The Causes Of Domestic Terrorism In The United States

Improved Essays
The 1995 Oklahoma bombing federal bombing by an anti government Timothy McVeigh, 2009 Fort Hood Shooting by Nidal Malik Hasan an Army Psychiatrist that killed 13 people and the recent Boston marathon bombing in 2013 caused by the Chechen brothers are only few domestic terrorism attacks in the United States history. According to Lewis, “Domestic Terrorism involves groups or individuals who operate without foreign direction entirely within the United States and target elements of U.S. government and citizen” (p. 209). In different countries they also have a form of domestic terrorism of what we can also refer as homegrown terrorism. What are the possible ties that the domestic terrorism in the United States and abroad are relatively close? …show more content…
Domestic terrorism in the United can be described as an act of violence against its own citizens and government. But what is the underlying agenda why the domestic terrorist resort in killing mass population causing a major destruction? According to Federal Bureau of Investigation (1996), The major themes espoused today by right-wing groups are conspiracies, such as the New World Order and gun-control laws, apocalyptic views stemming from the approach of the millennium, and white supremacy” (p. 17). The Federal Bureau of Investigation (1996), also stated, many right-wing extremist groups also articulate antigovernment and/or anti- taxation and anti-abortion sentiments, and engage in survivalist and/or paramilitary training to ensure the survival of the United States as a white, Christian nation, (p. 17). The following could be the reason behind the domestic terrorism in the United States and what cause the domestic terrorist to engage in violence against the civil population and the government. This results in bombing government properties, mass killing targeting the general public transportations and attacks on government properties. Although engaging in a violence the revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia also known as FARC operates a different way. According to National

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The word terrorism means “the use of violence and intimidation to frighten people” (Terrorism, Merriam-Webster.com). Add domestic to the term and it means someone within your country terrorizing your own people. With that said, domestic terrorism can lead to the destruction of a country. For instance, look at the country of Mexico. The country of Mexico has been in an ongoing drug war against the cartel for decades. The fighting deepened in 2006 when the Mexican military intervened and attempted to stop the cartel. There were mass shootings almost every day and people were being…

    • 705 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Vladimir Putin once said, “Terrorism has no nationality or religion.” However, many Americans feel otherwise. A countless amount believe terrorism is affiliated with certain religions, especially Islam, as well as Middle Eastern countries. Whenever an attack on the U.S. occurs, people are quick to accuse the Muslims. Most never question who actually is the real culprit. They are always fearing another attack and continuously on the lookout. Even the American government has put up their guard and are on high alert. The war on terror had a profound impact American history and future by creating fear in the hearts of the American people, also by spending a lot of money to try and stop terrorism and by causing a lot of death.…

    • 1538 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    The majority of the terrorism that has occurred in the United States has been considered domestic terrorism. Domestic terrorism is more prevalent than international terrorism because numerous people believe that the best way to settle their grievances against the United States is to turn to violence. The United States also responds to domestic terrorism in a very different way than how they respond to international terrorism. Domestic terrorism…

    • 1338 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Many comparable definitions of what constitutes as “terrorism” exist today, but Bruce Hoffman provides one of the most complete definitions in his book Inside Terrorism. He affirms that terrorism is (1) violence, or the threat of violence, (2) with political goals, (3) that is carried out by a group (4) or organization, (5) that has widespread ramifications and consequences (Hoffman, 2-3). Although there are a host of potential causes of Islamic terrorism, only one can adequately explain its dissension with the United States: the perpetual class struggle that goes on between the United States and the Middle East. Possible causes of Islamic terrorism include religious beliefs, ideological beliefs, oppressive political regime, etc. The goal of…

    • 1314 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    9/11 Types Of Terrorism

    • 1378 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The most memorable terrorist attack from 2001 to 2015 was on the World Trade Center and Pentagon on September 11, 2001 (Paul, Dorin, Bugnar, and Mester 6). About three-thousand innocent people lost their lives during this violent attack (“Department of Government and Justice Studies”). This important event in American History should be remembered to hopefully prevent it from ever happening again. As terrorism changed from the 1980s to today, so did the types of people who became terrorists (O’Connor). This paper will look at what terrorism is, the types of terrorism, who becomes terrorists, and what their motives may be.…

    • 1378 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Beltway Sniper Case Study

    • 1135 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Domestic Terrorism is defined by the Federal Bureau of Investigations as “acts dangerous to human life that violate federal or state law; Appearing to intend (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; (ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or (iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination. or kidnapping”(Definitions of Terrorism). This definition describes the case of John Allen Muhammad, 42, and Lee Boyd Malvo, 17 . Although they did not have an agenda, people to persuade, or a government to attack, clearly their assault on was meant to intimidate and frighten the citizens of the Washington D.C. area. This was the solitary goal in the Beltway Sniper case.…

    • 1135 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Domestic Terrorism Report

