Types of extremism
What causes have Mark and Louise got involved in?
The truth is we don't know and we don't need to know. There are many different extremist causes and often there are people supporting similar causes who are not extremists.
What makes someone an extremist is not the causes they support. It's the values they reject.
People who feel strongly about a cause might argue or protest. But, in the end, they respect that other people have different beliefs and live by the laws created by our democratic system.
Extremists are prepared to break the law and harm other people. They don't care that we have democratic systems for changing things.
Religious extremism
Religious extremists say that their religious beliefs justify their actions. In reality, their beliefs are very different from what most people of their faith believe. Most followers of the same religion do not believe the extremism is acceptable. They think violence is the opposite of what their faith teaches.
Political extremism
Political extremists don't agree with the government. There is no problem with disagreeing with governments. The difference with extremists is they are not prepared to use democratic methods such as voting, demonstrations and social media campaigns to make their voice heard. Instead they use violence, threats and criminal acts to achieve their aims.
