Faculty in the News, May 13

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CSUSB professor comments on right wing militias organizing to protest coronavirus-related restrictions
Route 50
May 13, 2020

Brian Levin, director of the CSUSB Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, was interviewed for an article about extremist militia leaders, frustrated by the pandemic measures imposed by governors and local leaders, who have been part of organizing protests and say they are aided by an influx of new members.

Levin said that government officials and law enforcement will need to carefully watch this movement as frustration grows with pandemic measures. The Center issued a “general conflict” advisory for state and local governments in April, and Levin said that states should be on the lookout for places where people congregate that could become tinderboxes for violence, like unemployment lines, hospitals, city halls and closed beaches.

“Officials have to be aware of the unique ways this pandemic is putting people under stress and try to respond in a way that's empathetic rather than relying solely on enforcement,” Levin said. “What they shouldn't do is let violence catch them off-guard just because their city hasn’t had a large protest yet. We can’t afford officials who are ignorant to movements that might seem weird and arcane, but could end up on the steps of city hall next week.”

More generally, Levin worries that the long-lasting scars left by the coronavirus and the economic downturn will spur a broader shift toward extremist beliefs about the government. “I think this pandemic will create a class of people on the far left and the far right who are just anti-society,” he said. “They’ll just want to tear it all down.”

Read the complete article at “Militias direct coronavirus anger towards state and local governments.”