One of my biggest criticisms of the Department of Homeland Security report on right-wing extremists is how the report defines right-wing extremists without any regard to whether the groups are involved in violence or terrorism. As a result, DHS truly is targeting Americans based on beliefs, not on legitimate threats (despite DHS claims to the contrary).
Here’s the infamous footnote definition:
Rightwing extremism in the United States can be broadly divided into those groups, movements, and adherents that are primarily hate-oriented (based on hatred of particular religious, racial or ethnic groups), and those that are mainly antigovernment, rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local authority, or rejecting government authority entirely. It may include groups and individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration.
Note that DHS didn’t do the same thing earlier this year in a report on left-wing extremists.
Here’s how the report describes the left-wing organizations: “It [the report] focuses on the more prominent leftwing groups within the animal rights, environmental, and anarchist extremist movements that promote or have conducted criminal or terrorist activities.” [Emphasis added]
For anyone that thinks this distinction isn’t a big deal, please remember how this report is being used:
The information is provided to federal, state, local, and tribal counterterrorism and law enforcement officials so they may effectively deter, prevent, preempt, or respond to terrorist attacks against the United States.
How exactly does it protect anyone to go after peaceful organizations? There needs to be a full-scale investigation into whether law enforcement has been using powers to investigate people and organizations based on beliefs (not on probable threats or links to violence or terrorism). DHS has lost all credibility on this–somehow the commission needs to be independent.
DHS should immediately “recall” the right-wing extremist document and at a minimum properly define right-wing extremism by connecting the definition to violence or terrorism.
