Stereotypes And Muslims In America

A date that has gone down infamously in America’s history is the tragic event that occurred on September 11, 2001. This date was a turning point in the world, and many changes could be seen, such as the addition of the TSA in airports and increased security. However, one of the lesser known effects was the sense of fear that was unconsciously instilled within our communities. Today, this fear is represented through our heightened awareness towards terrorism, and the increased distance we tend to place between ourselves and our fellow community members. While 9/11 was a day most noted for its horrific display of terror and the loss of many lives, it was also the day that we, as a nation, lost our sense of security and replaced it with a sense

Muslims across America found themselves under intense scrutiny and discrimination. Islam became the taboo religion and was often enough evidence to be jailed for treason. Muslim neighborhoods had cameras posted on every street corner and those suspected of being a Muslim found themselves under constant surveillance everywhere they went.

After the 9/11 attack it started to become a rougher life for Muslims in America during this time we saw a 1,700 percent increase of hate crime against Muslim Americans, Many a Muslim groups began to be formed such as American- Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Council of American Islamic Relations. To help Muslims who are going through the pain of being hated, and are under raciest disputes. This was just a time raged by emotion, and a chance to blame it on somebody and that somebody was the innocent American Muslims.

A serious, distressing issue in our world. It is supposedly prejudiced against Islam or Muslims, but is it really? Every terrorist attack caused by any bearded man of colour is known as “Islamic terrorism” but if the attack is caused by a white man, he suddenly becomes “mentally unstable”. Isn’t that injustice towards everyone non-white? One thing I know is that the internet doesn’t seem to think that.

The issue of racial bias against Middle Eastern Americans in the United States has only worsened as time has gone on. Racial profiling, harassment, and unfair treatment are only a few types of abuse that Middle Easterners have had to face on a day to day basis which has stirred up anger and irritation in American society. This is a serious problem because if people are treated unequally then we are no longer the “land of the free” and society cannot move forward if we have racism holding us back. There is also a global and political aspect to this in the sense that Middle Eastern countries would choose against being allies with us due to the amount of hatred they receive in the United States. This discrimination was at first believed to stem

When I was fifteen years old and in middle school, there was this one kid in my grade that was Muslim. He sat by himself minding his own business but everyday a group of kids in the grade above us would come and make fun of this young boy, each day it would be the same thing, they would call him names and tell him to go back to where he came from. All because he was a Muslim boy in Australia. One day he fought back to the bullies and threw a punch at the main culprit, of course he got beat up and all the boys had to go to the office and talk to the principle but what was astonishing was that the Muslim boy got suspended for three days and all the bullies did not get into trouble. From that day, I saw how the world target Muslims and how there is this witch hunt for them.

The general argument made by Jamie Dailey in “Modern- day Witch Hunts: Broadly targeting the Muslim Community is antithetical to America’s founding ideas” is that after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 the Muslim Community seems to be targeted. More specifically, Dailey is stating that the irrational fear and paranoia present in American Society causes racial and religious discrimination of the Muslims. Dailey writes about mosques, which are Islamic places of worship, and how they have been recently targeted. Dailey writes, “ In Glendale, Arizona, a bottle filled with acid was thrown at a mosque while mosque officials stood nearby. In Bridgeport, Connecticut, protestors picketed a mosque celebrating Ramadan and shouted slurs”

In Behind the Backlash: Muslim Americans After 9/11 the author states, “Arabs are caught between Census categories (where they appear as "white") and reality, between ‘us’ and ‘them.’ (Suhay136). Because of 9/11 many Arab/Muslim Americans are placed into another category, resulting in many Arab/Muslims feeling unwanted in their own lands even though they hold US passports. Often times the 9/11 attacks is said to have united the Americans, but many Muslim/Arab Americans who lived in the US for many years were not allowed to share the same grief many Americans did, but instead, many Muslim Americans were looked upon as terrorists

“Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever…” were the famous words of Martin Luther King Jr. Perhaps one can remain so not forever, but in America, a very long time. Called a “…beacon for freedom and opportunity” (George W. Bush, 2001), America has prided itself as the champion of its five founding ideals outlined in the Declaration of Independence. These ideals of Equality, Liberty, Opportunity, Democracy, and Rights have not been given justice. Through history, especially the events of The Civil Rights Movement, September 11th, and our present day; America has not lived up to these founding ideals.

