We Are Many-United Against Hate is a left-of-center activist organization founded on the premise that the United States is beset by racial bigotry, especially white supremacy. ¹ Created by Masood Akhtar, an entrepreneur and racial activist, We Are Many-United Against Hate presents itself as a nonpartisan  outreach and educational organization to promote tolerance and reduce violence. ² Akthar has been honored by President Joe Biden, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and the Southern Poverty Law Center. ³

The organization operates on a community engagement model, conducting presentations, community forums, and one-on-one mentoring to combat what it perceives as the threats of neo-Nazism and xenophobic bigotry in America. ⁴

Political Activism

We Are Many- United Against Hate conducts training, presentations, and more to combat what it claims is a grave threat of racism and white supremacy in America. The organization espouses left-wing racial rhetoric, warning that individuals and communities need to “monitor and develop strategies to combat white supremacist organizations” and that “white supremacist acts of violence should be viewed as political in nature, and therefore potentially premeditated and organized.” ⁵ It urges local governments to “affirm your jurisdiction’s values of equity, inclusion, and justice” and argues that government must address “institutional racism, structural racism, and implicit bias.” ⁶

In 2020, We Are Many-United Against Hate founded its first high school chapter at MacFarland High School in Wisconsin to spread its message against perceived racial bigotry. ⁷ The organization has trained a group of student ambassadors at middle schools, high schools, and universities in Wisconsin to spread its message. ⁸

We Are Many-United Against Hate held a mask-required event titled “Domestic Terrorism” on January 6, 2022, the anniversary of the Capitol riot. ⁹

People

We Are Many-United Against Hate was founded by entrepreneur and left-wing activist Masood Akhtar in 2017. That same year, Akhtar was given a certificate of appreciation by the Southern Poverty Law Center, a controversial watchdog of extremists that has been criticized for labelling nonviolent conventional conservative organizations as equivalent to violent extremists. ¹⁰ Akhtar was added to the SPLC’s Wall of Tolerance. ¹¹ In 2019 he received the  Community Leadership Award from the controversial FBI Director Christopher Wray at the FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C. ¹² The following year he received a certificate of achievement from left-wing Democratic Governor of Wisconsin Tony Evers (D). In 2022, he was recognized by President Joe Biden at the United We Stand summit. ¹³

The advisory board for We Are Many-United Against Hate includes alumni of other left-of center organizations and the Democratic Party, including Martin Alvarado, who sat on the board of the ACLU of Wisconsin; A.J. Nino Amato, who co-authored a book about “hidden racism” in America entitled  Today’s Hidden Racism: A Polite Apartheid; Tim Cullen a former Democratic Party state senator in Wisconsin and former secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Health and Social Services; Philip Fransen, founder of Veterans for Peace; and Amit Pal, the communications director of the Freedom From Religion Foundation. ¹⁴

Sponsors

We Are Many-United Against Hate is sponsored by a variety of media and ethnic organizations in Wisconsin and beyond, including local affiliates of NBC, CBS, and ABC; the Dane County Office of Equity and Inclusion; Madison Magazine; Freedom From Religion Foundation; the McFarland School District; the City of Madison; and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. ¹⁵

1. “Dismantling White Supremacist Hate Violence.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. June 16, 2018. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/dismantling-white-supremacist-hate-violence/.
2. “Our Movement.” WeAre Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/.
3. “Management.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/management/.
4. “Our Movement.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/.
5. “Responding to Hate: Action Guide.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. August 21, 2017. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/resources/responding-to-hate/.
6. “Responding to Hate: Action Guide.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. August 21, 2017. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/resources/responding-to-hate/
7. Girard, Scott. “McFarland High becomes first school chapter of We Are Many-United Against Hate.” The Cap Times, November 28, 2020. https://captimes.com/news/local/education/local_schools/mcfarland-high-becomes-first-school-chapter-of-we-are-many-united-against-hate/article_53c8e8cb-71cc-53ff-a501-4ef3ee5ae5a9.html
8. “Student Ambassador Board.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/student-ambassador-board/.
9. “1/6 Domestic Terrorism.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/1-6-event/.
10. “Management.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/management/.
11. “Our Movement.” WeAre Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/.
12. “Management.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/management/.
13. “Management.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/management/.
14. “Advisory Board.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/advisory-board/.
15. “Sponsors.” We Are Many-United Against Hate. Accessed April 22, 2023. https://www.united-against-hate.org/sponsors/