    • 1205 Words
    • 5 Pages

    This paper discussed the differences between domestic and international terrorism. It identified some of the factors that contribute to the increased threats in domestic terrorism. This paper revealed that differences of opinion by some administrators within the criminal justice system as to what a true terrorist act is defined as complicates the investigation of terrorist acts. Finally, this paper discussed how the role of the criminal justice system must be modified to better work to curtail terrorist acts. Increased communications, improving relationships within the Arab-American communities, and learn from past terrorist acts were discussed.…

    • 1205 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Patriot Act

    • 1679 Words
    • 7 Pages

    The United States has developed into a super power nation and the world has felt the presence from the States. From the early 2001 terrorist attacks, the U.S. has been a hotspot of continuous terrorist attacks and groups forming in order to have a larger presence in the middle east. The U.S.’s presence in the middle east led to a record length war known as the War on Terror. Recent terror attacks in the U.S. have shown to provoke action from the government such as the Patriots Act. Islam has also grown to play a large part in the U.S. and the way the people of the U.S. function. They have been assumed to be linked to all terrorist attacks against the U.S. people. The idea of terror in any groups in the United States have been shown for our…

    • 1679 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Mass Shooting Essay

    • 1475 Words
    • 6 Pages

    According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, terrorism is defined as “the use of violent acts to frighten the people in an area as a way of trying to achieve a political goal.” There are two types of terrorism, international and domestic terrorism. International terrorism is terrorist activities that are foreign-based and/or sponsored by organizations or groups outside the United States. Domestic terrorism is terrorist activities that focus on facilities or populations without foreign direction (“HAZARD MITIGATION PLAN UPDATE: PROTECTING THE REGION AGAINST ALL HAZARDS”).…

    • 1475 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Study data provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigations show interesting sociological patterns between male and female domestic terrorists from the 1960’s and 1970’s decades. Right wing terrorists typically were males with blue collar employment experience and some college education, with stark social class differences in the leadership structure of right-wing groups, while left wing terrorists were more female oriented and held a higher level of college education completion than right wingers (Victoroff, 2005; Handler, 1990). Examples of the differences between right-wing and left-wing domestic terror incidents involving U.S. citizens include Patricia Hearst, who was kidnapped in 1974 by the Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA) and eventually joined forces before most of her captors were killed in a shootout (Hixson, 2005). Although Timothy McVeigh was convicted for committing the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, his…

    • 923 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Domestic terrorism is a major concern for every citizen of the United States as well as government offices. A domestic terrorist act is different from an international terrorism event due to those involved with making them happen (Dempsey & Forst, 2016). The acts carried out by individuals or groups, formed solely in the United States without international ties, are considered to be domestic. The Oklahoma City bombing orchestrated by Timothy McVeigh in 1995 is an event that stands out in my mind when I think of domestic terrorism. I was a sophomore in high school at the time, it was on that day I saw first hand how cruel an individual could actually be. The use of homemade bombs is the trend among domestic terrorists, the ingredients to build…

    • 223 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The FBI identifies four categories of domestic terrorists: left-wing extremists, who promote revolutionary movements and the protection of people from capitalism and imperialism in the U.S.; right-wing extremists, who support racial supremacy and anti-government beliefs; single issue groups, who target their attacks against individuals or institutions linked with political issues, such as abortion, testing on animals, and environmental protection; and homegrown Islamic extremists, or U.S. citizens who have become Islamic…

    • 71 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    International terrorist groups also seem to target diplomatic offices, whereas domestic terrorist organizations target private citizens and property. Another difference between domestic and international terrorists is the way in which they attack the United States, as said previously international terrorists are known to use bombings against us, whereas domestic terrorists use arson. I suppose domestic terrorist target private citizens, property, and United States businesses’ because they believe that justice will be rewarded by attacking or killing; subsequently this follows the reasons of international terrorists. Justice drives terrorists because they are fighting for something they believe in or even something they are against because in their minds they have nothing to…

    • 1135 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    It is unfortunate that the only act of terrorism everybody is aware of is the September 2001 attacks. While the September 2001 attack was the biggest and deadliest act of terrorism, it is by no means the first. Research shows that domestic terrorism has been a problem in the United States since the start of the 20th Century. One of the earliest known acts of domestic terrorism was the 1901 assassination of President William…

    • 2051 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Martha Crenshaw’s 1981 article “The Causes of Terrorism” outlines an analysis on the causes of terrorism by examining the preconditions, precipitants, reasons, the psychological aspects of the individual. Crenshaw attempts to show the reader the causes of terrorism in this article. She begins by providing a definition of terrorists. She defines terrorism as the premeditated use or threat of violence committed by a group of people in order to convey a political message. She then divides her paper into three distinct categories that explore the framework, the reasons, and the motivation for terrorism. For each category, she uses terrorist events that have occurred between the French Revolution and the present day of the article. She emphasizes the idea of opportunity and the ability to act for terrorists. She also argues that terrorism does not stem from low economic classes. Instead, it usually comes from the educated middle class. Ultimately Crenshaw argues that…

    • 1247 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays