Muslims in the 21st Century

The 21st century started off with a traumatizing event that redefined the Muslim identity in America forever. This event was the bombing of the twin towers on September 11, 2001, better known as 9/11. While this did start a large backlash against the Muslim community and will forever be remembered in the following generations. Negative stereotypes of Muslims as terrorist existed even before this incident. As stated in a scholarly journal, Stereotypes of Muslims and Support for the War on Terror by John Sides and Kimberly Gross, both professors at George Washington University, prior to 911 “historical and contemporary depictions of Muslims in both the media and news media emphasized their hostile intentions...including terms such as, ‘fundamentalist’, ‘militant’, ‘terrorist’, ‘radical’ or ‘extremist’.”(Sides&Gross 2013). These depictions were most likely leftover from 90’s US conflict in the Gulf War. Although these depictions did exist, it wasn’t until 9/11 that they were truly publicized and America was plunged into Islamophobia, also known as the Green Scare. Post 9/11 many conservative  journalists, politicians, news networks and american citizens were voicing anti-Islamic opinions and threatening Muslim Americans. Gary Cass of Charisma News, a christian news network who prides themselves on releasing reliable news, stated that “Muslim-Americans should either be deported- using the acronym, D.A.M.N. (Deport All Muslims Now) or they should all go through sterilization” (Belt 2016). This was only one of many conservatives in America who publicized their prejudice. Furthermore, the “War on Terror”, America’s plan to end terrorism in the middle east,  didn’t help with America’s Islamophobia at all. It just exacerbated it and gave the green scare more screen time and U.S. tax dollars for it to survive. The Muslim stereotype is one that will last with the legacy of 9/11.

 

Belt, David D. "Anti-Islam Discourse in the United States in the Decade after 9/11: The Role of Social Conservatives and Cultural Politics." Journal of Ecumenical Studies 51.2 (2016): 210-23. Web. 24 Mar. 2017.

Sides, John, and Kimberly Gross. "Stereotypes of Muslims and Support for the War on Terror." The Journal of Politics 75.3 (2013): 583-98. Web. 24 Mar. 2017.