Recent high profile attacks carried out by homegrown jihadists, such as Zale Thompson, a Muslim convert who attacked two New York City police officers with a hatchet, have many within the United States Government concerned. In a speech at the National Defense University, President Barack Obama stated, “[W]e face a real threat from radicalized individuals here in the United States…often U.S. Citizens or legal residents [who] can do enormous damage, particularly when they are inspired by larger notions of jihad” (Obama 2013). Internet propaganda from terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) are targeting American citizens in an attempt to radicalize them to carry out jihad in the United States.
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This form of terrorism involves violent acts committed by self-radicalized individuals to bring about political, religious, environmental, or social change. One lone wolf type that is growing in the United States is the homegrown jihadist. A jihadist is described as a radicalized individual using Islam as an ideological and/or religious justification for the establishment of a global Islamic state, known as a Caliphate, which is governed by strict Islamic Sharia law. The term “Homegrown” describes terrorist activity perpetrated within the United States or abroad by American citizens, legal permanent residents, or an individual radicalized primarily within the United States (Bjelopera 2011, 1) …show more content…
This new approach call for the homegrown jihadist to conduct indivually planned and executed attacks in Western countries without the assistance of larger organizations and using non-sophisticated attacks. This new approach relies on the internet to provide the training that was once only attainable in a foreign traing camp. Hundreds of Jihadi websites are now flooding the internet complete with “how-to” videos. These types of websites pose a difficult civil rights challenge to U.S. Authorities. Although these webites promote violent jihad and provide instructions on procuring weapons, they are protected by provisions in the First Amendment. In the U.S. Supreme Court case Reno v. ACLU the court noted that the internet is entitled to ” [T]he highest level protection from government intrusion” ( Dalzel 1997 q.i Reno v.
This form of terrorism involves violent acts committed by self-radicalized individuals to bring about political, religious, environmental, or social change. One lone wolf type that is growing in the United States is the homegrown jihadist. A jihadist is described as a radicalized individual using Islam as an ideological and/or religious justification for the establishment of a global Islamic state, known as a Caliphate, which is governed by strict Islamic Sharia law. The term “Homegrown” describes terrorist activity perpetrated within the United States or abroad by American citizens, legal permanent residents, or an individual radicalized primarily within the United States (Bjelopera 2011, 1) …show more content…
This new approach call for the homegrown jihadist to conduct indivually planned and executed attacks in Western countries without the assistance of larger organizations and using non-sophisticated attacks. This new approach relies on the internet to provide the training that was once only attainable in a foreign traing camp. Hundreds of Jihadi websites are now flooding the internet complete with “how-to” videos. These types of websites pose a difficult civil rights challenge to U.S. Authorities. Although these webites promote violent jihad and provide instructions on procuring weapons, they are protected by provisions in the First Amendment. In the U.S. Supreme Court case Reno v. ACLU the court noted that the internet is entitled to ” [T]he highest level protection from government intrusion” ( Dalzel 1997 q.i Reno v.