The Lure of ISIS + the Radicalization of Young Women with Author Anne Speckhard

As ISIS attempts to shuttle in a new world order governed by Islamic ideals, more women than ever are drawn to the call of the Caliphate. Most recently, San Bernardino shooter Tashfeen Malik went on a rampage that took the lives of 14 civilians and resulted in the orphaning of her 6-month-old child, after pledging allegiance to ISIS in a social media post. Anne Speckhard, author of Bride of ISIS: One Young Woman’s Path into Homegrown Terrorism, details the lure of ISIS and how a promise of a life of adventure has radicalized and disillusioned young women around the world. Ms. Speckhard also breaks down how ISIS militants and terror cells such as al-Qaeda manipulate scripture to meet a jihadi agenda and how outsiders can use that same text to debunk radical interpretation and discredit the ideology leading to deradicalization in this Lip News interview hosted by Jo Ankier.

Guest Bio

Anne Speckhard, Ph.D. is currently serving as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Psychiatry in the School of Medicine at Georgetown University, and is the Director of the International Center for the Study of Violent Extremism (ICSVE). She served also as an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Security Studies Department in the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service teaching the Psychology of Terrorism course. Dr. Speckhard has been working in the field of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) since the 1980’s and has extensive experience working in Europe, the Middle East and the former Soviet Union. She was the chair of the NATO Human Factors & Medicine Research and Technology Experts Group (HFM-140/RTG) on the Psychosocial, Cultural and Organizational Aspects of Terrorism, served as the co-chair of the NATO-Russia Human Factors & Medicine Research Task Group on Social Sciences Support to Military Personnel Engaged in Counter-Insurgency and Counter-Terrorism Operations and served on the NATO Human Factors & Medicine Research Task Group Moral Dilemmas and Military Mental Health Outcomes. Dr. Speckhard has consulted to NATO, OSCE, foreign governments and the U.S. Departments of State, Defense, Justice, Homeland Security, Health & Human Services, CIA and FBI. She is a sought after expert on the subject of terrorism frequently appearing on CNN, BBC, NPR, Fox News, MSNBC, CTV, and in Time, the New York Times, the Washington Post, London Times and many other publications.