Experts reveal that the key reasons behind the significant growth in violent extremism in the United States in recent years are social upheavals, polarizing political discourse, and rising economic inequality.

Violent extremism was brought to the forefront in the United States earlier this month when an 18-year-old white supremacist murdered ten Black people inside a grocery store in Buffalo, New York.

Meanwhile, according to an intelligence report acquired by Politico last week, US officials are concerned about white supremacists coming to Ukraine to join the neo-Nazi Azov brigade. The US is concerned that when these warriors return home, they will pose a domestic threat.

"It's a clear and present danger. The economic fallout from the pandemic has been contributing to it, the economic recession of 2008 has been contributing to it, the immigration crisis in Europe and elsewhere has been contributing," University of Maryland Psychology Professor Arie Kruglanski told Sputnik. "We live in very uncertain times."

According to FBI data, more than 8,200 hate crimes were committed in the United States in 2020, a more than 30% rise from 2016. 

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Kruglanski, the co-founder of the US Homeland Security-sponsored National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism, stated that the number of hate groups in the US increased by 55% between 2016 and 2019. He stated that uncertainty threatens people's livelihoods and social worth, creating a scenario in which large numbers of people are vulnerable to ideas that empower and give them purpose.

"The narrative… promises you that through violence you will gain significance, and unfortunately the white supremacists nowadays have been proliferating [this] in recent years, primarily between 2016 and 2020, and they have been gaining legitimacy," Kruglanski said.

Some people believe that white supremacist ideologies identify who is to blame for their suffering and what they should do about it, which primarily encourages violence against those imagined enemies, according to Kruglanski.

Politics, protests, and social inequality add fuel to fire

People may be encouraged further if white supremacist ideologies are supported by US politicians or lawmakers, according to Kruglanski, who added that numerous far-right politicians have been riding this wave. "The fact that they legitimize it gives it a lot of credence, a lot of authority," Kruglanski said.

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The fact that the far-right has gained so much respectability in recent years will undoubtedly lead to further violence in support of these ideals, he continued.

Resolving this issue may be contingent on political will to confront it straight on. However, there is a significant political advantage in exploiting these vulnerabilities, as US politicians have done in order to gain votes, according to Kruglanski.

He noted that social media companies should consider how much abusive messaging is permitted on their platforms.

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How could violence worsen? 

According to Kruglanski, extremist violence in the United States may worsen if the political climate continues to split and the economy remains uncertain in the face of high gas costs and rising inflation.

Randall Rogan, a terrorism expert at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, revealed that various movements such as Black Lives Matter, the racially charged riots and protests following George Floyd's death, the January 6 Capitol riot, and the fallout from the novel coronavirus pandemic created a sense of turmoil for all individuals.

"I would argue that's been so disruptive to our lives, but particularly for young men, who have been in high school during this time period, and probably are, in many ways socially inept. They have been bullied or they have been outcast," Rogan said.

"And they have been alienated and they look for solace and look for a sense of, of definition, a sense of direction and purpose in their lives, and they're doing that online, and they get sucked into these different websites."

Read next: Hate Crimes at Their Peak in the US: FBI

The sense of white shame and guilt engendered by these societal changes feed into some of the potential negative perceptions bothering these people, which may then be legitimized by the stuff they see online, according to Rogan. Individuals may be encouraged online by conspiracy theories that support or propagate racist ideologies, according to Rogan. He also said US politicians and lawmakers can partially be blamed.

"Let's dial it back a bit and the vitriol and the shaming and the canceling things that are going on in this country, dial back this aggressive behavior around everything that we're engaged in," Rogan said. "Let's start listening to other people and stop talking so much."

He also stated that we must listen to what youngsters have to say and focus on their mental health issues.

Violence contributes to social gaps

Kruglanski revealed that the growing gap in social inequality in the United States contributes to extremist violence in the country.

According to the US Economic Policy Institute, CEO salary increased by more than 900% between 1978 and 2018. According to the Federal Reserve, following the 2008 recession, the wealthiest 10% of Americans became wealthier by 2016, while the rest of the country suffered losses.

The economic effect of the pandemic has prompted consumer prices to rise 8.3%, while Americans are paying all-time high record gas costs.

"There are several things society can do, one is trying to reduce the inequality that exists in a society that is widening in recent years," Kruglanski said.

"Try to reduce the fears of the economic and the existential fears of masses of people. There are a lot of people who are really suffering in this country and that has to be addressed and has not been addressed sufficiently."