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Anti-Mormonism is generally not a prejudice against the Mormon people, but opposition to Mormon doctrines, practices, and leadership. Such opposition has frequently been vehement and violent, ultimately forcing groups of Mormons to flee, first from England, and later from the United States to Canada, because of opposition to their practise of polygamy or plural marriage. The second wives of Mormons were for decades forced to live "underground," as they called it, separated from their husbands and families, for fear of being arrested or assaulted.
Other reasons for opposition to Mormonism is that their doctrines, particularly on Jesus, are considerably different from those of mainstream Christianity; and certain aspects of Mormonism are cloaked in a veil of secrecy, making the movement vulnerable to attack. Mormonism also tends to invite criticism with its bold claims, such as the claim that it is the only form of religion endorsed by God, although this is a claim made or implied by other religions too, such as Islam.
In mainstream Christianity, a strong disagreement with the theology, beliefs and practices of the Mormon church is common. In many ways, this in unsurprising since the founders of the Mormon church deliberately set themselves up against mainstream Christianity, and Mormon missionaries today target mainstream Christians specifically, seeking to persuade them that they should convert to Mormonism. While Mormons teach that the mainstream Christian churches are apostate, and no longer follow the complete teachings of Jesus, most mainstream Christian churches teach that Mormonism is a form of pseudo-Christianity, which has departed from the teachings given in the Bible and now espouses beliefs fundamentally different from Christian ones. It is sometimes considered to be a cult.
A small number of people are active in opposing Mormon beliefs and campaigning against the Mormon church. Many are ex-Mormons themselves, particularly plural wives, who have become active in opposing the polygamist practises of some Mormon sects. Some of anti-Mormons direct their hostility toward Mormon church leaders, past and present. More hostility tends to be directed toward church leaders of the 19th century than later ones. Finally, there is a minority of anti-Mormons who demonstrate an open hostility toward any and all Latter-day Saints. It is common to find them among the protesters at major Mormon events.
There are several organizations which oppose the Mormon church. Their activities vary. In most cases the primary activity is informational - they seek to provide what they regard as a true picture of the Mormon church. Some are independent while others are connected with parent churches, and not all are Christian. Examples of such organizations are:Utah Lighthouse Ministry (founded by Jerald and Sandra Tanner), Mormon Research Ministries, Mormons in Transition and Utah Partnerships for Christ.
Some anti-Mormons have become well-known for their activities. A few of them are:
Regardless of what other motives they may have, there are some who focus on the money that can be made in the anti-Mormon "business," (as Ed Decker referred to his trade at least once). Ed Decker , in fact, threatened to file lawsuits against other anti-Mormons (including Jerald and Sandra Tanner) who rose to the defense of the Mormon church when his films made extreme accusations about Mormon officials. Decker claimed that the negative reviews, by those who should have praised the films, in his view, caused him a loss of revenue.
Mormon missionaries are trained in ways to approach mainstream Christians and persuade them that some of their core beliefs are wrong, and that they should convert to Mormonism. Partly in response to this, many organizations who disagree with Mormon teachings hold seminars at mainstream Christian churches to highlight differences between Mormonism and mainstream Christianity, and to offer the mainstream Christian viewpoint on these differences.
Every six months, Latter-day Saints gather in Salt Lake City for "General Conference." In addition to the church members who come to hear their leaders speak, anti-Mormon protesters also attend. They also appear when new Mormon temples are opened to the public before they are dedicated. Below is a link to a description of one of these protests, from a Mormon point of view.
http://www.fairlds.org/apol/antis/200304.html
The following link, from the same website, leads to a photo essay of a recent anti-Mormon protest.
http://www.fairlds.org/apol/antis/200310gc.html
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