DHS domestic-extremist-lexicon_165213935473
(U) rightwing
extremism
(U//FOUO) A movement of rightwing groups or individuals
who can be broadly divided into those who are primarily
hate-oriented, and those who are mainly antigovernment and
reject federal authority in favor of state or local authority.
This term also may refer to rightwing extremist movements
that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to
abortion or immigration.
(also known as far right, extreme right)
(U) secondary
targeting
(U//FOUO) Plans or attacks directed against parties
(secondary targets) that provide direct financial, logistic, or
physical support to the primary target of an organized
campaign, with the goal of coercing those parties to end their
engagement with a primary target. Secondary targets can
include customers of or suppliers to a primary target or
employees of a primary target organization.
(U) single-issue
extremist groups
(U//FOUO) Groups or individuals who focus on a single
issue or cause—such as animal rights, environmental or
anti-abortion extremism—and often employ criminal acts.
Group members may be associated with more than one issue.
(also: special interest extremists)
(U) skinheads (U//FOUO) A subculture composed primarily of
working-class, white youth who embrace shaved heads for
males, substance abuse, and violence. Skinheads can be
categorized as racist, anti-racist or “traditional,” which
emphasizes group unity based on fashion, music, and lifestyle
rather than political ideology. Dress often includes a shaved
head or very short hair, jeans, thin suspenders, combat boots
or Doc Martens, and a bomber jacket.
(also: skins)
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Page 9 of 11
(U) sovereign citizen
movement
(U//FOUO) A rightwing extremist movement composed of
groups or individuals who reject the notion of
U.S. citizenship. They claim to follow only what they believe
to be God’s law or common law and the original
10 amendments (Bill of Rights) to the U.S. Constitution.
They believe they are emancipated from all other
responsibilities associated with being a U.S. citizen, such as
paying taxes, possessing a driver’s license and motor vehicle
registration, or holding a social security number.
They generally do not recognize federal or state government
authority or laws. Several sovereign citizen groups in the
United States produce fraudulent documents for their
members in lieu of legitimate government-issued forms of
identification. Members have been known to advocate or
engage in criminal activity and plot acts of violence and
terrorism in an attempt to advance their extremist goals.
They often target government officials and law enforcement.
(also: state citizens, freemen, preamble citizens, common law
citizens)
(U) tax resistance
movement
(U//FOUO) Groups or individuals who vehemently believe
taxes violate their constitutional rights. Among their beliefs
are that wages are not income, that paying income taxes is
voluntary, and that the 16th Amendment to the
U.S. Constitution, which allowed Congress to levy taxes on
income, was not properly ratified. Members have been
known to advocate or engage in criminal activity and plot acts
of violence and terrorism in an attempt to advance their
extremist goals. They often target government entities such
as the Internal Revenue Service and the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
(also: tax protest movement, tax freedom movement, antitax
movement)
(U) tertiary targeting (U//FOUO) Plans or attacks against parties with indirect
links to the primary target of an organized campaign.
Tertiary targets can include employees, customers, investors,
and other participants in a company (the secondary target)
that does business with or provides support services to the
primary target; or parties who provide direct financial,
logistic, or physical support to the secondary target.
(U) underground (U//FOUO) A term used to describe clandestine extremist
groups, individuals, or their activities.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Page 10 of 11
(U) violent antiwar
extremism
(U//FOUO) A movement of groups or individuals who
advocate or engage in criminal activity and plot acts of
violence and terrorism in an attempt to voice their opposition
to U.S. involvement in war-related activities. They often
target the military, seats of government power, and defense
industry personnel, facilities, and activities.
(U) violent religious
sects
(U//FOUO) Religious extremist groups predisposed toward
violence. These groups often stockpile weapons, conduct
paramilitary training, and share a paranoid interpretation of
current world events, which they often associate with the end
of the world. They perceive outsiders as enemies or evil
influences; display intense xenophobia and strong distrust of
the government; and exercise extreme physical or
psychological control over group members, sometimes
isolating them from society or subjecting them to physical or
sexual abuse and harsh initiation practices.
(U) white nationalism (U//FOUO) A term used by white supremacists to emphasize
what they perceive as the uniquely white (European) heritage
of the United States.
(U) white power (U//FOUO) A term used by white supremacists to describe
their pride in and the perceived superiority of the white race.
(U) white separatism (U//FOUO) A movement of groups or individuals who
believe in the separation of races and reject interracial
marriages. Some advocate the secession of specific
geographic regions from the rest of the United States.
Members have been known to advocate or engage in criminal
activity and plot acts of violence and terrorism in an attempt
to advance their extremist goals.
(U) white supremacist
movement
(U//FOUO) Groups or individuals who believe that whites—
Caucasians—are intellectually and morally superior to other
races and use their racist ideology to justify committing
crimes, acts of violence, and terrorism to advance their cause.
Some advocate racial separation/segregation.
White supremacists generally fall into six categories:
Neo-Nazi, Ku Klux KlanUSPER, Christian Identity, racist
skinhead, Nordic mysticism, or Aryan prison gangs.
White supremacists have been known to embrace more than
one of these categories.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Page 11 of 11
(U) Reporting Notice:
(U) DHS encourages recipients of this document to report information concerning suspicious or criminal
activity to DHS and the FBI. The DHS National Operations Center (NOC) can be reached by telephone at
202-282-9685 or by e-mail at NOC.Fusion@dhs.gov. For information affecting the private sector and
critical infrastructure, contact the National Infrastructure Coordinating Center (NICC), a sub-element of the
NOC. The NICC can be reached by telephone at 202-282-9201 or by e-mail at NICC@dhs.gov. The FBI
regional phone numbers can be found online at http://www.fbi.gov/contact/fo/fo.htm. When available,
each report submitted should include the date, time, location, type of activity, number of people and type of
equipment used for the activity, the name of the submitting company or organization, and a designated
point of contact.
(U) For comments or questions related to the content or dissemination of this document, please contact the
DHS/I&A Production Branch at IA.PM@hq.dhs.gov, IA.PM@dhs.sgov.gov, or IA.PM@dhs.ic.gov.