How terrorists’ radical ideology thrives in an ‘us and them’ world

Forms of seemingly irrational violence within society and even sexualised or racial violence are dramatically on the rise worldwide. We see radicalisation and especially a turn to ideology in communities, societies and states. The common denominator is a type of thinking characterised by the feeling of “We against the Rest”.

At the same time, people everywhere struggle with the loss of their identity in today’s “liquid modernity”, a concept coined by sociologist Zygmunt Bauman.

There are two very different developments in the current phase of globalisation. For one, globalisation enables the former great empires and civilisations (China, Russia, India) to tie in with their former status as great powers, and it accelerates the rise of emerging nations (Brazil, possibly Turkey and Iran). Yet, more disturbing at present seems to be the disintegration of traditional identities and forms of government, accompanied by enormous social inequalities. This leads to fragmented identities, as in the case of the perpetrators of the current wave of suicide attacks in Germany, and a reach for ideology in intra-societal conflicts. This accounts for the popularity of Donald Trump and the Brexit result.

There’s another side to global terrorism that isn’t getting the attention it deserves

As an organisation, the Islamic State comprises groups of youth perpetrating violent actions that were set “free” from their social environments. By generalising, one could argue that depending on societal and cultural environment, these young men can become child soldiers in sub-Saharan Africa, Islamic State supporters and fighters, lonely terrorists, members of youth gangs that control the suburbs and slums from Paris to Rio, hooligans, members of mafias and drug cartels, “railway-station kids”, or networks of minor criminals. The fundamental problem is we had assumed that the uprooted, redundant and excluded members of society would eventually come to terms with their destiny. Recent events seem to suggest this is no longer possible.

After Nice, we all must learn to live with a certain amount of terrorism

Various attempts at explaining the outburst of violence within the Islamic-Arab world or conducted by Islamists allude to differences in culture and religion, and in part also to patriarchal structures. This should not be disregarded, but more serious is the fact that the patriarchy, as well as political Islam, have failed in many parts of the world – failed in the face of the pressure of social change through globalisation. The “old” societies of the Islamic-Arabic world crumble with the social change of a “fluid” modernity.