Essay On Homegrown Extremism

Terrorism & Homegrown Extremism Terrorism is a confusing term that it is very difficult to clearly define due to the many different meanings that it has acquired throughout history since the French Revolution (Hoffman, 2006). Many different current events that have occurred since then, such as the 9/11 attacks among many others, have altered or modified the meaning of terrorism. However, most modern definitions of terrorism agree that terrorism is the use violence to accomplish a political, religious, or ideological objective (Hoffman, 2006). Therefore, my own definition of terrorism is the use or an act of violence that seeks to create terror to a large segment of the population in an effort to coerce the population or decision makers to follow the demands of those that are using violence and creating terror. Homegrown extremism refers to when an individual develops extremist ideologies that seek to cause harm or terrorist attacks against fellow citizens (Striegher, 2015). In order for homegrown extremists to develop extremist ideologies,

detainee for four years in the aftermath of the U.S. invasion in Iraq (BBC, 2015). It is estimated that ISIS has about 30,000 members in Syria and Iraq, more than half of them are believed to be foreign fighters from over 67 countries (Stanford University, 2017). However, ISIS has created closed partnerships with other extremist organizations around the world and they have become affiliates that provide support or carry out terrorist attacks on behalf of ISIS (Stanford University, 2017). Moreover, its sophisticated media propaganda that is found all over the internet in the form of high definition videos, magazines, forums, and guides that explain how to easily carry out an attack in someone’s home town, has lead to a rise in homegrown violent extremism and lone wolves around the world that carry out attacks on behalf of ISIS (Stanford University,