He argues that new, cohesion-based approaches encouraging greater trust and integration across all communities represent the best defence against terrorism. Contents Acknowledgements Preface Glossary Introduction: A new threat of violent extremism? The Threat of Violent Extremism Introduction: Home-grown suicide bombers Radical Islam: Ethnic Segregation, Poverty and Marginalisation?
Mosques, 'preachers of hate' and recruiters? No easy answers 2.
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A changed policy context Introduction: A Minority of lslamist extremists 3. Preventing Violent Extremism Introduction: Are its priorities self-defeating? There are promising alternatives. Nottingham University model United Nations. In responding to the recent Select Committee Report into the terrorist murder of soldier Lee Rigby, Home Secretary Theresa May has offered a significant strengthening of anti-terrorism measures. These include greater responsibility for all public organisations to contribute to terrorism-prevention.
They also confirmed a greater focus, post the Trojan Horse affair , on schools, colleges and other educational institutions: However, amidst this flurry of activity there are few signs of any actual anti-extremist education taking place. Our concern is that the Prevent focus on identifying young people viewed as vulnerable to radicalisation is taking attention away from the need to promote the prevention of extremism through educational approaches that build individual and collective youth resilience that not only just teach the principles of democratic citizenship but actually put it into practice.
Responding to the Threat of Violent Extremism - Failing to Prevent
We feel that initiatives such as the Welsh-based Think Project show how to do this through open and robust educational conversations. However, currently such open and upfront political education work is not being prioritised by Prevent - educational practitioners are not being trained and supported to undertake such work — and the wider context of citizenship education is being downplayed in England under the Coalition. Leading academic analysts of terrorism such as Richard English have long-argued that how democratic states respond to terrorist threats is crucial — a response of repression or unjustified surveillance can represent precisely the undermining of democratic rights and processes that extremist groups hope to achieve.
From its inception, the Prevent counter-terrorism strategy has been controversial for two reasons. Firstly, the focus on Muslims only something that seems not to have changed despite the claims of the Prevent review contradicted the policy approach of community cohesion, which was emphasising commonality and more complex identities, and has led to predictable Muslim perceptions of stigmatisation.
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As we have argued previously , there has been precious little evidence here of actual education input for these young people — Prevent has not focused on, or encouraged, open political debate and education about the sort of domestic and international political issues that may anger some young Muslims and attract them towards more radical groups.
In the latest Prevent measures, the further pressure to ban extremist speakers in universities and colleges will remove almost all opportunity for young people to hear extremist views and to have them challenged in an open and reasoned way, as though they are so seductive that any attempt to oppose them will result in failure. More generally, the Government seems very reluctant to allow a more open debate about a wider range of contentious issues in which young people can begin to acquire a political and religious literacy.
Here, the success of the Think Project, a Swansea-based anti-extremism education initiative created by a local BME organisation has much to offer and that is why we support the replication of their approach in other parts of the UK. The Think Project targets local white young people seen as vulnerable to far-right racist ideologies and organisations.
'Responding to the Threat of Violent Extremism'
But it has learnt the lessons of previous anti-racist educational work. Think does not see racist language or behaviour by young people as evidence of inherent, essential racism that must be condemned.
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Their educational approach is one of open dialogue, with prejudiced views challenged but in a patient and respectful way that encourages young people to re-think assumptions through exposure to different perspectives. Above all, the Think Project trusts the power of education and shows a faith in the potential of all young people to develop resilience against extremism and hatred by enabling them to learn and to practice real, democratic debate and citizenship.
Responding to the Threat of Violent Extremism: Failing to Prevent: Paul Thomas: Bloomsbury Academic
An investment in and encouragement of such anti-extremist educational processes by Prevent would show that the UK believes in and trusts its own democratic system and that it upholds a real sense of equal citizenship in the face of a terrorist threat. International Journal of Lifelong Education 35 2 , , Counter Radicalisation - Critical Perspectives , Articles 1—20 Show more. Divorced but still co-habiting?
Young people, community cohesion and the role of youth work in building social capital P Thomas Youth and Policy 81, , What the Prevent duty means for Schools and Colleges in England: The impact of community cohesion on youth work: Kicking racism out of football: