When trolls and memes found neo-Nazis, they created a movement that disrupted American politics.

By the time Hillary Clinton delivered a campaign speech on the “alt-right” in August 2016, there was no returning the controversial term to the dregs of the internet.

An amorphous movement of fascists, white supremacists, and misogynist trolls, the alt-right had simmered in online forums for years before riding into the mainstream on a rising tide of racism, fueled in part by Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. While some alt-righters’ aims might have been no different than those of the Ku Klux Klan, this younger movement was web-savvier than its forebears, cloaking bigotry in memes and ironic humor. This was White Supremacy 2.0.