Extremist Violence From the Fatherland to the Homeland

• Published date: 01 June 2017
• Author: William S. Parkin,Elisabeth Jandro,Jeff Gruenewald
• Date: 01 June 2017
• DOI: 10.1177/1057567716679233
• Subject Matter: Articles

Article

Extremist Violence From the

Fatherland to the Homeland:

A Comparison of Far-Right

Homicide in Germany and

the United States

William S. Parkin

1

, Jeff Gruenewald

2

,

and Elisabeth Jandro

1

Abstract

The creation of open-source terrorist and extremist crime databases has led to a more complete

understanding of violence committed by members of the extreme far-right movement in the United

States. Yet, important questions remain about how serious forms of extremist violence in the

United States compare with far-right violence in other nations, which are also facing this type of

threat to homeland security. The current study draws from structured action theory of extremist

violence and extends an open-source method ology for the purpose s of making cross-nati onal

comparisons of incident-, offender-, and victim-level characteristics of extreme far-right homicide

in the United States and Germany. Despite some similarities, such as in offender race, legal out-

comes, and places where homicides occurred, we find several key differences in the nature of

extreme far-right homicide across these two countries. In particular, we find differences in geo-

graphic and temporal patterns as well as offender and victim demographic and background char-

acteristics. We conclude our study by considering how the unique social, political, and economic

contexts of the United States and Germany over the last 25 years serve to shape our findings.

Keywords

far-right, extremism, homicide, Germany, structured action theory

Introduction

There has been a concerted effort to advance social and behavioral research on terrorism and

extremism in the United States over the last 15 years. As part of this effort, criminologists have

worked to construct large, open-source databases on crimes committed by terrorists and extremists

1

Seattle University, Seattle, WA, USA

2

Indiana University—Purdue University Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN, USA

Corresponding Author:

William S. Parkin, Seattle University, 901 12th Avenue, Seattle, WA 98122, USA.

Email: parkinw@seattleu.edu

International CriminalJustice Review

2017, Vol. 27(2) 85-107

ª2017 Georgia State University

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DOI: 10.1177/1057567716679233

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for which official data have previously been inadequate or nonexistent. Despite several notable

exceptions (see, e.g., Fahey, LaFree, Dugan, & Piquero, 2012; LaFree, Morris, & Dugan, 2010), the

focus of recent research utilizing open-source data has centered on U.S.-based terrorism. Moreover,

existing cross-national terrorism studies have generally failed to hone in on certain types of terrorism

movements of interest, including the extreme far-right movement. As a result, it remains a challenge

to ascertain from existing empirical studies how and why characteristics of fatal far-right attacks

might be similar or different across nations.

In this study, we seek to advance research by extending the open-source methodology to two

countries, the United States and Germany, and make more precise cross-national comparisons of a

single form of ideological violence, homicide committed by far-right extremists, which continues to

be an enduring form of interpersonal violence in both countries. We acknowledge that cross-cultural,

criminological studies are difficult to conduct due to differences in social norms, the cultural

specificity of criminal behavior, and the lack of comparable data sets across countries. In response,

we utilize two unique data sources, both built from publicly available, open-source information, and

purposefully adjust their inclusion criteria to make the samples of far-right extremist homicides

more comparable. We also employ a theoretical framework that helps to contextualize possible

relationships between hierarchically organized social structures in both countries and the manifesta-

tion of situated homicide events.

To begin, we outline a theoretical framework that conceptually links macrolevel structures and

microlevel exchanges between far-right offenders and their victims. Next, we briefly introduce the

extreme far-right movements in Germany and the United States during the time period under study,

1990 through 2012. Providing background information on how violent far-right extremism mani-

fests in both countries, we then describe the data, methods, and results of the study, and end by

discussing how ideologically motivated homicide events in Germany and the United States compare

during periods of rapid social and political change. By comparing incident-, suspect-, and victim-

level attributes of extreme far-right homicide, this study illuminates how unique national socio-

political and cultural contexts shape situated acts of extremist violence in the United States and

Germany. To guide the current study, we seek to answer the following research question: Does fatal,

far-right extremist violence vary across time and place, or is it a homogenous phenomenon?

Specifically, our hypotheses state:

Hypothesis 1: There will be differences in incident-, suspect-, and victim-level attributes

between similar acts of fatal, ideological violence that have occurred in Germany and the

United States over the last 25 years.

Hypothesis 2: Differences in these attrib utes can be explained by differences in so cietal

characteristics between these two countries.

Theoretical Orientation

This study relies on a structured action perspective of far-right extremist homicide to examine

the dynamic relationships between situated human interactions and broad social structures. We

draw from both structured action theory (Messerschmidt, 1993) and doing difference theory

(Perry, 2001; West & Fernstermaker, 1995), adopting several assumptions about how society is

organized, how social categories are constructed and give n meaning, and the mutually reinforcing

relationship between personal identity building and shared expectations about appropriate social

roles.

We begin by recognizing that society is hierarchically organized around socially defined cate-

gories of race, class, gender, and nationality as well as other relevant status markers. Classifications

are imbued with meanings that are understood through the eyes of others, informing how we

86 International Criminal Justice Review 27(2)