optics, or like what type of symbols they want to use to express their white supremacy."
Tischhauser says if you see racist flyers in your community, you can contact your police department. He suggests if you post pictures of the flyers on social media, you should blur the image so as not to share the group’s message.
You can also drop the Southern Poverty Law Center an anonymous tip so it can document the information.
Tischhauser says it’s up to communities to organize and make it known to white power groups that this activity is not welcome because just ignoring it won’t make it go away.
