ABSTRACT
Recent scholarship points to a peculiar aspect of whiteness within intensely race-conscious societies such as the United States. White identity is based on distinctions from those marked as nonwhite. This chapter focuses on some of the methodological issues posed in a larger study that explores the extent and nature of women's active role in white supremacist and organized anti-Semitic activities in the United States. Delicate issues of race and racial dynamics infused the research process. Lisa, a leader in a violent white power skinhead group, the White Warriors (WWs), had an extensive personal history of violent actions. She had completed one prison sentence for assault. Lisa's ideas about race depended on an assessment of racial loyalty. Just as her African American friend became white through his commitment to a white agenda, so too did people gain or lose racial identities by their actions.
