Hate Comes to Main Street | Phil Williams | Substack

My Strange Morning With a Neo-Nazi - And Four Action Steps For You

When a neo-Nazi wants to take a selfie with me, I know my work has captured the attention of the extremists I am trying to expose. Now, I'm asking for you to join my efforts.

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Recent posts

Hate in a Hallmark Town, Part 6: 'Love Is Stronger Than Hate - and Better For Us All'

Franklin, Tennessee, Pastor Walter Simmons: "I believe it is important to hear and listen to the voices of those who carry the weight of what happens on…

Jun 29 • Walter Simmons

33:38

Does the GOP Have a Nazi Problem? (w/ Denver Riggleman)

A recording from Phil Williams's live video

Jun 26 • Phil Williams and Denver Riggleman

Selective Outrage? A GOP Blowup Over a Young Republican's Hateful Mailer

ANALYSIS: A county Republican Party erupts over antisemitic viewpoints, but remains silent over similar anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant rhetoric from its…

Jun 25 • Phil Williams

43:46

Meet the Iraq Veteran Waging a Homefront War on Hate

Kristofer Goldsmith and his group monitor and infiltrate extremist groups, imposing "legal, social, and economic costs against them in accordance with…

Jun 24 • Phil Williams and Kristofer Goldsmith

He Despises Jews, Admires Hitler. Now, He's Starring in Videos for a Candidate for Governor

Dane Chisholm says he produced two social media video for Christian nationalist candidate Monty Fritts, but the GOP candidate did not respond to my…

Jun 23 • Phil Williams

Hate in a Hallmark Town, Part 5: A Community Acknowledges a Dark Past

"I humbly plead and pray that telling the stories will prevent us from falling back into darkness," said Franklin, Tennessee, Mayor Ken Moore.

Jun 22 • Phil Williams

34:30

Jemar Tisby: Finding Hope in the Middle of a 'Five-Alarm Fire'

Watch now | The well-respected public historian speaks bluntly about the danger of white Christian nationalism and the threat facing democracy--without…

Jun 19 • Phil Williams

Checking the Facts on Salacious New SPLC Allegations

Did a former SPLC employee really 'funnel $1.2 million to lover in neo-Nazi group'? That's not what a new indictment actually says.

Jun 18 • Phil Williams

30:48

Live with Denver Riggleman: America's Extremism Threat

A recording from Phil Williams's live video

Jun 17 • Phil Williams and Denver Riggleman

Hate Comes to Main Street

Hate Comes to Main Street

Examining the influence of white supremacists, neo-Nazis, Christian nationalists, and QAnon conspiracy theorists on Main Street America.

Top posts

WATCH: 'If Your Church Isn't Telling You to Love Your Enemies, You're Not in a Real Church'

Mar 2 • Phil Williams and John Fugelsang

Hate in a Hallmark Town: The Story of the Challenge Facing Main Street America

Feb 10 • Phil Williams

The Story I Have Not Told Until Now: Neo-Nazi Threats and Harassment

Mar 18 • Phil Williams

Lots of People Are Lying About the SPLC Indictment: Here's the Evidence

Apr 23 • Phil Williams

The Fight for the Southern Baptist Convention - and Strange (Racist, Antisemitic) Bedfellows

Jun 2 • Phil Williams

Recommendations

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Kristofer Goldsmith

SPLC Investigation

Checking the Facts on Salacious New SPLC Allegations

Did a former SPLC employee really 'funnel $1.2 million to lover in neo-Nazi group'? That's not what a new indictment actually says.

Jun 18 • Phil Williams

SPLC Asks Federal Judge to Dismiss Indictment, Citing 'Vindictive Prosecution'

"This is the very definition of a vindictive prosecution. The Court should dismiss the indictment as a violation of due process," newly filed motion…

May 27 • Phil Williams

Far-Right Grudge Match: 'Unite the Right' Organizer Sues Proud Boys Founder

Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes had suggested that Unite the Right organizer Jason Kessler may have been on the payroll of the Southern Poverty Law…

May 13 • Phil Williams

Key 'Unite the Right' Leaders Say MAGA 'Deluded' About SPLC Role in Charlottesville

“They are so deluded. They have so many opinions that are based on nothing but really conspiracy theories—and people who should know better don’t.”

