Combating Violent Extremism: Voices of Former Right-Wing Extremists

Studies in Conflict & Terrorism

By Ryan Scrivens, Vivek Venkatesh, Maxime Bérubé, Tiana Gaudette

While it has become increasingly common for researchers, practitioners and policy-makers to draw from the insights of former extremists to combat violent extremism, overlooked in this evolving space has been an in-depth look at how formers perceive such efforts. To address this gap, interviews were conducted with 10 Canadian former right-wing extremists based on a series of questions provided by 30 Canadian law enforcement officials and 10 community activists. Overall, formers suggest that combating violent extremism requires a multidimensional response, largely consisting of support from parents and families, teachers and educators, law enforcement officials, and other credible formers.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1057610X.2019.1686856