Addressing the Threat of Extremism on Your Campus
Here’s a run-down of the tactics used by extremists such as white supremacists and the “black bloc”, as well as some ways your campus can keep protests peaceful.
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During the Campus Safety Conferences this summer, there were discussions about countering violent extremists that included extreme left and right wing actors. Below is some of the material that was presented to help campus law enforcement understand and prepare for events that might take place on their campuses.
Who Are Some of the Extremist Players?
On one extreme are the many groups and individuals who fall within the widely used term “alt-right”. They are not a homogenous group, and as a result, there is a spectrum of thoughts and behaviors between them. However, they tend to share several things in common.
The first is that they advocate for white supremacy, though they no longer publicly advocate for the extermination of other races as happened with earlier groups. The “modern” white supremacists don’t want “them” to live in their area, community, state, or nation. As a result of this shift from extermination, they have managed to attract a growing number of supporters.
They also tend to blame people of other races or ethnicities for economic or social problems, which also has increased membership and supporters. This issue grows whenever jobs are lost, costs increase, or crime surges, as blaming “them” makes for an easy scapegoat.
They also focus heavily on First Amendment and Second Amendment rights. Religion is often a significant motivator, free speech and freedom of assembly are widely touted, and use of firearms and development of militias are common and often a social activity within particular groups.
Finally, they often are formed into small groups or associations with semi-formal structure, and these groups often communicate with other groups that share their core beliefs.
While many people find the views of people within the “alt-right” groups to be repugnant (particularly the racist views), most of the activities are protected by the U.S. Constitution. It is not until laws are violated or violence becomes an issue that law enforcement can take action in most cases.
On the other end of the spectrum are the people who claim to be against the “fascists” in the alt-right, and who often show up as counter-protesters. The extreme groups are often called “anti-fascists”, or “antifa” for short.
While many condemn violence, a loosely associated fringe element has emerged that is often called the “black bloc.” These are people who show up wearing black hoodies, gloves and masks, and are usually intent on using violence (hence the attempts to hide their identities).
The most common violence involving the “black bloc” are tearing down of barricades (which makes keeping opposing groups separate very difficult), throwing rocks and Molotov cocktail firebombs, and beating individuals they believe to be fascist.
Because the “black bloc” is loosely associated, there is no real/formal leadership nor structure, and who shows up at a given venue can change based on when and where a “counter protest” is held. People involved often put up a call for people to come out on social media, which may be an indicator for law enforcement that a counter protest with violence might be expected. However, their tactics and loose association also means identification of someone involved may be very difficult.
Be Mindful of First Amendment Issues
Law enforcement in the United States must always be mindful of the protections provided in the Constitution. After all, officers have sworn to uphold and defend those principles when carrying out their duties.
One of the biggest challenges when dealing with the extremist groups identified above is the First Amendment, which provides for freedom of assembly and freedom of speech. Rulings by the Supreme Court have expanded freedom of speech to include not just the spoken word, but also symbolic expression. This includes carrying signs, handing out literature, and even burning the U.S. flag. As a result, the concept of free speech is now considered to be more an issue of freedom of expression.
However, governments are allowed to place some restrictions on free expression. These restrictions must be content-neutral, though, and are limited to reasonable limits on the time, place and manner (TPM) of the activity. An example of content neutral TPM restrictions is not allowing a parade with a marching band playing (a manner issue) to go through a residential street (a place issue) at 3 a.m. in the morning (a time issue).
In addition, the Supreme Court decision in Forsyth County v. Nationalist Movement (505 US 123, 1992) makes it clear that costs for security or law enforcement can only be imposed in a content-neutral manner. This means that agencies may not charge higher fees (e.g., for permits or staffing) for one group compared to another simply because of the subject matter or the potential presence of counter protestors. Agencies should consult with legal counsel to ensure any fees charged meet the Forsyth requirements.
In addition to the TPM and charging issues, law enforcement must also be mindful of fighting words and inciting violence. While people may be protected by the U.S. Constitution in saying disgusting, hateful things, the Supreme Court has made it clear that certain words enjoy no protection. If the words are likely to provoke a reasonable person to violence, they generally are not protected (Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire, 315 US 568, 1942). Agencies are encouraged to provide specific training on this issue to officers when freedom of expression events are anticipated.
Preparation Is Key
In addition to the above issues, agencies are encouraged to prepare for the many challenges that extremist events can bring. One of these is the likelihood that many of the antagonists might come from outside the community/region, and are unknown to local law enforcement. Multi-agency communication is essential but may still be limited when attendees are unknown.
Agencies should also be prepared for the adoption of attack tactics used or advocated by other violent extremists. In the modern era of global communication, tactics are no longer restricted to a single group. Violent extremists are learning and adopting tactics used by groups with radically different ideologies, such as the use of vehicles as a weapon.
Finally, campus law enforcement must keep in mind the potential for violent extremists to recruit from within the campus. While it is natural and encouraged for students to explore different viewpoints and debate a variety of topics, those who express a stronger than normal interest in violence may present an elevated threat.
One of the best ways to address this potential violent radicalization is to have regular interaction with various campus groups and encouraging them to watch for those individuals who might align with their philosophies but are interested in or pushing others toward violent action. This should be a concern for them, as a violent act by one of their members can make them all look bad in the eyes of the public, and permanently damage their cause.
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Wow, so now you have folks chasing people in black hoodies, because you have made up some mysterious “black block”. This is not accurate, many, many people wear black hoodies. I believe it is one of the most common sweatshirt colors. From your article, one could think this mysterious group does not exist in Florida, because of the lack of hoodies.
If you think white supremacists don’t advocate the extermination of other races, well get on the internet, read “the Daily Storm”, even check out Facebook to see what they said after their murder of Heather Heyer, get a clue. What you are putting out is inaccurate and will add to the problem.
Why is black lives matter not listed as racist? they are extremely racist. I would think they are as bad as the KKK. I think your writer’s need to learn what it is like to fight for a country they take for granted. They could all go to mexico maybe that will make them happier.
Kate and Craig, thank you for your comments. What you are pointing out is the result of the limitations on the length and depth of an article. As noted near the beginning, these are only “some” of the violent extremists. As noted during the seminars this summer, there are many violent extremists affiliated with a wide variety of causes (some of which have been covered in previous articles in Campus Safety). There is more than enough on this matter to teach several graduate courses, so narrowing this down for a single article necessitated not addressing a large number of violent actors.
On the issue of “advocating for extermination”, yes, there are people in the white supremacist movement that do still advocate for this, just as there are some in the extreme fringes of other movements like environmental protection who think elimination of people is necessary to save the planet. The white supremacist movement has seen large membership increases, though, in those groups where they have dropped the call for extermination and moved to calls for deportation and/or exclusion.
Black Lives Matter also has violent extremists, as has been shown by ambushes/attacks on police officers. Again, there were many groups that were not discussed simply due to the length limitations. For more complete listings of the groups, I encourage looking at resources like the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Thank you, again, for taking the time to provide comments.