Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
Fast Forward

Will Richard Spencer Be ‘Texan Of The Year’?

The Dallas Morning News has listed Richard Spencer as a finalist for its “Texan of the Year” designation. Other finalists include first responders to the Sutherland Springs church shooting and major Texas philanthropists.

Spencer, the face of American white nationalism, is a Dallas native, though he now lives in Virginia.

“His speeches and writings represent a new breed of white supremacy that seeks to sound mainstream while adhering to the same ugliness spouted by the likes of former KKK leader David Duke,” the Morning News’ editorial board wrote.

“This designation is not meant as an award but as recognition of those Texans who had uncommon impact, which can be a positive or negative impact, during the past year,” the editorial continued.

The editorial adds that Spencer has had success in packaging his message of white nationalism by appealing to economically disadvantaged whites. They also noted the violent tendencies of his followers and Spencer’s role in the Charlottesville riots in August, which resulted in the death of one woman.

The Salt Lake Tribune recently named Utah Senator Orrin Hatch “Utahn Of The Year” for his negative impact. The paper cited the role Hatch played in “dismantling” the Bears Ears monument and his leadership of the Senate Finance Committee in changing the tax code.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.