Washington States Domestic Extremism and Mass Violence Task Force Part 1

The 31 Member Task Force of LEFT-WING EXTREMISTS

Photo by Clem Onojeghuo on Unsplash

The Domestic Extremism and Mass Violence Task Force Met on November 22, 2024 for there Kick-Off Meeting, Comprised of 3 Staff Members from the AG’s OFFICE that are a part of the Anti-Hate Policy Group, Jamie Tugenberg being head staff person for this Task Force that is comprised of 31 people from various Organizations.

The Attorney General’s Office Domestic Extremism and Mass Violence TASK Force contracted with:

Cynthia Miller-Idriss an award-winning author and scholar of extremism and radicalization. She is the founding director of the Polarization and Extremism Research & Innovation Lab (PERIL) at the American University in Washington, DC, where she is also a Professor in the School of Public Affairs and in the School of Education. from American University

With This Task Force Suggesting Legislation you never know what will go on. Anyone that disagrees with this groups opinion on Hate Groups such as Antifa, BLM, and groups such as the LGBTQIA+ Community you are a TARGET.

These people have a serious case of Trump Derangement System (TDS)… the only treatment for that is mental health counseling and/or over the counter medication that can treat the symptoms of TDS.

A Commercial about TDS and the Cure…… ENJOY!

The 31 Members of the TASK FORCE There Names and There Organizations:

Meeting Number #1 (11.22.24) **NOTE FULL MEETING

Meeting Number #2 (01.10.25) **NOTE Second Meeting is not Complete the rest of the comment time and the rest of the meeting wasn’t recorded.

If you have questions for the AG’s OFFICE Domestic Extremism and Mass Violence Task Force email them at Email TASK FORCE

Extremism: the quality or state of being extreme

This Portion was from Cynthia Miller-Idriss’s Presentation to the TASK FORCE

What is Extremism? (How the Field Describes Extremism)

• A way of thinking that pits Us versus Them (Berger 2018) in existential terms, so that the "other" group is seen as posing a dire threat to one's way of life and future survival

• Radicalization is the process of coming to accept and endorse that way of thinking

• Mobilization is the term used when a radicalized person chooses to take violent action

• Historically, the US focus has been preventing mobilization to violence (secondary prevention) not preventing radicalization (primary prevention)

The threat landscape

• Shift in U.S. threat assessment from international (ISIS, al-Qaeda, etc) to domestic violent extremism (DVE)

• DVE includes white supremacist extremists, animal rights and environmental extremists, and a wide range of antigovernment extremists, such as unlawful militias, anarchists, antifascists, and sovereign citizens, alongside a large catch-all category called "all other domestic terrorism threats," which includes extremism motivated by gender, sexual orientation, and religion.

• WSE & militia/antigovernment extremist now most pressing threats

• Trends: spikes or record breaking in almost all categories of hate- esp antisemitism, anti-
  LGBTQ+, and violent misogyny, along w mass shootings

• Problem is global, but U.S. disproportionate share (half the attacks, half the deaths of the global total)

Preventing Violent Extremism

Three approaches intended to reduce extremists' ability to recruit, radicalize, and mobilize people to violence:

• Primary prevention: preventing people from being radicalized in the first place

• Secondary prevention: stopping an already-radicalized actor from effectively executing an attack ("if you see something, say something")

• Tertiary prevention: deradicalization and disengagement of already-committed extremists)

From how & why to where & when

• Shift from groups to lone actors- most no formal engagement w/extremist groups

• Shift from radicalization through ideology, manifestos, group membership to online exposure/radicalization

• Secondary prevention relies on timely and effective execution of security strategies like surveillance, monitoring and infiltration of groups alongside healthy dose of sheer luck

• But most terrorist attacks in the United States come from people who have no affiliation with formal groups - even if they are inspired by propaganda produced from those groups.

• Violent actors today - including "homegrown extremists" who may pledge support to foreign terrorist organizations but generally receive no direct operational support from them - are almost always radicalized and mobilized through exposure to online propaganda.

Public health approach to violence prevention

• Rooted in communities' needs

• Evidence-based

• Upstream, early intervention

• Addresses root causes and systems

• Examples:

• Media literacy programming (DUCC)

• The Good Men Project

• Aurora, Colorado

• Canada's Public Safety family therapeutic approach

• Germany's mobile advisory center model (CARE Center pilots in US)

What are the points of disagreement?

• Primary versus secondary

• How to protect free speech

• Federal/state funding versus philanthropic/civil society support

• What are the measures of effectiveness?

NEXT: TASK Force Meeting is on March 14, 2025

Be on the look out for the link to the zoom Meeting at the AG’s Website (LINK BELOW)

https://www.atg.wa.gov/domestic-extremism-and-mass-violence-task-force

This Concludes Part 1 of the Washington State AG’s Office Washington State Domestic Extremism and Mass Violence Task Force.