Extremism Prevention: Experiences of Frontline Practitioners

Summary

On April 17, 2020, the Program on Extremism at The George Washington University hosted a virtual panel discussion on prevention programs for extremism, leveraging the personal experience of four frontline practitioners. The panelists, three of whom were previously members of various extremist groups, discussed the process of radicalization, prevention, and deradicalization while addressing the related dynamics with the current COVID-19 pandemic.

The discussion focused on prevention programs for extremism, leveraging the personal experience of four frontline practitioners to discuss the process of radicalization, prevention and de-radicalization, and addressed related dynamics with the current COVID-19 pandemic. We were joined by:

• Myrieme Churchill, Executive Director of Parents for Peace who operates the organization's counter-extremism intervention helpline for concerned families
• Arno Michaelis, a Parents For Peace member and Former White Power musician turned tolerance educator and author of The Gift of Our Wounds
• Mubin Shaikh, a Parents For Peace member and former Taliban and Al Qaeda supporter turned de-radicalization expert and author of memoir Undercover Jihadi
• Christopher Buckley, a Parents For Peace member, veteran, and former Ku Klux Klan member who now helps with intervention efforts