All the symbols depicted in the hate symbols database must be evaluated in the context in which they appear. Few symbols represent just one idea or are used exclusively by one group. For example, 100% is often used as an amount or an expression and it is also used by some white supremacists as shorthand for "100% white." Similarly, other symbols in this database may be significant to people who are not extreme or racist. The descriptions here point out significant multiple meanings but may not be able to relay every possible meaning of a particular symbol.

Hate on Display / Crossed Grenades

ALTERNATE NAMES: Dirlewanger

The crossed grenade emblem signifies the Waffen SS unit most commonly known, after its commander, as the "Dirlewanger Brigade" (later, the 36th SS Division). Oskar Dirlewanger (1895-1945) was an SS officer involved in the Holocaust and anti-partisan actions in World War II, including the murderous suppression of the 1944 uprising of the Polish Home Army in Warsaw. Even within the Waffen SS, both Dirlewanger and his unit had a reputation for sadism, cruelty, and atrocities. As a result, modern-day neo-Nazis regard Dirlewanger as a hero; there was even a white power music band named after him.