Class on the political science of terrorism draws huge interest from students

by Tom Parisi

The events of Sept. 11 have led to a surge in enrollment in a political science course on terrorism offered by NIU.

Demand was so great for "POLS 376 Political Violence" that a second section was added for this spring semester. About 100 students, mostly juniors and seniors, are taking the course. Normally the course only is offered once every two years and would not have been offered this semester.

"We anticipated there would be a lot of interest, and I'm told by students that the course was filled within hours of the opening of registration," said Daniel Kempton, chair of the Department of Political Science. Kempton offered to teach the second section of the course to meet demand this spring.

"Students now understand that terrorism will affect their lives and futures, and they want answers," Kempton said. "They want to know what exactly terrorism is, why it's getting worse and what can be done about it. They realize this is a problem that's going to be with them throughout their generation.

"You can't solve the problem of terrorism," he added. "But the differences between good policies and bad policies could save a lot of lives, not only in the United States but across the globe."

About half the students in Kempton's class are political science majors. The remaining students come from a wide array of disciplines, including journalism, communication, history and music.

Kempton said it's important for all citizens to understand terrorism.

"This war on terrorism is going to require a sustained policy over decades or more," he said. "If citizens don't have a good understanding of the problem, they're not going to be willing to make the sacrifices necessary to deal with it."

The other instructor of the course is Political Science Professor Ladd Thomas, who has taught the class for two decades. Thomas said the course delves into such areas as forms of terrorism, counter-terrorism, motivation, cults, eco-terrorism, modern terrorism and history.

"Terrorism in one form or another has been with us a long time," Thomas said.

"You can go back to the Zealots in Jerusalem who in a sense carried out acts of terrorism against the Romans. Sometimes the discussion of modern terrorism goes back to the People's Will in czarist Russia, a movement responsible for the death of Alexander II."

Thomas, who also will teach the course next fall, said the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon really brought home the issue for his students. "They're quite concerned and very interested in class lectures, so much so that it's often hard to cut off questions," he said.

"I think this course makes them much more aware of what's going on in the world and the problems we face, both as individuals and as a country."

The students also learn an important lesson about the long-term political effects of terrorism.

"Acts of terrorism may occasionally succeed in killing people," Thomas said, "but they rarely accomplish their objectives."