To the Editor:

Leonard Pitts Jr.'s exploration of the impact of hatred on society exposes the sad truth about how much work remains in eradicating hatred (The ugly consequences of open hatred, June 13).

But what happens when hateful rhetoric is unchecked, or when ''word bullets'' turn into real bullets? The consequence is hate-motivated violence. This type of radicalized hatred has also been the catalyst for a wave of hate that has recently plagued our country.

Over the last six months, there have been a number of plots or attacks against Jews and others by avowed anti-Semitic extremists. Anti-Semitism is the common thread that runs through the extremism of many perpetrators, who then combine it with other toxic ideologies. The wave of hate includes last week's tragic shooting at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum by a white supremacist and anti-Semite and last month's plot by extremists to bomb two synagogues in New York. Other incidents from around the country highlight how destructive extremist rhetoric can become when someone acts on hate-filled ideologies.

The museum in Washington, D.C., lets visitors bear witness to the unspeakable atrocities of the Holocaust and learn how they can apply to their own lives the moral and ethical issues raised by those dark days in terms of standing up to racism, bigotry and hate. The shooting there is a chilling reminder of the critical need to stop hate before it takes root -- and before words turn into violence.