Get It Right: The Enduring Threat of Far-Right Extremism in the US

The aftermath of the US’s most recent domestic terrorist attack has been characterised by an emboldening of the so-called ‘Alt-Right’ movement in the country with the scheduling of 67 ‘America First Rallies’ in 36 states. While these rallies were eventually cancelled, and moved online out of fears of retaliatory violence from counter-demonstrators, the events in Charlottesville have focused renewed attention on this far-right extremist movement. On 12 August 2017, a ‘Unite the Right’ rally gathered neo-Nazis and white supremacists together in Charlottesville, Virginia, to march outside the local university against the town’s decision to remove a Confederate statue. While the demonstration was shut down when confrontations broke out with counter-protesters, tensions peaked when a vehicle rammed into a group of counter-demonstrators, killing one person and injuring 19 others. The perpetrator, named as James Alex Fields Jr., a 20-year old known Nazi-sympathiser, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder for the death of Heather Heyer. The march has not only initiated violent confrontations between rival demonstrators across the US, but has once more highlighted that extreme far-right violence is not a new phenomenon in the US. The events have also raised questions around just how long far-right extremism, and the terrorist attacks borne from it, have been a threat to the US. 

Where does it all start and what does Alt-Right mean? The term was coined in 2008 when Richard Spencer, a recognised white supremacist, called for “peaceful ethnic cleansing” to halt the alleged destruction of European culture in the US. According to the Alt-Right (short for ‘alternative right movement’) website: “Race is real. Race matters. Race is the foundation of identity”. This school of thought has resonated widely in the country. At the time of writing, there are reportedly 917 registered hate groups, of which 603 are right wing affiliated, in the US; a 16 percent increase since 2014. In addition, there was reportedly a 240 percent increase in completed, or attempted, right-wing terrorist attacks between 2005 and 2016.

Political trends that have seemingly opposed conservative values over the past two decades partially explain the existence of these movements. A 2009 Federal Bureau of Intelligence (FBI) report found that similar to the 2008 economic crisis; economic uncertainty and job outsourcing are primary drivers for attacks by these groups. During the 1990s, for example, reformed gun acts following both the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and a schoolyard shooting in 1989, reportedly inspired militia-like activity. In addition, the passing of the 1990 Immigration Act, further heightened social tensions as the policy allowed for an increase in the number of immigrants to the US and implemented perceived one-sided social policies. More recently, the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors, more commonly referred to as the DREAM Act, first introduced to the US Senate in 2001 ignited further criticism from far-right movements. The bill, supported by former President Barack Obama throughout his two administrations, granted conditional residency to immigrant minors, whilst also extending social benefits. Similar to any divisive ideology, the discourse of the ‘other’ is therefore prominent within these movements and the root of any violence starts with the imposition of a perceived social hierarchy.

While Charlottesville has focused attention on attacks against minority groups by the Alt Right, other attacks have occurred. According to a study conducted by the Anti-Defamation League, out of 150 right-wing terrorist attacks in the US between 1993 and 2017, 43 percent were carried out by white supremacists, and 42 percent were carried out by anti-government extremists. This is exemplified by the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing carried out by Timothy McVeigh. In letters written during his incarceration, McVeigh explained his need to point out to the federal government its crimes against its own citizens, which allegedly included invasive monitoring conducted by the FBI. Of the same 150 reported acts of right-wing terrorism, 66 targeted government institutions while less than 40 were racially targeted. In addition, firearms and explosives were both the preferred choice of weapon, exemplified with incidents such as the 17 June 2015 Charleston church shooting, when Dylann Roof, a white supremacist, attempted to justify the racially based motive behind the killing of nine people.

Geographically, these tend to take place in more densely populated states such as California, Texas, Florida, Tennessee and Pennsylvania, refuting any presumptions that far-right extremism is concentrated the South. In an interesting correlation, there is a noticeable overlap in incidents in Texas, Tennessee and Florida between the number of racially based attacks and the number of Confederate statues, which together house 319 out of 1,503 symbols of the Confederacy across the US. Additional contributing factors reportedly include poverty thresholds, African-American population density and religious activity. 

Regarding the type of attacker, lone assailants appear to be the primary perpetrator. A study released by Indiana State University in 2017 noted a continuous rise in the number of reported lone actor attacks in the US, from one in the 1940s to 35 in June 2016. Other statistics gathered between 1990 and 2012, further point to this trend, as 54 percent of attacks during this period were carried out by lone assailants. In terms of impact, however, the average number of casualties by a single attacker is 0.6. Similarly, the number of casualties by a group of attackers is also low at two, whereas neo-Nazis reportedly have the highest average of fatalities.