The Role of Religion in the Collective Identity of the White Racialist Movement- Betty Dobratz

Dobratz’s article, as the name suggests, is an investigation into the role of religion in the white racialist movement. The movement is based on racial pride. Some contend that they are not racist and hate other races but ‘racialist’ meaning simply that they have love for their race. Dobratz focuses on three factions within the movement; Christian Identity, although their theology is not orthodox they still have a unique Christian dogma and believe that whites are God’s chosen people. The religion of the COTC is Creativity and is described as having elements of ‘rewritten Christianity’, health faddism and histrionic racism. Odinism is a form of neo-paganism which they claim is the original religion of north-western Europe. These factions have varying beliefs, each of these religions are constructed to give meaning to the white race so to foster pride and group identity.

In some ways religion is said to be advantageous to the movement. It can be a ‘bridging mechanism’ to connect two doctrines together. Groups sharing beliefs of religion or conspiracy may be influenced to join the racial cause as well. It is also seen as beneficial because it creates choice and makes it more difficult for the government and other organisations to oppose so many unique ideas. One third of the people interviewed by Dobratz said that religion was ‘very important’ because it unites people. However, religion does not always have a positive influence on the movement. Organisations and churches, including the National Council of Churches and the Asatru Alliance, have been critical of their religious beliefs. Many responded that religion is ‘problematic’, because it creates tension which causes disunity. One said that religion is a major obstacle preventing total unity.

There have been calls to find the common denominator and stop bickering about religion. Some say that the ‘master frame’ should be ‘my race is my religion’. Some believe that religion should be a personal thing and others believe that combining race and religion will strengthen the movement. This movement has ‘problematization’ which means it is becoming seen as social problem through popular and official opposition. The long term viability of minority movements is its ability to heal and prevent divides among its followers. In this article Dorbatz presents some interesting observations that may be applied in other minority groups regarding religious factions. She shows that while in some ways these factions and their religions are advantageous, they can also be problematic and cause disunity.