Understanding Terrorism: Challenges, Perspectives, and Issues offers a multidisciplinary, comprehensive exploration of contemporary terrorism that helps readers develop the knowledge and skills they need to critically assess terrorism in general and terrorist incidents. The Sixth Edition has been comprehensively updated with new information on terrorist attacks and organizations, as well as key topics such as failed states, the lone-wolf model, state terrorism and human rights violations, cyberterrorism, counterterrorism intelligence, and target hardening.
Author Gus Martin provides a fresh analysis of violent extremism, with discussions of both international and domestic challenges and options. Focused discussion is provided on contemporary threats, new movements and tendencies, and the effectiveness of responses to these scenarios. Discussion of policies and responses to terrorist environments has been augmented to include new perspectives on counterterrorist options, comparisons of domestic and international scenarios, and the contexts of promoting regional and national security to help students understand the challenges, perspectives, and issues relevant to terrorism today.
About the Author
C. Augustus Gus Martin is a Professor of Criminal Justice Administration at California State University, Dominguez Hills, where he regularly teaches a course on the subject of terrorism and extremism. He has also served as Associate Vice President for Human Resources Management, acting Associate Dean of the College of Business Administration and Public Policy, Associate Vice President for Faculty Affairs, and Chair of the Department of Public Administration and Public Policy. He began his academic career as a member of the faculty of the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh, where he was an Administration of Justice professor. His current research and professional interests are terrorism and extremism, homeland security, administration of justice, and juvenile justice.
Dr. Martin is author of several books on the subjects of terrorism and homeland security, including Understanding Homeland Security (SAGE Publications, 2017); Essentials of Terrorism: Concepts and Controversies (SAGE Publications, 2017);The SAGE Encyclopedia of Terrorism, Second Edition (SAGE Publications, 2011); Terrorism and Homeland Security (SAGE Publications, 2011); and The New Era of Terrorism: Selected Readings (SAGE Publications, 2004). He is also author of Juvenile Justice: Process and Systems (SAGE Publications, 2005).
Prior to joining academia, Dr. Martin served as Managing Attorney for the Fair Housing Partnership of Greater Pittsburgh, where he was also director of a program created under a federal court-mandated consent decree to desegregate public and assisted housing. He was also Special Counsel to the Attorney General of the U.S. Virgin Islands on the island of St. Thomas. As Special Counsel he occupied a personal and confidential position in the central office of the Department of Justice; sat as hearing officer for disciplinary hearings and departmental grievances; served as chair of the drug policy committee; served as liaison to the intergovernmental Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee as well as to the Narcotics Strike Force; and provided daily legal and policy advice to the Attorney General. Prior to serving as Special Counsel, he was a floor Legislative Assistant to Congressman Charles B. Rangel of New York. As Legislative Assistant, he researched, evaluated, and drafted legislation in areas of foreign policy, foreign aid, human rights, housing, education, social services, and poverty. He also drafted House floor statements, Congressional Record inserts, press releases, and news articles, and composed speeches, briefing materials, and legislative correspondence.