May 5 • Phil Williams

Former SPLC Insider Speaks About DOJ Probe - and 'Strange People on the Hill'

Michael Edison Hayden's new book talks about a quaint tourist town he loves -- and how it was divided by the extremists who decided to make it their…

Apr 29 • Phil Williams

34:39

Phil's Journey

My Strange Morning With a Neo-Nazi - And Four Action Steps For You

When a neo-Nazi wants to take a selfie with me, I know my work has captured the attention of the extremists I am trying to expose. Now, I'm asking for…

4 hrs ago • Phil Williams

Sometimes, I Get Tired From Confronting Hate... Then You Lift Me Up

Sometimes, I get tired.

Jun 15 • Phil Williams

Three Months of 'Hate Comes to Main Street' and a First Look at Next Steps

Recently, I hit the three-month milestone for this independent publication. Here's what I'm thinking now.

May 16 • Phil Williams

Reflections on the Holocaust: Would 2026 America Repeat the Mistakes of 1939?

Would the ocean liner SS St. Louis with its more than 900 Jewish refugees be allowed to come ashore in America today? I'm honestly not sure.

Apr 21 • Phil Williams

The Story I Have Not Told Until Now: Neo-Nazi Threats and Harassment

Following my November 2025 investigation of the Goyim Defense League, I faced threats and harassment. This video and accompanying article tell that…

Mar 18 • Phil Williams

4:25

Hate in a Hallmark Town

Hate in a Hallmark Town, Part 6: 'Love Is Stronger Than Hate - and Better For Us All'

Franklin, Tennessee, Pastor Walter Simmons: "I believe it is important to hear and listen to the voices of those who carry the weight of what happens on…

Jun 29 • Walter Simmons

Hate in a Hallmark Town, Part 5: A Community Acknowledges a Dark Past

"I humbly plead and pray that telling the stories will prevent us from falling back into darkness," said Franklin, Tennessee, Mayor Ken Moore.

Jun 22 • Phil Williams

Hate in a Hallmark Town, Part 4: 'We Were Not Afraid to Stand Up to Hate'

Franklin, Tennessee, resident Peggy Kingsbury never expected that her civic involvement would lead to threats from neo-Nazis. Here is what she learned.

May 4 • Peggy Kingsbury

Hate in a Hallmark Town, Part 3: My Life In the Eye of a White-Supremacist Storm

Once you see the threat posed by such groups to democracy, you no longer have the luxury of looking away. Thankfully, I now know there is an army of…

Feb 16 • Phil Williams

Hate in a Hallmark Town, Part 2: A Cautionary Tale About Power and Control

Never in my 40-year career had I encountered what was, on a small scale, political violence. What does it say about America?

Feb 11 • Phil Williams

In Conversation

33:38

Does the GOP Have a Nazi Problem? (w/ Denver Riggleman)

A recording from Phil Williams's live video

Jun 26 • Phil Williams and Denver Riggleman

Jemar Tisby: Finding Hope in the Middle of a 'Five-Alarm Fire'

Watch now | The well-respected public historian speaks bluntly about the danger of white Christian nationalism and the threat facing democracy--without…

Jun 19 • Phil Williams

34:30

Live with Denver Riggleman: America's Extremism Threat

A recording from Phil Williams's live video

Jun 17 • Phil Williams and Denver Riggleman

30:48

WATCH: The Big-Tech Company Supporting Hate

A recent report from the ADL exposes the role of big-tech company Cloudflare in supporting websites that have been linked to violent extremism.

Jun 8 • Phil Williams

Inside the Mind of a Christian Nationalist Who Wants to Be Governor

Tennessee state Rep. Monty Fritts, who identifies as a Christian nationalist, says he would ban Islam and morning-after pills for rape victims

May 28 • Phil Williams

What I'm Reading

What I'm Reading - The Age of Insurrection: The Radical Right's Assault on American Democracy

Two days before the January 6 riot at the U.S.

Mar 25 • Phil Williams

Searching for Christ in the Discussion of Christian Nationalism: A Tale of Two Books

One relies heavily on the words of Jesus, the other not at all. Guess which one!

Feb 26 • Phil Williams

What I'm Reading - To Catch a Fascist: The Fight to Expose the Radical Right

Incredibly well-written with an edge-of-your-seat narrative pace, To Catch a Fascist taps into interviews with some 60 anti-fascist activists to sort…

Feb 12 • Phil Williams

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