ABSTRACT
This essay explores one component of the root causes of terrorism, the processes that create a binary of inclusion/exclusion and the spatial manifestation of that binary—the geography of inclusion and exclusion. Inclusion and exclusion refer to control over access to political institutions (such as state citizenship), acceptance in particular identities (the American nation, for example), plus the ability to participate in the economic livelihood of the place. The geography of inclusion/exclusion refers to the way borders and the territories they define facilitate both participation and membership in identifiable groups, as well as noninvolvement and exclusion. For example, political borders and sovereign territory define insiders and outsiders (into such categories as citizens and aliens) by controlling mobility. Economic development may facilitate wealth generation by some groups (citizens), while impoverishing others by altering access to land or capital, for example.
