Dylann Roof, Hate and Extremism

"You rape our women and you're taking over our country. And you have to go.” Those are the words spoken by alleged killer Dylan Roof, according to a cousin of Reverend Pinckney, who spoke to survivors of the attack in Charleston. He reloaded his gun five times, they say. Roof was given a gun recently as a 21st birthday present from his father. There are pictures online of him wearing a jacket with a flag of apartheid-era South Africa and a flag of Rhodesia, later renamed Zimbabwe. He’s also been photographed with a Confederate States of America license plate. He has prior arrests for trespassing and drug possession, and a friend has said he was a heavy user of prescription drugs. We look at Roof’s apparent racism and what it could tell us about the nature of his crime.

Credits

Guest:

  • Brian Levin - director of the Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino - @proflevin