2024 feels like a year where extremism is making headlines.

Whether it’s neo-Nazis being stopped in Sydney, the far-right on the march in overseas elections, or Andrew Tate’s ongoing psychodrama, radical views have crept into the public conversation – and now they’re dancing in plain sight.

Young people live in a world increasingly dominated by lawless online spaces where some extreme views thrive. Parents, experts, and Australia’s spy agency are worried about it. The Government is too – it set up a Senate inquiry looking into right-wing extremist movements in Australia.

So, what can we actually do about it?

Extremism isn’t straightforward.

The Australian Policy Strategic Institute, a defence think tank, says more people are united now by the “perception of grievances”, and extremists are drawn to radical ideas, for example, conspiracy theories about the “deep state” of intelligence agencies.

I spoke to Lydia Khalil from the group AVERT (Addressing Violent Extremism and Radicalisation to Terrorism) about modern extremism. She told me it’s currently manifesting as “anti-establishment” and “anti-government” conspiracy theories.

Khalil says young men in particular can end up drifting towards ideas of “male supremacism” – a backlash against feminism, reinforced by figures like Andrew Tate.

The Senate inquiry this week heard evidence that some groups, conventionally considered polar opposites, have found some sense of unity. This is because extremism doesn’t always have a political motive. These views belong on a sphere, rather than a straight line from left-to-right with people’s stances dotted along it. Extreme views can wrap around and meet each other on the sphere, whether they’re from extreme left-wing or right-wing positions.

So, when you see “extremism” mentioned, it generally refers to narrow and possibly dangerous views about the world.

In Australia, we’ve seen several examples of extremism make headlines in recent times. Earlier this year, many confused (and some terrified) commuters fled a Sydney train when dozens of masked men got on board on their way to a 26 January rally.

The men belonged to a neo-Nazi group, and at least one known group leader was among them.

Neo-Nazis also showed up to an anti-trans rally in Melbourne in March last year.

Australia’s spy agency, ASIO, has warned there are extremists who want to see a “race war” in Australia and are still motivated by the white supremacist terrorist who murdered 51 people at two mosques in Christchurch, NZ, in 2019.

You might be wondering, where are people first exposed to extremism? In the age of social media, it’s at our fingertips.

Algorithms also mean my areas of interest – let’s say the Western Bulldogs league in the AFL – will naturally start appearing more frequently on my feed. The catch with algorithms is that they don’t often filter out harmful content relating to certain subjects.

Once a person looks up a far-right group or extremist idea they’ve just heard about – or even if they haven’t – some of that content could start appearing more frequently through the magic of social media curation. Plus, it’s often the most outrageous and ‘eye-catching’ content that dominates these mysterious algorithms.

Shae Flanagan, the Acting National Director of Democracy in Colour, said social media companies need to act to stop algorithms from “leading people who are susceptible to radicalisation down rabbit holes”.

Once people are radicalised, the next issue is how they are able to communicate.

ASIO’s submission to the parliamentary inquiry warned that new online platforms, such as encrypted channels like Telegram, are being used to promote violent extremist ideas.

​It said these groups are “using secure messaging apps, virtual private networks (VPNs) and fake emails to avoid detection”, allowing users to “hide behind anonymity”.

At this week’s Senate hearing, experts said there’s inadequate policing of encrypted messaging apps – as platforms like Telegram have been used to “spread extreme messaging” and “Nazi symbology”.

There are dedicated counter-extremism programs, but they are usually applied to people who are considered at-risk. So, what can you do if you’re worried about people in your life that could be floating towards extremist views?

Lydia Khalil says extremist groups allow people to have “subversive conservations in an edgy way”.

So, she says it’s time for parents, teachers, and friends to have difficult conversations with young people, where they don’t fear being “cancelled”.

She said when people feel shut out, they become alienated and seek out answers provided by extremist ideas and movements.

Educating older people – teachers and parents – is an essential part of this process, Khalil believes.

“Making themselves aware of the particular lingo, the terminology, the memes, the culture” and “things occurring online” in extremist territory can help identify risky content and address it.

Where possible – equal treatment is a particularly effective way of suppressing radicalism and violent behaviour.

A study in Norway found promoting an inclusive environment, and the ‘perceived equal treatment of all pupils regardless of their background’ was effective in suppressing these ideas.

Often we hear the term “social cohesion” as the antidote to extremism.

Loosely translated: if everyone respects each other, there’s no need for people to feel angry and find extremist ideas appealing.

The question is: what does realistic ‘social cohesion’ look like?

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