Most people are aware of the threat posed by terrorists who travel to the United States to commit their heinous acts. However, often less contemplated is the threat posed by homegrown terrorists, who many experts believe pose an even greater threat today than those of violent extremists outside the country. Agents and officials working in the homeland security sector protect Minnesota from both of these threats, along with those posed by criminals trying to jump the border or conduct significant acts of organized crime.
Gaining the Right Homeland Security Certification in Minnesota
Having the right homeland security credentials can sometimes mean the difference between being hired or not. Specialized homeland security degrees and professional certification are usually applicable across related career fields.
Some examples of academic subjects for a homeland security degree or graduate certificate in Minnesota include:
- Forensic Psychology and Criminal Investigation
- Homeland Security Leadership and Policy
- Human Services
- Business
- Terrorism, Mediation, and Peace
- Criminal Justice
- Law Enforcement
From the Black Snake Militia to al Shabaab
After discovering multiple firearms, Molotov cocktails, and improvised explosive devices resembling pipe bombs in a trailer, western Minnesota officials working in the homeland security sector arrested a man they connected with the suspicious items, who would later be revealed to be the founding member of an anti-government group, the Black Snake Militia. Homeland security officials concluded the man was planning a terror plot after several government law enforcement agencies compared notes in their investigations. One official pointed out that since the 2008 presidential election, the number of militias across the nation has grown from 50 to more than 260. Homeland security training in Michigan has recently incorporated instructional lessons about the growth and potential threat of radically violent anti-government militias.
In a separate terrorist incident, four Minnesota men were recently sentenced after homeland security officials gathered enough evidence to put them away for three to 12 years in prison on charges linked to recruiting young men to go overseas and fight in a U.S.-designated terrorist organization that has sponsored numerous attacks against the America and its men and women in uniform. This is all part of what people employed in homeland security careers in Minnesota do: collect evidence for presentation in court, in cooperation with local, federal, and international law enforcement agencies. Investigators determined that in the course of two years the convicted individuals were able to recruit and send about 20 young men overseas to fight in the terrorist group. Thanks to the hard work of those serving in homeland security jobs in Minnesota, countless lives of both Americans and foreigners have been saved.