Extremism in the United States

Domestic Terrorism and Extremist Groups Final Assignment
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Domestic Terrorism and Extremist Groups Final Assignment
Essay Question 1: Analysis of Extremism in the United States
The United States faces a gradually evolving domestic threat from diverse extremist groups. The readings from this course and external research reveal that outfits such as White Supremacists and Antifa represent some of the influential far-right and left formations threatening to destabilize internal security through constant radicalization, propaganda, and violence-related protests throughout the nation. Duran and Oswego (2021) confirm that their continued advancement raises concerns among Homeland Security and other institutions due to the threats associated with their activities. Thus, the persistent presence of extremist groups highlights a looming security threat exacerbated by a polarized political climate.
Different researchers agree that extremism is a reality that the federal and state governments should acknowledge and direct appropriate resources to deter its progression. Nadales (2020) and Duran and Oswego (2021) highlight the complex manifestations of far-right and left-extremist groups across the nation and illustrate their impact on social, political, and economic contexts. Their explorations of the effects of these groups confirm that extremism has become deeply rooted in the nation for decades. The emerging evidence is that it has been an integral part of American society since the early 1900s during the anarchist era. The diverse groups have continued to morph themselves, percolate into society, and establish themselves as activists on controversial issues, including the purist views of White Supremacists and anti-fascism by Antifa. Thus, extremism is an intricate reality requiring complex interventions and collaboration of diverse security stakeholders.
Homeland Security is grappling with the sophisticated nature of extremism, including modes of radicalization, violence, and agendas of extremist groups. For instance, Nadales (2020) demonstrates that association with social and political agendas leading to violent protests characterizes the current context and status. The author reveals that far-left groups such as Antifa are gaining popularity due to their association with anti-racism agenda and other far-right elements, including systemic inequality. Duran and Oswego (2021) also indicate that groups such as White Supremacists are gaining momentum due to their association with preserving the white race. According to Walther and McCoy (2021), both ends of extremism have gone further to exploit technological advancements to accelerate their agenda through social media platforms such as Twitter and Telegram. Such aspects illustrate the current dangers posed by these extremist outfits.
Continued percolation of extremism in the social and political fabric of the United States is creating a polarized environment that risks internal security. Duran and Oswego (2021) uncover the violence associated with extremism and the disruption it triggers. The authors indicate that such groups have been advancing terroristic activities since the 1960s, with each side demonstrating its dominance in different periods over the decades. For instance, recent violent protests associated with far-left due to police brutality and anti-government opposition due to COVID-19 by far-right extremist groups underline the threats they pose. The most worrying aspect is that the local political climate is an extremism enabler, with university politics being the breeding ground and avenue for radicalization (Nadales, 2020). Disinformation and vilifying of opponents is another political practice that these groups have embraced to accelerate themselves. Thus, these features reveal the worrying situation influenced by the political climate.
Extremism in the United States is an ongoing reality and a threat to its national security. Resources expose the diverse factors encouraging the never-ending growth of far-right and far-left extremism in the nation and highlight the associated impacts, including social disruptions through violence. They also indicate the influence the local political climate plays, leading to extremist groups’ sophisticated approaches and ideologies. Thus, security agencies must understand these aspects of extremism to devise appropriate response strategies.
Essay Question 2: Most Significant Extremists, Extremist Organizations, and Events
Extremist groups and organizations have significantly impacted the United States in the last 50 years. Their presence has led to numerous terror-related incidences with notable casualties and disruption of activities. Blout and Burkart (2021) agree that such events perpetrated by different extremists representing unique extremist organizations have changed how Homeland Security approaches internal and external threats by establishing robust preventative and response measures. Thus, these extremism-related individuals and groups have impacted the nation’s security advancements.
The security agencies have flagged diverse actors as significant extremists whose actions have led to notable injuries, deaths, or destruction of property. For instance, Bjшrgo and Ravndal (2019) consider the Islamist extremists linked with the 9/11 attacks in the United States as the most impactful, considering the massive consequences of this attack. The government also connects these individuals with 119 deaths from 31 different events. Thus, their impact is devastating. Blout and Burkart (2021) also indicate that other extremists, such as James Alex Fields, confirmed the extreme violence of internal extremist groups. Many other incidences, including Steven Carrillo’s federal security officer attack and use of pipe bombs, highlight the improvisation of these entities to execute their attacks (Copsey & Merrill, 2020). These personalities indicate that extremism threats arise from well-equipped individuals and those improving due to a shortage of resources.
The various extremists often act on behalf of larger organizations. For instance, Jasko et al. (2022) list three organizations, including the Islamic extremists, the right wing, such as White Supremacists, and the left wing, like the Antifa. Each of these entities has established itself as a threat to the security of the United States due to their associated efforts. One of the distinguishing features is that Islamic extremist groups are visibly violent, with close-mindedness, fundamentalism, and authoritarianism. They share these tendencies with the far-right groups, emphasizing their increased risk of stirring violence (Jasko et al., 2022). Although Blout and Burkart (2021) highlight violence as an identifying characteristic for far-left organizations such as Antifa, these groups have relatively lower aggressiveness compared to the former two. Other researchers, such as Duran and Oswego (2020), emphasize this tendency in the readiness to revert to violence as the leading difference between these factions. Understanding these features is critical for Homeland Security to determine the appropriate response measures.
Although their actions vary, all extremists and organizations lead to undesirable and disruptive activities. Authorities in the United States have documented numerous events with far-reaching events in the last 50 years. For instance, the 9/11 attack by the Islamist extremists remains the leading event with devastating impacts. Its effects outmatched any other terror incident executed in the nation since then due to the level of its execution. Others include the Charlottesville attacks by the alt-right groups in 2017 and different homicides by White Supremacists between 2000 and 2016 (Blout & Burkart, 2021). Duran and Oswego (2021) list many other violent protests after the inhumane murder of George Floyd and other African Americans in 2020 by left-wing organizations. These events have re-ignited the radicalization of far-right and far-left groups, leading to an increasing threat of internal insecurity. Thus, such events have had a notable impact on the homeland security of the U.S.
The United States security agencies have a significant duty to thwart the efforts of diverse extremists as they execute the objectives of their respective organizations. Investigations of past events expose numerous entities responsible for catastrophic attacks, including Islamists, far-right, and far-left groups. Appropriate interventions can frustrate these groups and save the nation from similar impacts as those experienced through the numerous attacks in the last half a century.
Essay Question 3: Emergence of Extremism in the U.S.
Trends reveal that extremism has been gaining momentum recently in the United States. Although it started decades ago...