The Rise of The New Left Wing in the 1960's

Starting in the 1960s, with the rise of the Vietcong in Vietnam, a new movement of modern terrorism arose: The New Left Wave . This new wave was similar, yet an improvement on both the first and second waves of terror. They took the importance of utilizing women from the Anarchist Wave and the success of international terrorism from the Anti-Colonial Wave. An examination of the role of women in the movement, the increase in internationalization of the terror, and the role of religion in the various movements shows that the New Left Wave terrorist groups combined successful parts of the previous groups, which not only increased their initial success and recognition, but may have also been their demise.

The New Left Wave learned from the Anarchist movement the importance of women. In addition to the rise in the New Left Wing terrorist movements, the 1960s also saw the rise in feminist groups around the world, which increased women’s leadership roles in New Left Wave groups. Despite the inequality for women in most other fascists of society, like the workplace and in politics, they were afforded equal entry to famous Left-Wing groups, like the Brigate Rosse. In the beginning, most women were only in leadership positions but as militant feminism grew in strength and popularity, women worldwide began engaging in violent acts. Although the participation was often circumstantial, and not premeditative, women willingly devoted themselves to their organizations .

Just as the New Left Wave took successes from the Anarchist movements, they also took from the Anti-Colonial movement. They learned to internationalize their terror tactics, like attacking international figures and drawing support from other nations. By targeting international...

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...yed a role in most groups, although none used it as motivation, except for the PLO.

In conclusion, it is apparent that the those that proceeded them influenced New Left Wing terrorist groups. Whether it was the utilization of women from the Anarchists or the internationalization of terror from the Anti-Colonial groups, Left-Wing groups took the successes of those before them to spread their messages and accomplish their goals. Although many of these influences taken to the extreme, they initially led to increased notoriety for the groups. Finally, although religion was important to most, if not all, of the groups, it was rarely the most important factor. Although most groups, with the exception of the PLO, did not ultimately achieve their goals, their actions led to an increased role of international organizations, like the UN, in international terrorist groups .