WASHINGTON - THE election of Mr Barack Obama as the first African-American US president, the financial crisis and immigration have formed a lethal cocktail leading to a spike in hate crimes, rights leaders warned on Tuesday.

'This toxic combination of the financial crisis, a significant political change, and concern about shifting demographics has created what could be a combustible combination,' Mr Wade Henderson, head of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, told reporters.

At least one hate crime every hour A HATE crime occurs at least once every hour in the United States, said Mr Henderson. Mr Henderson cited the example of the elderly self-avowed white supremacist who last week gunned down an African-American security guard at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington to prove a point that vitriolic speech fuels hate crime. 'The shooter had been promoting his white supremacist views online for years. Last week, words turned to hate,' he said. ... more

'There has been a documented rise in these threats of violence' which have been 'stoked by extreme political rhetoric... sensationalism and irresponsibility that we've seen on talk-show radio and other forms of communication, like the Internet,' he said.

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), the number of hate groups operating in the United States increased more than four per cent in 2008 and has grown by 54 per cent since 2000, a report issued on Tuesday by the Leadership Conference showed.

'Barack Obama's election has inflamed racist extremists who see it as another sign that their country is under siege by non-whites,' said Mr Mark Potok, editor of the Intelligence Report published by the SPLC.

While many thought the election of Mr Obama had signalled an end to the racially divided America, a report issued on Tuesday by the Leadership Conference painted a different reality.

'The spate of racially-motivated hate crimes and violence against minorities and immigrants that occurred before and after Election Day makes clear that a final victory over prejudice and racial hostility remains elusive,' the report said.

Mr Obama of all recent presidents has received the most threats of any recent US leader, the Leadership Conference said in its report, calling on US lawmakers to pass hate crimes legislation. -- AFP.