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In 2017, an assortment of alt-right and far-right affiliated groups gathered in Charlottesville, Virginia to protest the removal of Confederate monuments and names from a city square. It ended in the death of a Charlottesville woman. USA TODAY

Multiple white nationalist groups march with torches through the UVA campus in Charlottesville, Va., on Aug. 11, 2017.(Photo: Mykal McEldowney, Mykal McEldowney, IndyStar via U)

With chants of "Jews will not replace us," and "White lives matter," last year's Unite the Right rally inCharlottesville, Virginia, set off a national firestorm about the rise of the alternative right.

What is the philosophy of the 'alt-right?' USA TODAY breaks it down:

The alt-right is a collection of far-right groups and people dedicated to "white ethnonationalism" in Western civilization, or the preservation of a white populace in Western countries. They viewthe presence of people of color, immigrants and religious minorities as a threat to their"white identity."

Because of it's fragmented nature, the Southern Poverty Law Center does not technicallyconsider the alt-right a hate group. However, the center considers smaller organizationslike AltRight Corporation in Alexandria, Virginia, and Alternative Right in Atlanta hate groups.

Richard Spencer, one of the prominent leaders of the movement and president ofthe National Policy Institute,described the alt-right as "historically necessary" because of changing demographics in the United States.

"The Alt-Right emerges from the experience of White dispossession, that is, demographic displacement and demoralization the idea that its *not* okay to be white," Spencer said in a text message to USA TODAY.

The group, made up of predominately young, college-educated men,also calls for the preservation of "white civil rights," or thefreedom to protestthe presence of immigrants and other minority groups in the United States.

"It does not differ (from other white nationalist groups) in the substance of its ideology. I would classify the alt-right as nothing more than a rebranding of traditional white nationalism," Keegan Hankes said, a research analyst for the law center.

More: 'Unite the Right' anniversary: White nationalists want to rally in D.C. and Charlottesville

More: 9 things you need to know about the alt-right movement

More: How white nationalists tapped into decades of pent-up racism

The alt-right does breakfrom past white nationalist groups by usingsocial media to attract members, according to Hankes. In 2008, Spencer coined the term after it began organizing on sites likeReddit, 4Chan and Twitter.

The alt-right's membership expanded widely in 2015 and 2016, spurred on by the U.S. and Europe's acceptance of Syrian refugees and the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, according to the law center. Since then, thousands of Twitter and other social media users have claimed to support alt-right values.

"They started using the same social media people use in their everyday life," Hankes said.

The alt-rightrejectsthe "conservative establishment" in Washington, embracing libertarian values on trade and government regulation. Spencer said the alt-right also breaks with other nationalist ideologiesbecause it seeks to revolutionize "existing political culture."

"We are much closer to an insurgent movement," Spencer said. "The culture and political structure are not ours; indeed, we are viewed as aliens, as dangers by those in power."

Spencer added that the alt-right has struggled since the 2017 Unite the Right rally. He cited "recriminations" by Charlottesville city officials, includingthe October 2017 lawsuit to preventmore than a dozen organizations and individualsfrom organizing further "paramilitary activity" in Virginia.

"(A)t the moment, were licking our wounds, recovering, or at best, building a new foundation for the future," Spencer said."Charlottesville was used by the existing power structure to oppress us; it was an attempt to ensure that nothing like that happens again."

The movement only has a few public leaders. Spencer has toured around the country speaking against diversity at conventions and on college campuses.

At a conference in 2016, Spencer addressed a conferenceof white nationalists held by the National Policy Institute, a think tank. He was recorded on video saying"Hail Trump! Hail our people! Hail victory!" as supporters were shown giving a Nazi salute by raising their hands.

More: Video: White nationalists celebrate Trump's victory at conference

Jason Kesslerhas also been a leader in the alt-right movement. In addition to organizing the Unite the Right rally, he has been active on Twitterand on his websitesince 2015, where he describes the ideals of the alt-right as "protecting the west."

Steve Bannon and Milo Yiannopoulos have also both been associated with the movement assenior editor and executive chairman ofBreitbart News, a far-right organization.

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Alt-right: What is the philosophy behind white civil rights?