Threats of violent Islamist and far-right extremism: What does the research say?

The following article by William Parkin, Brent Klein, Jeff Gruenewald, Joshua D. Frelich and Steven Chermak was posted on the Conversation website February 21, 2017:

A woman holds a flag as she looks out over the National Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

On a Tuesday morning in September 2001, the American experience with terrorism was fundamentally altered. Two thousand, nine hundred and ninety-six people were murdered in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania. Thousands more, including many first responders, lost their lives to health complications from working at or being near Ground Zero.

The 9/11 attacks were perpetrated by Islamist extremists, resulting in nearly 18 times more deaths than America’s second most devastating terrorist attack – the Oklahoma City bombing. More than any other terrorist event in U.S. history, 9/11 drives Americans’ perspectives on who and what ideologies are associated with violent extremism. Continue reading “Threats of violent Islamist and far-right extremism: What does the research say?”