Category Hatred and bigotry

Fact check roundup: What’s true and what’s false about the Russian invasion of Ukraine

False and misleading information about the Russian invasion of Ukraine has spread rapidly on social media since Russian forces launched a military assault in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 24. Here’s a roundup of claims related to the Ukraine-Russia conflict analyzed by the USA TODAY Fact Check team.
Read MoreFact check roundup: What’s true and what’s false about the Russian invasion of Ukraine

Rothschild & Co. Has Office in Russia, Contrary to Conspiracy Claim on Social Media

Rothschild & Co. has an office in Moscow and has been operating in Russia since the mid-1990s. Yet posts on social media falsely claim that Russia has barred the Rothschild banking family from doing business in the country. The claim is an adaptation of an old conspiracy theory about the family.
Read MoreRothschild & Co. Has Office in Russia, Contrary to Conspiracy Claim on Social Media
Zelensky and Soros Aren’t Cousins, Contrary to Social Media Claim

Zelensky and Soros Aren’t Cousins, Contrary to Social Media Claim

Conspiracy theories aimed at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have been circulating on social media since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. One recent example, falsely attributed to a “Pentagon official,” is the unfounded claim that Zelensky is the cousin of billionaire philanthropist George Soros.
Read MoreZelensky and Soros Aren’t Cousins, Contrary to Social Media Claim
Article screenshot. Title: Romani Ukrainian activist: Russia is deceptively accusing Ukraine of Nazism, Romani people from Russia should at least stay neutral

Romani Ukrainian activist: Russia is deceptively accusing Ukraine of Nazism, Romani people from Russia should at least stay neutral

Russia is deceptively accusing Ukraine of Nazism and exploiting Romani-related subjects to do so. Natali Tomenko, a Romani activist from Ukraine, gave that assessment at a meeting on 30 March held under the auspices of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
Read MoreRomani Ukrainian activist: Russia is deceptively accusing Ukraine of Nazism, Romani people from Russia should at least stay neutral

Russia’s Eliminationist Rhetoric Against Ukraine: A Collection

Dating at least to 2008 or 2009, increasingly hostile language laid the groundwork for rejecting Ukraine’s existence as a state, a national group, and a culture. What follows is a compilation of publicly available statements (readers are invited to submit by email any that we may have missed). Experts such as Francine Hirsch, a professor of history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and author of “Soviet Judgment at Nuremberg,” have pointed to such language as evidence of genocidal intent toward the Ukrainian people. Whether and how the concept of “genocide” applies to Russia’s campaign against Ukraine is the subject of debate, notwithstanding the reference in Article II of the Genocide Convention to “the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial, or religious group, as such.”
Read MoreRussia’s Eliminationist Rhetoric Against Ukraine: A Collection