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The Murray State News Opinion – September 16, 2005
Biases regarding Muslims incorrect, hurtful
By Chris Bierwirth
Every day, we are bombarded by news media images of Middle Eastern and Islamic anger and violence. This encourages stereotypes regarding Islam, especially since the news media so often use "Muslim" or "Sunni" as modifiers for "terrorist" or "insurgency."
The stereotype of the "Muslim terrorist" has been further reinforced by entertainment media, ranging from serio-comic films like "True Lies," in which Arnold Schwarzenegger defeats a Muslim terrorist nuclear threat, to television dramas like "24," in which Kiefer Sutherland fights against insidious Islamic terrorists who threaten the American way of life.
This is not to deny that there are Muslims who engage in acts of terrorism, whether in New York or Tel Aviv, nor that there is a largely (though not exclusively) Sunni-based insurgency in Iraq.
But, of course, not all terrorist acts are committed by Muslims and most Muslims do not commit terrorist acts.
Note that descriptions of similar violent acts committed by self-described Christians do not consistently call attention to their religion.
Neither Timothy McVeigh nor Eric Rudolph have been routinely and repeatedly described as "Christian terrorists," despite the fact that both men have quoted from Christian scripture and claimed their religious convictions justified their actions.
Of course, most mainstream Christians would point out that there is nothing in Jesus Christ's teachings to justify McVeigh's and Rudolph's crimes and view their beliefs as extreme distortions of Christian doctrine. Few, if any, Christians regard these men as genuine martyrs.
But, of course, most mainstream Muslims would make similar points about terrorist acts committed by Muslim extremists, which cannot be condoned by the teachings of the Quran or Ahadith. Most Muslims would likewise consider these acts doctrinal perversions, and most Muslims do not honor the perpetrators of violence against non-combatants as martyrs.
But this is where a difference in perspective matters: while Christian condemnation of Eric Rudolph has generally been credited, similar Muslim condemnation of the attacks of Sept. 11 has been widely discounted.
There is, frankly, a streak of anti-Islamic bias in our culture that assumes all Muslims are violent and their religion endorses aggression - and that if Muslim spokespersons claim otherwise, they must be dissembling.
This, of course, is exactly why stereotypes are so harmful. They indiscriminately ascribe characteristics to an entire group.
Based on my experience as a teacher of Middle Eastern and Islamic history, it seems apparent that most American students "know" that all Muslims are simply hostile to our way of life.
This attitude has been repeated by several prominent American political leaders, including President Bush.
And while some may ask, "Why do they hate us?" it seems that most think they already know the answer: "Because their religion teaches them to do so." Unfortunately, few seem willing to take the time to seek sound, rational answers to this question, to examine the nuances of Islam and Middle Eastern culture.
But consider these issues from another point of view. If you were a Palestinian living in an apartment building that had just suffered a missile attack from American-supplied Israeli gunships, or if you were an Iraqi who had seen your country invaded by a powerful American-led military coalition, or if you were an Afghani peasant whose fields had been laid waste by American carpet bombing, who would you think was aggressive?
Who would you believe was hostile? Whose culture would you believe sanctioned violence - especially if you'd seen examples of such violence in American films and TV shows? Would you, perhaps, be tempted to falsely stereotype all Americans as belligerent and antagonistic to your way of life?
It's really a matter of perspective.
Chris Bierwirth is an assistant professor of history.
http://www.thenews.org/media/paper651/news/2005/09/16/Opinion/Biases.Regarding.Muslims.Incorrect.Hurtful-987243.shtml
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