They[a] are the child of Don Black, founder of the Stormfront online community, and godchild of former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke.

Derek Black publicly renounced white nationalism and chronicled their personal journey away from their family's beliefs.

[citation needed] At 10 years old, Derek Black began learning web coding, which later helped them create a page on the Stormfront site for children with similar ideas to theirs.

After finishing high school, they enrolled in a community college and decided to run for a seat on the Republican executive committee.

[citation needed] They later decided that they had an interest in studying medieval European history, so in 2010, they went to the New College of Florida in Sarasota.

[4] They told peers at New College that they were pro-choice on abortion, against the death penalty, and did not support the KKK or Nazism or white supremacy.

Once their beliefs – and ongoing participation in promoting them – became public knowledge at college, they were ostracized by most of the community.

[4] In May 2024, Derek released a memoir titled The Klansman's Son: My Journey from White Nationalism to Antiracism.

In 1981, he was convicted of attempting an overthrow of the government of the island country of Dominica using firearms and served three years in jail, from 1981 to 1984.