As a result of this fear, Muslims received negative portrayals in the media and a great deal of discrimination. “While some deliberately frame Islamic coverage positively in an attempt to counter Islamophobia, many of the portrayals of Muslims contributed to the formation of harmful Islamic media stereotypes,” (Media). The most used stereotype is that Muslims are radical insurgents, but there are also many others, including that Muslim women are either victims of male power, or that they are feminists revolting from a disadvantaged position. Many Muslims also face discrimination from those directly around them. Small businesses have collaborated to create “Muslim-free zones.” Many Muslims say that they receive uneasy looks when they are at airports, or have been called offensive names. Even mosques, where Muslims gather to pray, have been vandalized or have had anti-Islam protests in front of them. This distrust and blame had led to violence many times. In 2000, 28 anti-Islamic incidents occurred. However, in 2001, there were nearly 500. Since then, there are between 100 and 150 anti-Muslim hate crimes yearly. More than a decade after 9/11, Muslims are still paying for the actions of a small group.

There are many fake assumptions that people from the US assume about muslim people. People think since one person did something bad that everyone of that religion is the same. Now muslim people can have a harder time getting onto planes because they now have to deal with stereotypes caused by events like 911. Altho some muslims can fit under those assumptions, it doesn 't mean that every muslim does. Not all americans make this assumption either. Just like how some muslims think americans are rude and racist, but not all muslims think this way. People always assume that when there is a bombing, shooting, etc that it is a muslim.

Minorities have made significant strides towards equality in American society. In America the minority groups are being stereotype due to their ethnicity. The media has had a significant impact in passing the stereotypes to the work that have convey negative impressions about certain ethnic groups. Minorities have been the victim of an industry that relies on old ideas to appeal to the "majority" at the expense of a minority group ideals (Horton, Price, and Brown 1999). Stereotypes have been portraying negative characteristics of ethnic group in general. According to an article in The Huffington Post, Americans love to muse over the characteristic of our foreign immigrants residing in the country, and even if there descent have assimilated

Less than one percent of Muslims globally have engaged in terrorism. However, Asians (specifically those of Middle Eastern descent) are 42 times more likely to be the target of counter-terrorism as a result of ethnic profiling. “Ethnic profiling is the use of racial, ethnic, national, or religious characteristics as a way of singling out people for identity or security checks.” As a result of ethnic profiling, an ongoing debate has sparked which often one perspective questions the morality and legality for profiling and the other perspective believes that profiling is necessary for the safety of citizens. In addition, profiling has increasingly become a more urgent topic

Discrimination and are problematic parts of our culture tangled within the American history. For the majority of U.S. citizens these parts of our culture die out after the civil rights movement, but for the ethnic minorities this is far from the truth. These ugly aspects of our culture that once thrived in the shadows praying poor and minorities, has recently had light shed on it with event of the few years. The racial tension being made worst with statements being made by republican presidential front Donald Trump, saying we should ban Muslims from the country. These open discriminatory statements can have devastating effect the Muslim communities and our country as a whole. In the wake of this tension in our country my Research Methods class used the tried lost letters experiment to try measure the attitude toward Muslims in Columbus and its surrounding areas.

According to an article on CNN, Muslims only make up less than one percent of the American population (Yan). This number can be surprising to many Americans because of what they see and hear on media. There are many misconceptions about Muslims in our society that is causing hate towards them. Through a personal story in Suzanne Barakat’s speech titled “Islamophobia killed my brother. Let’s end the hate” she effectively shows how bigotry against Muslims is a problem in society. By following her suggestions on how to end the hate, individuals can make a significant impact on their community.