Islamophobia has been a growing social issue in the United States, and the tensions seemed to escalate after the 9/11 attacks. Many perceptions of Islam evolved to a radically driven disdain, and the debate over Islam in America intensified tenfold. 
Numerous events in recent years have signified the lack of respect towards Muslims, from the Ground Zero mosque controversy to Florida Pastor’s Terry Jones’ “burn the Koran” brigade. Islam is no longer treated as a religion, but rather a suspicion. It was becoming a factor of whether or not a threat is imminent. The radical hatred towards Islam is just as crazy as the discriminators’ presumptions of what Islam really is.
Thus many Muslims in America have been mistreated because of their religion, and even non-Muslims have been hurt over a simple (but incredibly sad) assumption about their non-existent Islamic ties.
From the outside, we see the suspicion, the outright discrimination, even if it is from a distance. But how about from a viewpoint from an actual Muslim perspective? What can’t we see?
Simona Noor, a student at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, gives one perspective of the global Islamophobia that is growing throughout the world, specifically in the United States.
She said: “At first I didn’t see any significant change and I think it’s mostly because I was so young and so were my peers, which meant in some way that we could move on and focus on other things for months to come.
“Over time it slowly did build up to jokes relating to Muslims and terrorism and ignorance of Islam and Muslims, but it wasn’t something I couldn’t handle and rightly inform those peers who spoke before they thought about their words and actions.”
The discrimination may not be completely evident in real-life surroundings, but it still persists in other forms that may not be completely obvious. Noor notices more hatred towards Muslims on the internet or in the news than in real life.
“Even now, at 21, I’ve been fortunate enough to dodge the negativity,” said Noor, “however, I would be lying if I didn’t say I wouldn’t get anxious around certain people or situations because of the uncertainty of how they’ll treat me as a Muslim.”
Ignorant remarks are not confined to just “terrorist” jabs, but also focus in on cultural misconceptions of Muslims. Ignorance concerning headscarves and the overall societal norms of women in Muslim culture is also a significant issue.
“People are shocked when I correctly inform them what it means to be a Muslim woman. What it means to have my rights, equality, freedom and choice -things that most don’t connect to in a discussion about Muslim women,” Noor said.
Is there any way to combat this discrimination? Some states like Oklahoma, which is attempting to pass a state constitutional law that forbids the government from considering sharia law. Ten years after 9/11, the treatment of Muslims has exacerbated significantly and it will be an uphill battle to rid of the ignorance that has plagued many in America.
Tags: 9/11, Ground Zero, hatred, Islam, Islamophobia, religion, Terror, The Pentagon, Twin Towers, United States, US
This entry was posted on 11/09/2011 at 13:55 and is filed under Comment, Politics, The Pale Blue Dot. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Post 9/11 US Islamophobia
Islamophobia has been a growing social issue in the United States, and the tensions seemed to escalate after the 9/11 attacks. Many perceptions of Islam evolved to a radically driven disdain, and the debate over Islam in America intensified tenfold.
Numerous events in recent years have signified the lack of respect towards Muslims, from the Ground Zero mosque controversy to Florida Pastor’s Terry Jones’ “burn the Koran” brigade. Islam is no longer treated as a religion, but rather a suspicion. It was becoming a factor of whether or not a threat is imminent. The radical hatred towards Islam is just as crazy as the discriminators’ presumptions of what Islam really is.
Thus many Muslims in America have been mistreated because of their religion, and even non-Muslims have been hurt over a simple (but incredibly sad) assumption about their non-existent Islamic ties.
From the outside, we see the suspicion, the outright discrimination, even if it is from a distance. But how about from a viewpoint from an actual Muslim perspective? What can’t we see?
Simona Noor, a student at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, gives one perspective of the global Islamophobia that is growing throughout the world, specifically in the United States.
She said: “At first I didn’t see any significant change and I think it’s mostly because I was so young and so were my peers, which meant in some way that we could move on and focus on other things for months to come.
“Over time it slowly did build up to jokes relating to Muslims and terrorism and ignorance of Islam and Muslims, but it wasn’t something I couldn’t handle and rightly inform those peers who spoke before they thought about their words and actions.”
The discrimination may not be completely evident in real-life surroundings, but it still persists in other forms that may not be completely obvious. Noor notices more hatred towards Muslims on the internet or in the news than in real life.
“Even now, at 21, I’ve been fortunate enough to dodge the negativity,” said Noor, “however, I would be lying if I didn’t say I wouldn’t get anxious around certain people or situations because of the uncertainty of how they’ll treat me as a Muslim.”
Ignorant remarks are not confined to just “terrorist” jabs, but also focus in on cultural misconceptions of Muslims. Ignorance concerning headscarves and the overall societal norms of women in Muslim culture is also a significant issue.
“People are shocked when I correctly inform them what it means to be a Muslim woman. What it means to have my rights, equality, freedom and choice -things that most don’t connect to in a discussion about Muslim women,” Noor said.
Is there any way to combat this discrimination? Some states like Oklahoma, which is attempting to pass a state constitutional law that forbids the government from considering sharia law. Ten years after 9/11, the treatment of Muslims has exacerbated significantly and it will be an uphill battle to rid of the ignorance that has plagued many in America.
Tags: 9/11, Ground Zero, hatred, Islam, Islamophobia, religion, Terror, The Pentagon, Twin Towers, United States, US
This entry was posted on 11/09/2011 at 13:55 and is filed under Comment, Politics, The Pale Blue Dot. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.