Research Paper 2 1
Liberty University
HLSC 510 – D01 / Homeland Security Organization and Admin
The Act of Terrorism
Kimberly Persiani
Research Paper 2 2
Terrorism can be a complex and dynamic term. The act of terrorism involves the use or
threat of violence and seeks to create fear, not just within the direct victims but amongst a large
audience. Terrorism has been practiced by political organizations with both rightist and leftist
objectives, by nationalistic, religious groups, revolutionaries, and even state institutions such as
law enforcement. Our current Federal Bureau of Investigations department recognizes terrorism
under international and domestic entities. International terrorism involves violent, criminal acts
committed by individuals and/or groups who are inspired by, or associated with, designated
foreign terrorist organizations or nations [CITATION WHA20 \p "Paragraph 2" \l 1033 ].
Domestic terrorism can be defined as violent, criminal acts committed by individuals and/or
groups to further ideological goals stemming from domestic influences, such as those of a
political, religious, social, racial, or environmental nature [CITATION WHA20 \p "Paragraph
3" \l 1033 ]. Throughout history we can even subcategorize different acts of terrorism.
World War I
Germany’s attacks against countries near the North Sea and Mediterranean can easily be
considered international terrorism. Germany used violent force to inflict fear, in an attempt to
control France, Britain, and Poland. President Woodrow Wilson requested a declaration of war
against Germany under presumption that America would soon be caught in the violence. April
02, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson requested a declaration of war against Germany.
Germany’s resumption of submarine attacks on passenger and merchant ships in 1917 became
the primary motivation behind Wilson’s decision to lead the United States into World War I
[CITATION USE20 \p "Paragraph 2" \l 1033 ]. Following the sinking of the Sussex on March
Research Paper 2 3
1916, Wilson threatened severe diplomatic relations against Germany unless the German
Government refrained from attacking all passenger ships and allowed the crews of unarmed
French merchant vessels to abandon their ships prior to any attack. On May 4 1916, the German
Government accepted these terms and conditions in what came to be known as the “Sussex
pledge.”
Germany's violation of its pledge to suspend unrestricted submarine warfare in the North
Atlantic and the Mediterranean provided justifiable reasoning for declaring war against
Germany. In addition, America found that Germany made several attempts to entice Mexico into
an alliance against the United States of America. On April 04, 1917, the United States Senate
voted in support of the measure to declare war on Germany. Two days later the House of
Representatives approved the support of war on Germany. In conjunction, the United States
declared war on German ally Austria-Hungary on December 07, 1917. Germany’s terroristic
actions are considered left- or right-wing terrorism. A more in-depth description classifies
Germany’s actions as right-wing terrorist. Right-wing terrorism or far-right terrorism was
motivated by a variety of different right-wing and far-right ideologies like Neo-Nazism.
World War II
Following America’s engagement in World War I, in 1939 German troops marched
through Warsaw, Poland. Germany was able to gain control within three weeks’ time. The
invasion forced Britain and France to declare war on Germany [CITATION Cha172 \p "3 Figure
1.1" \l 1033 ]. The German invasion continued to expand from Poland to Stalingrad. Then,
Research Paper 2 4
onward to Holland and Northern Africa known as the propaganda of the Third Reich. The Third
Reich was the official Nazi designation for the regime in Germany from January 1933 to May
1945 [ CITATION Thi \l 1033 ]. The Third Reich was the presumed successor of the medieval
and early modern Holy Roman Empire of 800 to 1806, also known as the First Reich and the
German Empire of 1871 to 1918, the Second Reich.
President Woodrow Wilson's previous encounters with Germany made them a threat to
the United States national security. In addition, President Wilson's response was influenced by
another pledge violation by sinking the British passenger ship Lusitania in May 1915. A German
submarine attacked the Lusitania, which resulted in 1,200 civilian deaths. Among the deaths
included 128 American citizens [CITATION Ber18 \p "Paragraph 5" \l 1033 ]. Although Wilson
and Secretary of State, William Jennings Bryan intended for the United States to remain neutral
to mediate a negotiated peace, Germany was immediately considered a threat. Even though the
threat was not at America’s front door, it would only be a matter of time before Germany
conquered the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean. This gain of power could have allowed
German troops to bring the threat directly to America’s borders.
September 11th
On September 11, 2001, a series of airline hijackings and suicide attacks by 19 militants
associated with the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda targeted the World Trade Center and
Pentagon killing several citizens. The attacks against New York and Washington D.C. caused
massive destruction killing 2,750 innocent people. All nineteen-terrorist died in what is
Research Paper 2 5
considered the deadliest attack on American soil. The attacks were precipitated in large part
because Osama bin Laden, the leader of the militant Islamic organization al-Qaeda, saw America
as a weak link. The September 11 plot demonstrated that al-Qaeda was an organization of global
reach. The 9/11 attack changed the way America secured the nation.
The United States Department of Homeland Security was established to secure the nation
from threats both domestic and international after the disaster. Eleven days after the 911 terrorist
attacks, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge was appointed as the first Director of Homeland
Security by the White House to oversee and coordinate a comprehensive national strategy to
safeguard the country [ CITATION Hom151 \l 1033 ]. November 2002, the Homeland Security
Act was passed by Congress to further coordinate and unify national homeland security efforts.
