New York, NY, June 15, 2021… ADL (the Anti Defamation League) commends the release today of the U.S. government’s first-ever comprehensive interagency strategy focused specifically on countering the threat of domestic violent extremism, such as violent white supremacy and anti-government extremism.
“Domestic violent extremism is the nation’s top terrorism threat and the Biden Administration’s new strategy is an excellent step forward in addressing it, building on their significant progress to date,” said Jonathan Greenblatt, ADL CEO. “They have moved quickly to mitigate this threat through prioritizing reforms at DHS, and adding an office to the White House to specialize in addressing domestic violent extremism – among other measures. The response to this massive threat must be a monumental one, so we look forward to the urgent implementation of the strategy and supporting the hard work in the days to come.”
There are many elements in the Strategy that correspond with the PROTECT Plan, ADL’s comprehensive proposal for countering domestic terrorism while protecting civil liberties, released in February 2021. This includes prioritizing efforts to address domestic terrorist threats and increasing resources to improve the government’s effectiveness in doing so.
However, the plan does not include a clearinghouse for online extremist content – a measure that originated with ADL’s PROTECT plan – that would safeguard civil liberties while increasing the corners of the internet that are observed for potential threats. ADL plans to engage with the Administration to leverage these types of approaches to comprehensively address the threat.