Terrorism in the United States
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In the United States, terrorism is defined as the systematic or threatened use of violence in order to create a climate of fear with the goal of intimidating a population or government and thereby spurring political, religious, or ideological change. This article serves as a list and a compilation of acts of terrorism, attempts to commit acts of terrorism, and other such items which pertain to terrorist activities which are engaged in by non-state actors or spies who are acting in the interests of state actors or persons who are acting without the approval of foreign governments within the domestic borders of the United States.
During the American Civil War, pro-Confederate Bushwhackers and pro-Union Jayhawkers in Missouri and Kansas respectively engaged in cross border raids, committed acts of violence against civilians and soldiers, stole goods, and burned down farms. The most infamous event was the 1863 Lawrence Massacre in Lawrence, Kansas on August 21, 1863, when around 150 people were killed by Quantrill's Raiders because of the town's anti-slavery sentiment. Other acts of terrorism occurred during the war included the 1863 Chesapeake Affair and the 1864 St. Albans Raid, the former being committed by British subjects.
Since the end of the Civil War, organized groups or lone wolf white supremacists have committed many acts of domestic terrorism against African Americans. This form of terrorism has consisted of lynchings, hate crimes, shootings, bombings and other acts of violence. Such acts of violence overwhelmingly occurred in the Southern United States, and they included acts of violence which were committed by the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). White supremacist terrorist incidents include the Tulsa race massacre of 1921, the Rosewood massacre of 1923, and the Wilmington insurrection of 1898.
A 2017 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that out of the 85 deadly extremist incidents which had occurred since the September 11 attacks (9/11) in 2001, white supremacist groups were responsible for 73%, while radical Islamist extremists were responsible for 27%. The total number of deaths caused by each group was about the same. However, 41% of the deaths that were attributable to radical Islamists all occurred in a single event: the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting which killed 49 people. No deaths were attributed to left-wing groups. The Department of Homeland Security reported in 2020 that white supremacists posed the top domestic terrorism threat, which FBI director Christopher Wray confirmed in 2021, noting that the bureau had elevated the threat to the same level as ISIS.