---
title: Hate Speech — Dehumanization, Incitement & Coded Symbols
order: 4
summary: Recognizing hate speech in all its forms — dehumanization, calls for violence, and the hidden codes extremist groups use to spread hate in plain sight.
lastUpdated: "2026-06-24"
---
## Overview

Hate speech targets people for who they are — their race or ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or another protected characteristic. It shows up in many forms: open slurs and dehumanization, calls for violence or exclusion, and — because moderation has gotten better — increasingly through *coded* language designed to slip past filters.

A common trap is to think of "extremism" as only one ideology (e.g. neo-Nazi codes). In practice hate speech is much broader, and a healthy community needs to recognize all of it. This chapter starts with the broad forms, then goes deep on the coded symbols that are hardest to spot.

## Forms of Hate Speech

Hate doesn't have to be coded to be harmful. These are the broad categories to watch for — across every targeted group, not just one:

### Dehumanization

Language that frames a group as less than human is one of the clearest and most dangerous signals. Examples:

- Calling a group "subhuman," "vermin," "animals," or "a disease"
- "These people are a plague / parasites on our country"

This applies to **any** group — racial, ethnic, religious, gender, or otherwise.

### Calls for violence or removal

Explicit incitement — that a group should be harmed, removed, or eliminated. Examples:

- "They should all be deported / rounded up"
- Calls to "get rid of" or eradicate a named group

### Religious hatred

Hostility toward people for their faith — including antisemitism (e.g. "globalist" conspiracy framings that claim a hidden group "secretly controls" banks or media) and anti-Muslim hate (e.g. framing an entire faith as a "threat" or "invasion").

### Misogyny and gendered hate

Dehumanizing or threatening people based on gender — e.g. "women are just objects/property," or incel-ideology language calling for harm against women. Hate based on gender is hate speech too.

### Anti-LGBTQ+ hate

Slurs and dehumanization aimed at gay, lesbian, or trans people, including the coded emoji combinations covered later in this chapter.

> A note on how Hush handles this: detection looks for these **structures** — dehumanization and incitement toward a protected group — not just a checklist of far-right symbols, so hate against any group can be caught. (We keep the exact signals private so they can't be gamed.)

## Coded Symbols & Extremist Codes

Beyond the open forms above, hate groups deliberately use coded language to communicate in plain sight. What looks like a random number or an innocent emoji to most people carries a specific hateful meaning to those "in the know." This part of the chapter draws on research into extremist communication patterns, including the work of organizations monitoring online hate speech.

## Numeric Hate Codes

### 1488

This is the most well-known white supremacist numeric code.

- **14** refers to the "14 Words," a white supremacist slogan
- **88** stands for "HH" (H is the 8th letter of the alphabet) — a coded "Heil Hitler"

**How it appears:**
- `1488` as a single number
- `14/88`, `14-88`, or `14 88` with separators
- Sometimes embedded in usernames or bios

### 88

When "88" appears on its own — especially as an entire comment — it is often a coded greeting among extremists.

**Context matters:** The number 88 can be innocent (birth year, jersey number). But watch for:
- "88" as the entire comment with no other context
- "88" combined with extremist emoji (see below)
- "88" in a username alongside other suspicious signals

## Emoji Hate Codes

Extremist groups have co-opted specific emoji combinations as coded symbols. These are designed to look harmless to moderators while communicating hateful messages.

### Double Lightning Bolt

Two lightning bolt emoji in sequence represents the SS runes (Nazi insignia).

**Example:** A comment containing just `lightning-lightning` (two lightning bolt emoji side by side)

### Double 8-Ball

Two pool 8-ball emoji represent "88" — the same code as above.

**Example:** A comment containing two 8-ball emoji side by side

### Lightning + Chair

A lightning bolt emoji next to a chair emoji represents execution/electric chair — used as an incitement to violence.

**Example:** Both `lightning-chair` and `chair-lightning` orderings

### Anti-LGBTQ+ Combinations

Hate emoji placed next to the rainbow flag emoji signal anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment:

- Prohibited sign + rainbow flag = "ban LGBTQ+"
- Fire + rainbow flag = burning/destruction imagery
- Nauseated face or vomiting face + rainbow flag = disgust
- Soap + rainbow flag = a Holocaust reference ("cleansing")

These combinations are deliberate and should always be treated as hate speech, not casual emoji use.

## Why Coded Language Matters

Extremist groups use codes specifically because:

1. **Plausible deniability** — "It's just a number/emoji, you're overreacting"
2. **In-group signaling** — Members recognize each other
3. **Filter evasion** — Most moderation tools don't flag numbers or emoji
4. **Normalization** — Repeated exposure desensitizes communities

Your role is to recognize these patterns and act on them, even when individual elements seem innocent.

## How To Respond

When you spot coded hate speech:

1. **Remove the content** — Don't leave it up while you deliberate
2. **Document it** — Screenshot before deletion for records
3. **Check the account** — Look at their comment history, username, and bio for additional signals
4. **Ban if pattern repeats** — A single "88" might be innocent; "88" plus lightning bolt emoji in the bio is not
5. **Report to the platform** — Use the platform's hate speech reporting tools

### Quick-Reference Checklist

**Open forms (any targeted group):**
- [ ] Dehumanization — calling a group "subhuman," "vermin," "animals," "a disease"
- [ ] Calls for violence or removal — "they should all be [deported / eradicated / gotten rid of]"
- [ ] Religious hatred — antisemitic "secretly controls everything" conspiracies; framing a faith as an "invasion"/"threat"
- [ ] Misogyny — "women are objects/property"; calls for harm against women
- [ ] Slurs or dehumanization aimed at LGBTQ+ people

**Coded forms:**
- [ ] `1488`, `14/88`, `14-88` = white supremacist code — always remove
- [ ] `88` alone as a comment warrants investigation, especially with other signals
- [ ] Two lightning bolt emoji side by side = SS runes
- [ ] Two 8-ball emoji side by side = coded "88"
- [ ] Lightning + chair emoji = execution incitement
- [ ] Hate emoji + rainbow flag = anti-LGBTQ+ hate speech
- [ ] Soap emoji in hate context = Holocaust reference
- [ ] When in doubt, check the account's full history for patterns