Even though we faced threats against the United States prior to the 911 incident there was no
stand-alone government agency to address these matters. From World War I to World War II, the
concept of threats to the homeland were a result of country-to-country conquests, political
agreements, and imperial empire building [CITATION Cha172 \p "Chapter 1.2" \l 1033 ]. These
are considered a different type of threat based on the Homeland Security Law and Executive
Orders.
Even after the brutal international terrorist attack of 09/11, we continued to face other
challenging terrorism acts. For example, ecoterrorism also known as bioterrorism, includes
threats to contaminate water supplies or to destroy or disable energy utilities, as well as practices
such as the deployment of anthrax or other biological agents [ CITATION Bio20 \l 1033 ]. In
2001, the Federal Bureau of Investigation created the Amerithrax Task Force to combat
Research Paper 2 6
biochemical attacks within the United States of America. Letters laced with anthrax were mailed
through the United States Postal Service killing five citizens and hospitalizing another seventeen
individuals. People nation-wide lived-in fear for months and had to take precautionary measures
when securing mail. After further investigation in August of 2008, the Department of Justice and
FBI officials declared charges against Dr. Bruce Ivins, who took his own life before those
charges could be filed.
The Center of Disease Control has recognized the potential threat of anthrax. There are
steps that citizens can take to help prepare if an anthrax emergency ever occurred on a mass
scale. The federal government has appointed points of dispensing in communities nationwide to
distribute antibiotics. The Center of Disease Control provides funding to health departments for
biochemical emergency response trainings. In addition, response activities and other resources
are available through the CDC Emergency Operations Center.
Domestic Terrorism
There has been a noticeable rise in domestic terrorism within the United States over the
years. During a concert in Las Vegas, Nevada 64-year-old Stephen Paddock of Mesquite,
Nevada, randomly unloaded gunfire on a crowd of 22,000 concertgoers from the 32nd floor of
the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. Fifty-eight people were killed and another 700 were
injured in the devastating incident. Witnesses say the gunshots lasted between ten and fifteen
minutes. Officers rushed Paddock's hotel room to find him dead from what looked to be suicide.
Since domestic acts of terrorism are not operated as a physical group, they may be difficult to
Research Paper 2 7
observe. Law enforcement officials are trained to handle domestic terrorist with a different set of
rules and structures. Investigators must pass higher thresholds to initiate investigations and have
fewer tools and resources at their disposal. In sum, domestic counterterrorism remains a reactive
affair, in which investigators respond to violent massacres and then pursue criminal cases.
The Center of Disease Control, Homeland Security, FBI, and other departments work
together to ensure America is safe from all types of terrorism. Even partnering with allies across
the world, the United Nations Security Council Resolution provides guidelines for peace
amongst nations. The UNSCR has set international counterterrorism conventions and protocols.
Colossians 3:13-14, "Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance
against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love,
which binds them all together in perfect unity [ CITATION Bib20 \l 1033 ]." United we stand
strong. The scripture speaks of forgiveness and building everlasting relationships of love. Love is
the only thing that can save us from damnation.
Research Paper 2 8
References
(2020). Retrieved from Biblestudytools.com:
https://www.biblestudytools.com/colossians/passage/?q=colossians+3:13-14
Berg, M., & Jansen, A. (October 2018). AMERICANS IN WORLD WAR I – WORLD WAR I
IN AMERICA. The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, 17(4), 599-607.
Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/2124077629?
pq-origsite=summon
Bioterrorism. (2020). Retrieved from ENCYCLOPÆDIA BRITANNICA:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/bioterrorism
Costanzo, M. (2012, 2015, 2018). Forensic and Legal Psychology. New York: Macmillan
Learning.
Homeland Security. (215). Retrieved from DHS: https://www.dhs.gov/creation-department-
homeland-security
Lowery, G. (2010, May 11). Study uncovers why jurors reward the good-looking, penalize the
unbeautiful . Retrieved from Cornell Chronicle:
https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2010/05/unattractive-people-pay-price-court
Nemeth, C. P. (2017). Threats to the Homeland: Twentieth-Century Military Movements. In C. P.
Nemeth, Homeland Security (pp. 2-7). New York : CRC Press.
Sylves, R. (2020). A Short History of US Disaster Policy. In R. Sylves, Disaster Policy and
Politics (pp. 83-90). Thousand Oaks, CA: CQ Press.
Research Paper 2 9
The Media’s influence on Juries. (2015, October 19). Retrieved from PennStateUniversity.edu:
https://sites.psu.edu/aspsy/2015/10/19/the-medias-influence-on-juries/
Third Reich HISTORICAL EMPIRE, EUROPE. (n.d.). Retrieved from ENCYCLOPÆDIA
BRITANNICA: https://www.britannica.com/place/Third-Reich
U.S. Entry into World War I, 1917. (2020). Retrieved from history.state.gov:
https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/wwi
WHAT WE INVESTIGATE. (2020). Retrieved from FBI.gov:
https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/terrorism
Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)
