At the heart of our work are the values that define who we are:
- Compassion – Meeting every individual with care and understanding
- Empathy – Listening deeply and honoring lived experiences
- Integrity – Acting with honesty and staying true to our mission
- Accountability – Taking responsibility for our actions and our impact
- Redemption – Believing in second chances and the power of transformation
These values have shaped our programs, informed our decisions, and strengthened our community. They are the reason we’ve been able to offer meaningful, accessible programming to all who seek it, without barriers, without cost, and without compromise.
This year marks a meaningful milestone for our organization: 15 years of growth and impact. What began as a vision of six co-founders who believed that no one should ever be judged by their lowest moment, and no one should ever have to leave hate-fueled violence alone. From that vision, LAH has evolved into a community rooted in purpose, in compassion with accountability, and an unwavering commitment to helping individuals and their families navigate a pathway out of violent ideology and away from violence.
During this year’s celebration, we want to share 15 principles that have guided and moulded Life After Hate into the organization it is today.
- Continuous Learning & Adaptation ( we are a nimble org, being virtual and dealing with the subject matter that we do, we must adapt, learn quickly, and be able to pivot quickly to address the most present needs of our participants. When LAH was founded, neo-nazi skinheads and violent far-right extremism was the focus, we did it because we knew it. Fifteen years on, we have moved to address the spectrum of violent extremism. The flavors of hate in the United States are expanding by the day, taking advantage of economic, educational, social, and community frustrations to drive thoughts to hate speech, hate speech to hate crimes. You will note that the language has changed in how we describe our work; we do the same work we always have, but it now more accurately reflects the work, and it is in alignment with the recent shift in terminology in the field. Life After Hate meets people where they are and works with them, for as long as it takes, to ensure harm reduction and to prevent violence. In recent iterations of VE, LAH has taken on the current swell in Nihlistic Violent Extremism. The cases are heartwrenching, young people forced to self-harm and harming others in online groups. This is truly one of our biggest challenges yet!
- Collaboration Over Competition:Life After Hate is committed to advancing greater professional standards and oversight in disengagement work, and serving as a model of ethical support grounded in research and compassion with accountability. It is a member of the International Network for Disengagement and Exit Violence Prevention Network (INDEX), an international prevention and countering extremist violence organization based in Berlin, Germany, composed of 120 practitioners, researchers, and advisers in 10 regional offices across the EU. With its global reach, INDEX offers Life After Hate the opportunity to be on the cutting edge of disengagement and push for needed reforms in the U.S. while also offering lessons learned to peers in other countries. In addition to INDEX, members of the Exit Team serve on various working groups with other organizations such as the Prevention Practitioners Network (PPN), and the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT). ExitUSATM support is still guided by the NASW Code of Ethics and Practice Standards, and has added the National Association of Case Management certification to its requirements
- Community-Centered Approach-LAH recognizes that change does not happen alone. We work with individuals to help them leave hate-fueled violence by connecting them with a case manager and an Exit specialist (mentor), as well as resources within their own communities. This can include mental health, housing, employment, workforce development, medical, and tattoo removal. We also work with families to help provide them with education on boundary setting, relationship skill building, and resource referral. We also help build community by offering groups for men, women, and family and friends. This allows for individuals to begin re-building positive relationships and community.
We also work with schools, mental health agencies, law enforcement, and churches to raise awareness of hate-fueled violence within their own communities. Knowing the signs can help prevent the next act of violence from happening as well as families from breaking apart.
- Impact Over Activity( Our focus is on outcomes, not just outputs. It’s not about how many programs we have; it’s about what changes because of them). We have the groups, we have Discord, we have TDF, we have No Formers Left Behind. Through our programs, we have created an ecosystem of support and referrals through our network. This holistic approach provides the multifaceted care each individual needs to rebuild their lives. This vital work establishes a safer and more resilient nation. Our exiting participants come to us in various stages of disengagement from ideology, oftentimes with suicide ideation, homicidality, and other risk factors for violence; it can take months or even years to disengage from VE, heal, and reintegrate into society completely (18-24 months is the average). We assess and track progress at the individual level and aggregate data to identify trends, patterns, and evidence to help measure our success.
Ethical Integrity- All of our programs and team members are required to adhere to the NASW Code of Ethics ensuring that participant safety is at the highest level. While LAH does not have clinical programs, participant privacy and confidentiality are very important to ensure continuity of care and the relationships we build in this work.
