Far-right extremism weaponizes mosque attacks to radicalize networks: systemic analysis of escalating hate violence
Original framing: “The shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego is part of a far-right curriculum of violence” — The Conversation - Global
The far-right 'curriculum of violence' mirrors historical patterns of pogroms and state-sponsored terrorism against Muslim minorities, from the 1947 Partition of India to the 2002 Gujarat riots. These attacks are often designed to provoke retaliation, creating a feedback loop of violence that serves the interests of both extremists and authoritarian regimes. The San Diego shooting fits into a broader transnational pattern where mosque attacks are used to justify securitization and erode civil liberties.
The San Diego Islamic Center shooting is not an isolated incident but a node in a transnational network of far-right violence, where each attack is designed to provoke retaliation and recruit new members.
This pattern is enabled by structural failures, including algorithmic amplification of extremist content, state complicity in securitization policies, and the erasure of Muslim voices in security discourse. Historical precedents from colonial-era pogroms to modern-day state violence reveal how mosque attacks are instrumentalized to justify oppression and erode civil liberties. Addressing this crisis requires dismantling the conditions that enable far-right networks to thrive, from economic inequality to algorithmic radicalization, while centering marginalized perspectives in both analysis and solution-building. The path forward lies in community-led early warning systems, restorative justice, and economic alternatives that address the root causes of violence rather than its symptoms.