The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) states that since the year 2000 the number of hate groups in the United States has increased by 69 percent. A new report released by the center in March 2013 shows that the number of patriot and militia groups has skyrocketed from 149 in 2009 to an astonishing 1,360 in 2012. The SPLC is an excellent resource for identifying trends in far-right fringe groups (ironically, there is a video on the American Family Association’s website that suggests the SPLC is itself a fringe political group). SPLC is the go-to resource for those looking to get a basic understanding of fringe political movements in the United States.