Gov’t assessment points to “sociopolitical developments such as narratives of fraud in the recent general election, the emboldening impact of the violent breach of the U.S. Capitol” and “conditions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
QUICK FACTS:
- Under the direction of Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a “Report on Internal Review of Domestic Violent Extremism” conducted by “a cross-Departmental working group of senior officials.”
- The report incorporated a “comprehensive review of how to best prevent, detect, and respond to potential threats related to domestic violent extremism within the Department of Homeland Security,” according to the DHS website.
- The assessment defined as “domestic violent extremists” those “who are motivated by a range of ideologies and galvanized by recent political and societal events in the United States.”
- These extremists “pose an elevated threat to the Homeland in 2021,” the report goes on to say.
- The report emphasized “sociopolitical developments such as narratives of fraud in the recent general election, the emboldening impact of the violent breach of the U.S. Capitol, conditions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and conspiracy theories promoting violence,” arguing that such developments “will almost certainly spur some [domestic violent extremists] [sic] to try to engage in violence this year.”
READ THE FULL REPORT:
Report-to-the-Secretary-of-Homeland-Security-Domestic-Violent-Extremism-Internal-Review-Observations-Findings-and-RecommendationsDownload
WHAT ELSE MAYORKAS SAID:
- “Every day, the more than 250,000 dedicated public servants at DHS work to ensure the safety and security of communities across our country. To ensure we are able to continue executing our critical mission with honor and integrity, we will not tolerate hateful acts or violent extremist activity within our Department,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas.
- “The findings of this internal review highlight key steps that our Department will continue to take with urgency to better prevent, detect, and respond to potential internal threats related to domestic violent extremism, and protect the integrity of our mission.”
BACKGROUND:
- DHS has promised over the coming months to “focus on implementing the report’s recommendations” and to “include establishing baseline policies and guidance, promoting employee awareness, and enhancing methods to identify and address violent extremist activity, while continuing to protect privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties.”
- The department says it “has already begun addressing many of the gaps identified in the report, including by updating related employee training modules and developing guides for leaders to reference when discussing violent extremist activity.”
