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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION.........256
I. THE DUELING DEFINITIONS OF COUNTERING VIOLENT EXTREMISM....258
II. CVE PROGRAMS SECURITIZE MUSLIM COMMUNITIES AND VALIDATE TERRORISTS' NARRATIVES THAT AMERICA IS AT WAR WITH ISLAM..........261
III. CVE SIGNALS THAT MUSLIMS ARE A SUSPECT COMMUNITY LEGITIMIZING DISCRIMINATION AND HATE CRIMES..........264
IV. CVE PROGRAMS ARE UNNECESSARY TO PREVENT DOMESTIC TERRORISM.........269
V. CVE PROGRAMS WASTE GOVERNMENT RESOURCES........272
VI. FUNDS FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND RESILIENCE SHOULD BE MANAGED BY SOCIAL SERVICE AGENCIES WITHOUT LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTROL............276
CONCLUSION.........278
Introduction
American national security is a priority that crosses partisan lines. Americans of all races, ethnicities, and religions are equally concerned with ensuring our country is safe from violence-whether politically-motivated terrorism, state violence, or violent crime.' And, we all share an interest in preventing violence before it occurs. Toward that end, as citizens and elected officials we have a responsibility to carefully examine whether the methods we use to prevent terrorism are effective.
In 2011, the Obama Administration initiated a Countering Violent Extremism program (CVE) purportedly aimed at tackling the underlying causes that may contribute to terrorism domestically and abroad.2 According to the White House, "CVE efforts address the root causes of extremism through community engagement"3 and
[t]he underlying premise of the approach to countering violent extremism in the United States is that (1) communities provide the solution to violent extremism; and (2) CVE efforts are best pursued at the local level, tailored to local dynamics, where local officials continue to build relationships within their communities through established community policing and community outreach mechanisms.4
In January 2017, the Trump Administration announced that it would change the name of the program to "Countering Islamic Extremism" to reflect his Administration's intentions to focus exclusively on terrorism committed by individuals claiming to be Muslim, while excluding terrorism committed by others including white supremacists.5 Notwithstanding the outcry surrounding the Trump Administration's renaming of the program by civil rights advocates, CVE has always been focused on Muslim communities in the United States. Trump's actions merely validated what critics of the program claimed all along.''
These CVE programs are fundamentally flawed for three reasons: They are counterproductive, unnecessary, and a waste of government resources. Accordingly, this Article addresses four fundamental flaws with CVE: 1) CVE programs securitize Muslim communities and validate terrorists' narratives that...