Brigate Rosse Red Brigade
BRIGATE ROSSE
RED BRIGADE
Submitted by: Course: Date:
Table of Contents
I. Introduction ..1
.
II. History & Ideology 1
III. Activities .. 2
IV. Strength and Area of Operation 3
V. Conclusion 3
VI. Bibliography .4
Introduction
During the 1970 's and 1980 's, great fear had been spread throughout Italy. A group known as the Brigate Rosse, or Red Brigade, had developed and left its mark on the Italian political scene. Fear was commonplace as bomb plots, kneecappings, and assassinations became the norm. As we go through this paper, the fascinating yet horrifying story, including the history, ideology, and current activity of the Red Brigade will be told.
History & Ideology The history of the Red Brigade can be traced back to the year 1969. It arose out of the student protest movements of the late 60 's. It was a Marxist-Leninist group whose aim was to separate Italy from the Western Alliance. It borrowed the name, methods, and moral justifications from the earlier Italian Resistance movement during World War II. It 's ideology advocated violence in the service of class warfare and revolution, and with Italy in political turmoil at the time, the Red Brigades enjoyed a certain degree of support from the Left. When the group first formed, it mostly concentrated on the assassinations and kidnappings of Italian Government members and private-sector targets, such as judges, corporate executives, university professors, and policemen. The idea behind that was to instill fear in the normal working class. That fear would not have been seen had the targets been a head of a company or a prime minister. Very few would have been afraid of that same fate. During the years of 1975 to 1981, Italy experienced the worst the group had to offer. These years are affectionately known as the Years of Lead. It is a clear
RED BRIGADE
Submitted by: Course: Date:
Table of Contents
I. Introduction ..1
.
II. History & Ideology 1
III. Activities .. 2
IV. Strength and Area of Operation 3
V. Conclusion 3
VI. Bibliography .4
Introduction
During the 1970 's and 1980 's, great fear had been spread throughout Italy. A group known as the Brigate Rosse, or Red Brigade, had developed and left its mark on the Italian political scene. Fear was commonplace as bomb plots, kneecappings, and assassinations became the norm. As we go through this paper, the fascinating yet horrifying story, including the history, ideology, and current activity of the Red Brigade will be told.
History & Ideology The history of the Red Brigade can be traced back to the year 1969. It arose out of the student protest movements of the late 60 's. It was a Marxist-Leninist group whose aim was to separate Italy from the Western Alliance. It borrowed the name, methods, and moral justifications from the earlier Italian Resistance movement during World War II. It 's ideology advocated violence in the service of class warfare and revolution, and with Italy in political turmoil at the time, the Red Brigades enjoyed a certain degree of support from the Left. When the group first formed, it mostly concentrated on the assassinations and kidnappings of Italian Government members and private-sector targets, such as judges, corporate executives, university professors, and policemen. The idea behind that was to instill fear in the normal working class. That fear would not have been seen had the targets been a head of a company or a prime minister. Very few would have been afraid of that same fate. During the years of 1975 to 1981, Italy experienced the worst the group had to offer. These years are affectionately known as the Years of Lead. It is a clear
Bibliography: Giorgio. (1981). Memoirs of An Italian Terrorist. New York, NY: Carroll & Graf Publishers. Pike, J. (1998). Brigate Rosse Red Brigades. [On-line] Federation of American Scientists. Web site: http://www.fas.org/irp/world/para/br.htm Karmon, E. (2001). The Red Brigades. [On-line] International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism. Web site: http://www.ict.org.il/inter_ter/orgdet.cfmorgid=36#article Sancton, T. (1999). Return of the Red Brigades. Time Magazine. [On-line] Web site: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/intl/article/0,9171,1107990531-26730,00.html