Look, labeling a whole state "racist" is a heavy thing to do. It’s messy. If you ask a hundred different people which are the most racist states in the united states, you’ll get a hundred different answers based on where they’ve lived, what they’ve seen, or what they’ve read on Twitter. Some folks point to the Deep South because of history. Others look at the Midwest or the Pacific Northwest and see something maybe more subtle but just as sharp.
Honestly, it’s not just about one "vibe." To really get what’s going on, you have to look at the hard numbers—hate crime reports, incarceration gaps, and how segregated the neighborhoods are. Data from 2025 and early 2026 shows us that racism doesn't look the same in Alabama as it does in Wisconsin or New Jersey.
The Numbers Behind the Labels
When we talk about the most racist states in the united states, we have to look at the FBI’s latest Unified Crime Reporting (UCR) data. In 2024, the FBI recorded 11,679 hate crime incidents. That’s a lot. More than half of those—53.2% to be exact—were motivated by bias against race, ethnicity, or ancestry.
But here’s the kicker: reporting is voluntary. A state might look "clean" on paper just because its local police departments didn't feel like filling out the paperwork. In fact, about 80% of agencies that did report data claimed they had zero hate crimes. If you live in a city of 100,000 people and your police say there wasn't a single bias-motivated incident all year, you'd probably be a bit skeptical.
Where the Extremist Groups Are Hiding
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) keeps a running tally of "active hate groups." In their 2025 "Year in Hate and Extremism" report, they tracked 1,371 groups across the country.
Texas and California usually have the highest raw numbers of these groups. That makes sense—they’re huge states. But if you look at "groups per capita," the map changes. You start seeing higher concentrations in places like Montana, Idaho, and Tennessee. It’s not just about the "Old South" anymore. The "Hard Right" movements have found plenty of room to grow in the mountain states and the rural Northeast.
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It’s Not Just Hate Speech: The Structural Side
Most people think of racism as a guy shouting a slur. But researchers, like those at the Othering & Belonging Institute at UC Berkeley, argue that the most "racist" places might actually be the ones where people are the most separated.
Look at the most racist states in the united states through the lens of residential segregation. It’s wild. Even in 2026, cities in the North and Midwest are often more "divided" than cities in the South.
- Detroit, Michigan consistently ranks as one of the most segregated cities in the country.
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin isn’t far behind.
- Chicago, Illinois and Newark, New Jersey also show massive "divergence" scores.
When your zip code determines your school quality, your health outcomes, and your wealth, that’s a form of systemic racism that a "friendly" face can't fix.
The Incarceration Gap
Then you’ve got the justice system. The Sentencing Project puts out some pretty sobering stats on this. Wisconsin actually leads the nation in Black imprisonment rates. Think about that. One out of every 36 Black Wisconsinites is in prison. In states like New Jersey, Connecticut, and California, the disparity between Black and white incarceration is larger than 9 to 1.
You’ve also got the issue of "felony disenfranchisement." In Florida, for example, over 23% of the African American population has been disqualified from voting for life due to past convictions. That is a massive chunk of a community’s political power just... gone.
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What Most People Get Wrong
We have this habit of thinking of racism as a "Southern problem." We think of the 1960s, fire hoses, and George Wallace. But modern data suggests that the most racist states in the united states might actually be in the "liberal" North or the "frontier" West when you look at economics and policing.
A study using Google search data (tracking the "N-word" and other slurs) actually found high concentrations of racist attitudes in the rural Northeast and the Appalachian regions, not just the Deep South. Basically, the "vibe" of a state doesn't always match the reality of its statistics.
Real Examples of the 2026 Landscape
Let’s get specific.
In Massachusetts, which many people think of as a bastion of progressivism, the ethnic disparity in incarceration for Latinx individuals is the highest in the country, at a ratio of 4.1 to 1.
In Arizona, 742 per 100,000 Latinx residents are in prison, the highest rate for that demographic in the U.S.
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Meanwhile, Hawaii and Maryland often rank as the "least" unequal in terms of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for racial equality, but even there, the gap isn't zero. No state has a "perfect" score. Not even close.
How to Actually Use This Information
If you’re looking at this because you’re moving, or because you’re a researcher, or just because you’re fed up, don't just look at one map.
Check the FBI Hate Crime Database for the specific city you’re interested in, but take the "zeroes" with a grain of salt. Look at the SPLC Hate Map to see what kind of organized groups are active nearby. Most importantly, look at the Othering & Belonging Institute’s Segregation Map. If a city is highly segregated, you're going to see those racial tensions play out in the local politics and the economy.
Actionable Steps for 2026
- Demand Reporting Transparency: If your local police department is one of the 80% reporting "zero" hate crimes, show up to a city council meeting. Ask why their numbers don't match the community's lived experience.
- Support Sentencing Reform: Since the biggest disparities are often in the justice system, look for local organizations working on "The Color of Justice" initiatives to narrow the 9-to-1 incarceration gaps.
- Check the School Boundaries: Segregation survives through school districts. Support "Fair Housing" and boundary changes that break down the walls between neighborhoods.
Racism in America isn't a static thing. It shifts. It moves from the streets to the suburbs to the search engines. Finding the most racist states in the united states isn't about shaming one part of the country—it's about seeing where the work still needs to be done.
The data is out there. It’s up to us to actually do something with it.
Next Steps for Research:
- Visit the FBI Crime Data Explorer to filter by your specific county and see year-over-year trends.
- Review the Sentencing Project’s state-by-state reports to see the specific legislation driving incarceration gaps in your area.
- Use the Othering & Belonging Institute’s interactive mapping tool to see how segregated your own neighborhood actually is compared to 2020.