American Reich: A Murder in Orange County, Neo-Nazis, and a New Age of Hate by Eric Lichtblau
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A deeply reported exploration of the violent resurgence of hatred and white supremacy through the lens of Orange County, California—“ground zero” for racial extremism—and the story of one brutal murder there that revealed the deep roots of violent bigotry as a bellwether for the country.
One night in early 2018, while he was home from college, an Ivy League student named Blaze Bernstein snuck out of his parents’ house in Orange County. Waiting for him in a car outside was an old high-school classmate: Sam Woodward, someone who Blaze mostly remembered as a brooding, bigoted loner. But that night, after months of flirtatious messaging, Sam had succeeded in coaxing Blaze—a gay, Jewish sophomore at UPenn—out for a rendezvous. No one would ever see him alive again.
In American Reich, veteran investigative journalist Eric Lichtblau uses the story of Blaze’s life and death to shine a light on the epidemic of hate in Southern California and, increasingly, the nation as a whole. Orange County has long been a bastion of the ultra-right: carved out of farmland as a haven for wealthy whites fleeing the diversifying metropolis to the north, it was the birthplace of the far-right John Birch Society, a hub for neo-Nazi recruitment, and a powerful springboard for race-baiting Republican politicians including Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. But in the years leading up to Blaze’s disappearance, Orange County was changing: like the country as a whole, it was rapidly diversifying, to the outrage of many of its white residents. No one was more opposed to the changes than America’s resurgent neo-Nazi groups, one of which had recently gained a new member: Sam Woodward.
Revealing how Orange County has exported racial hatred to the rest of the country and the world, American Reich weaves this tragic tale together with stories from across the nation, showing what this haunted place and the colliding paths of two of its residents reveal about America's fractured soul and our hope for healing.
UPC > 9780316564717
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Items sold on our website may ship from multiple locations, including our brick-and-mortar store, our off-site warehouse, or as preorders that release at a later date. To help set clear expectations, each product page lists an item’s availability and shipping location just above the Add to Cart button.
- In-store items are typically ready to ship within 24–48 hours
- Warehouse items must first be transferred to our shop before shipping. This transfer process generally takes 4–7 business days
If an order contains items from both locations, the order will be held and shipped together once all items are available at our shop. In these cases, the 4–7 business day transfer timeline applies to the entire order, even if some items were initially in stock at our retail location.
If your order includes items that require a warehouse transfer, this will be clearly noted:
- On the product page
- During checkout
- In a follow-up email sent shortly after your order is placed
Orders that include preorders will ship once all items in the order are released and available. If you’d prefer available items to ship sooner, feel free to contact us at info@darksiderecords.com and we’ll be happy to help arrange split shipping.
Records are packed in Whiplash LP mailers, which are specifically designed to protect vinyl during transit. We also use 100% recyclable packing materials, including paper tape and HexcelPack, to help reduce single-use plastics wherever possible.
American Reich: A Murder in Orange County, Neo-Nazis, and a New Age of Hate by Eric Lichtblau
- Unit price
- / per
> Due to the current limited nature of music titles, ALL CD & Vinyl purchases are limited to FOUR copies per customer, per item. If you place multiple orders for multiples of the same title, your subsequent orders will be canceled.
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A deeply reported exploration of the violent resurgence of hatred and white supremacy through the lens of Orange County, California—“ground zero” for racial extremism—and the story of one brutal murder there that revealed the deep roots of violent bigotry as a bellwether for the country.
One night in early 2018, while he was home from college, an Ivy League student named Blaze Bernstein snuck out of his parents’ house in Orange County. Waiting for him in a car outside was an old high-school classmate: Sam Woodward, someone who Blaze mostly remembered as a brooding, bigoted loner. But that night, after months of flirtatious messaging, Sam had succeeded in coaxing Blaze—a gay, Jewish sophomore at UPenn—out for a rendezvous. No one would ever see him alive again.
In American Reich, veteran investigative journalist Eric Lichtblau uses the story of Blaze’s life and death to shine a light on the epidemic of hate in Southern California and, increasingly, the nation as a whole. Orange County has long been a bastion of the ultra-right: carved out of farmland as a haven for wealthy whites fleeing the diversifying metropolis to the north, it was the birthplace of the far-right John Birch Society, a hub for neo-Nazi recruitment, and a powerful springboard for race-baiting Republican politicians including Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. But in the years leading up to Blaze’s disappearance, Orange County was changing: like the country as a whole, it was rapidly diversifying, to the outrage of many of its white residents. No one was more opposed to the changes than America’s resurgent neo-Nazi groups, one of which had recently gained a new member: Sam Woodward.
Revealing how Orange County has exported racial hatred to the rest of the country and the world, American Reich weaves this tragic tale together with stories from across the nation, showing what this haunted place and the colliding paths of two of its residents reveal about America's fractured soul and our hope for healing.
UPC > 9780316564717
Format >
Label >
Shop online at Darkside Records.
Follow us on Instagram.
We take great care in packing every order so it arrives quickly and safely.
Items sold on our website may ship from multiple locations, including our brick-and-mortar store, our off-site warehouse, or as preorders that release at a later date. To help set clear expectations, each product page lists an item’s availability and shipping location just above the Add to Cart button.
- In-store items are typically ready to ship within 24–48 hours
- Warehouse items must first be transferred to our shop before shipping. This transfer process generally takes 4–7 business days
If an order contains items from both locations, the order will be held and shipped together once all items are available at our shop. In these cases, the 4–7 business day transfer timeline applies to the entire order, even if some items were initially in stock at our retail location.
If your order includes items that require a warehouse transfer, this will be clearly noted:
- On the product page
- During checkout
- In a follow-up email sent shortly after your order is placed
Orders that include preorders will ship once all items in the order are released and available. If you’d prefer available items to ship sooner, feel free to contact us at info@darksiderecords.com and we’ll be happy to help arrange split shipping.
Records are packed in Whiplash LP mailers, which are specifically designed to protect vinyl during transit. We also use 100% recyclable packing materials, including paper tape and HexcelPack, to help reduce single-use plastics wherever possible.