Radicalization is a word that is avidly used in relation to terrorism and has been termed as the roots from which terrorism and violent extremism are founded. In relations to terrorism and jihadists, it can be defined as the process through which persons typically youths are introduced and encouraged to adopt overtly ideological messages or beliefs that result in the creation and sculpting of an extremist approach to life and politics that veer from popular opinion. Whereas radicalization does not always equate to violence most radical individuals are willing to participate in violent undertakings to advance their ideologies and effect fundamental political and societal change which in turns births terrorism.
While lay people think that the reasons for radicalization are black and white there is a myriad of factors and triggers that push people especially the youth to adopt radical and jihadist tendencies and travel to as far as the Middle East to fight the Holy war.
Economic Causes
The most prominent cause of radicalization in the modern age is etched on the economic gain or constraints experienced by potential radicals. Human nature allows people to have a price for anything which translates to the fact that if a person is adequately financially motivated, they can be influenced to do anything.
- Poverty is the leading cause of radicalization among youths who feel that they ought to do anything to get out of dearth. Intelligence reports and studies have shown that most radical people, especially in East Africa, are radicalized by the terror organization with the promise of a better life and redemption from the shanty slums and the life of turmoil. Destitution among youths allows them to desert their moderate religious and political morals to adopt and practice radical views in exchange for a small pay usually embellished by recruiters.
- Unemployment is also a trigger factor that deludes the youth that fighting alongside the terrorists is a form of employment with utopian rewards for both them and families back home. Recruiters and radicalizers tap into the large pool of unemployed youths seeking to make a living to escape destitution in return for a monthly payment to be disbursed to their families back home. Likewise, they recruit professionals looking for jobs to fill in their white-collar wing positions that require experts like engineers, journalists, computer experts among others that complement the foot soldiers.
Political Causes
Radicalization has eternally been driven by political views and ideologies and as such propping political factors as a dominant cause of radicalization and eventual violent extremism.
- Majority of terror organizations were created by individuals that felt disgruntled by the political system and as such seek to create a revolution that fundamentally changes the political system. More instance, most Islamists terror organizations are driven by the need by select individuals to change a political system from what they term as western-littered to a more grounded society governed by obsolete sharia law.
- The foreign policies of the majority of the West’s superpowers have birthed radicalization among youths and like-minded individuals feel that western influences have eroded the core beliefs and values held by Muslim states. Additionally, kinetic operations and military incursions are a key cause of radicalization on a broader spectrum in a desperate need to revolt against exceeding diplomatic and political intrusion.
Social and Psychological Causes
Societal and psychological causes contribute to a vast majority of the reasons why people typically below the age of 35 to plunge into radical and violent activities routinely associated with terrorism.
- Topmost, alienation by the community and the natural need for a sense of belonging is a major cause of radicalization. The rampant and almost exclusive link between Islam and terrorism has caused Muslims in different communities to be alienated by neighbors and strangers. This alienation breeds a sense of emptiness that creates a conducive environment for the indoctrination usually associated with the promise of community and belonging unified by a common cause. Most radical groups offer minorities and marginalized persons a utopian caliphate where they could belong.
- Modern day parents tend to be busy and engrossed in their careers to pay attention to their children especially in their teenage years leaving them with no role models to emulate. The lack of role models and guidance, especially among the youth in the West, plunge them into seeking guidance in the wrong people especially in the digital age allowing them to be precast with radical ideologies.
- Most candidates for radicalization are millennials seeking adventure with very impressionable minds. Radicalizers tap into this pool with the promise of traveling the world and being part of a larger purpose. They are lured by stereotypical beliefs of certain parts of the world that prompts them to embark on a journey of self-discovery and actualization.
- Islamophobia, anti-Semitism and other types of racial discrimination and profiling either by the society, law enforcement agencies or government policies give primacy to recruiters and radicalizers over the oppressed minority. For instance, in Europe and the Americas, people of Middle Eastern descent are treated with suspicion across the board and thus empirically evidencing the high numbers of foreign jihadists from those regions traveling to the Middle East and Africa to join terror organizations.
- Historical injustices and grievances have left people chiefly susceptible to radicalization and terror organization. Numerous intelligence reports have cited that some of the most pitilessly radical terrorists engage in violent atrocities as a way to correct injustices against them or avenge wrongdoings against them or their families.
- An overlooked cause of radicalization is the presence of a charismatic leader and or recruiter who is effortlessly able to sell the ideologies purported by the radical group. While the radicalization is naturally targeted at impressionable and vulnerable individuals, a strong leader that is charismatic, alluring and appealing is very important as he is able to appeal to the target audience without breaking a sweat bringing believers and followers. As with the case with most terror organization they have sheikhs and emirs that connect with the people who are able to convince people to travel to the Middle East or Africa and join in the holy war.
It is paramount to note that radicalization has become a menace in modern-day political and societal arenas making it a leading cause of terrorism and violent extremism. As of 2017, over 50,000 people from over 100 countries traveled to join the Islamic State and other terror organizations in the Middle East as well as Africa. The staggering statistics are a clear indication of the direct link between radicalization and terrorism. While they are displayed by the media as suicidal, brutal and violent delinquents it is imperative to note during recruitment and radicalization, terror groups exploit a wide array of factors and triggers to sell to the youth. The youths are promised a utopian caliphate for its followers based on the aforementioned criterion that constantly replenishes the supply of radical individuals willing and able to rectify injustices and join the holy war and fight for an ideal world.
