2008 Woodie Awards
Stopping The Hate
Reformed neo-Nazi skinhead activist to speak about the culture and nature of hate.
Maruxa Murphy
Issue date: 11/5/04 Section: Features
T.J. Leyden's life took a wrong turn at 15 when his parents divorced, and he turned to punk rock and a violent skinhead culture to vent his anger. Fifteen years later, he was one of the most successful organizers in the white supremacist movement. He even hung a Nazi flag over the crib of his newborn son.
Then something happened that caused a profound, life-changing realization.
"One day I heard my son use the word 'nigger' and saw him give the Nazi salute," Leyden said. "He was only three, and I knew he wasn't going to grow up to find the cure for cancer or serve on the Supreme Court. He was going to be a mindless bum, beating people for kicks."
That realization led him to leave his wife, a committed racist, and search for a better life for himself and his sons. The search led him to the California home of his mother and eventually to a job at the Simon Wiesenthal Center as an anti-hate activist and educator. At first skeptical, the Wiesenthal Center staff spent many hours with Leyden and realized his sincerity.
"I got the impression that this was a person who had a profound change of heart and who is willing to tell the world, 'I was wrong,'" said Rabbi Marvin Heir. "He is saying, 'Everything I've stood for in the last decade was for nothing.' That's admitting to a life's mistake."
The then 30-year old ex-Marine became an educator, speaking at more than 100 high schools, to various military groups, including the Pentagon, presenting at Hate Crimes Summits, and to the FBI. To date, Leyden is the only former skinhead actively working to fight against the groups that once nurtured him. White supremacist groups frequently target him with death threats. Many of their websites have issued a "kill on sight" directive against Leyden. Nevertheless, he says that fear is easier to deal with than the fear of his children growing up as haters.
"I wasted a lot of time," Leyden said. "It's time for me to do something with my life. I would like to go to college and become a teacher. College students are activists. They can make a difference. I know that my story can have an impact with that group."
Then something happened that caused a profound, life-changing realization.
"One day I heard my son use the word 'nigger' and saw him give the Nazi salute," Leyden said. "He was only three, and I knew he wasn't going to grow up to find the cure for cancer or serve on the Supreme Court. He was going to be a mindless bum, beating people for kicks."
That realization led him to leave his wife, a committed racist, and search for a better life for himself and his sons. The search led him to the California home of his mother and eventually to a job at the Simon Wiesenthal Center as an anti-hate activist and educator. At first skeptical, the Wiesenthal Center staff spent many hours with Leyden and realized his sincerity.
"I got the impression that this was a person who had a profound change of heart and who is willing to tell the world, 'I was wrong,'" said Rabbi Marvin Heir. "He is saying, 'Everything I've stood for in the last decade was for nothing.' That's admitting to a life's mistake."
The then 30-year old ex-Marine became an educator, speaking at more than 100 high schools, to various military groups, including the Pentagon, presenting at Hate Crimes Summits, and to the FBI. To date, Leyden is the only former skinhead actively working to fight against the groups that once nurtured him. White supremacist groups frequently target him with death threats. Many of their websites have issued a "kill on sight" directive against Leyden. Nevertheless, he says that fear is easier to deal with than the fear of his children growing up as haters.
"I wasted a lot of time," Leyden said. "It's time for me to do something with my life. I would like to go to college and become a teacher. College students are activists. They can make a difference. I know that my story can have an impact with that group."