Days of alt-rage: using the Weatherman movement to deconstruct the radicalisation of the alt-right

No matter whether they adhere to a left-wing or right-wing political ideology, the evolution of a radical activist group shares a common trajectory. As such, it is possible to explore the rise and fall of a far-left organisation like the Weathermen in order to better understand the development of the alt-right, and to devise strategies to combat extremism in a contemporary context. By examining the role of identity politics in fermenting a radical socio-political agenda, as well as the tactics that contribute to the formation of a groupthink mentality, it is made clear that the very strategies of indoctrination and direct action that solidify a radical base are the very same as those that work to divide such groups and isolate them from mainstream socio-political discourse.

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Contemporary Politics on 09/09/2019, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/13569775.2019.1663395