Discrimination has been going on for a long time now against specific people such as African Americans during and before the civil rights movement or . The word discrimination means the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex.
There has been discrimination against Muslims in America.The start of discrimination against Muslims has been influenced by the events following 9/11. The events following 9/11 started the discrimination against Muslims in America. The event of 9/11 was one of the most tragic days in America.
The event of 9/11 was an event in which terrorists hijacked American planes and deliberately crashed them into the twin towers. Many people had lost their lives or had physical problems following the event.People would face emotional problems after losing their close friends and family members from the event After the event of 9/11, there was discrimination of Muslims because of how Muslims were accused that they were the one’s responsible for the event of 9/11 (Even though that they were not responsible for the 9/11 attack)The events following 9/11 marked a significant turning point for many minority groups(especially Muslims) “Discrimination and hate crimes rose sharply, and in the nine weeks following September 11th, the Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee confirmed over 700 violent acts against Muslims and on those perceived to be Muslim”.The increase of Islamophobia rose after the event of 9/11.
The term “Islamophobia came into common usage in 1997 as a result of the British Runnymede Trust Commission on British Muslims. Islamophobia is defined as "dread or hatred of Islam and therefore, to the fear and dislike of all Muslims”. (Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection2013) “There was a research conducted which was called the “shooter bias”.The "shooter bias" paradigm is well-known in discrimination research, indicating that when asked to respond quickly to threatening situations, individuals are more likely to become aggressive toward minority rather than Caucasian perpetrators of violence. While much of this research has examined the bias toward shooting at Black versus White targets in simulation video games, most recently, research has indicated a "turban effect.
"Here, individuals donning cultural or religious garb such as a turban or hijab (traditional head covering for Muslim women) are shot in these studies more frequently than those without, suggesting this shooter bias to be the result of internalized negative stereotypes toward these minority groups”. (Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. 2013). “The media is blamed for the rise of Islamophobia because of the reports that they make on Muslims and Islam are negative incidents that occurred such as protests and suicides.Some say, however, that the media focused on stories such as these to introduce fear and panic among large populations and to cast Muslims in a negative view”. (Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection.
2013). Another event that took place in response to 9/11 that created the discrimination of Muslims was the introduction of terrorism in the United States. ” Consequently, there is no easy way of defining terrorism universally” (Onwudiwe, Ihekwoaba 2005).Without necessarily drawing either biased or partisan conclusions, scholars and laymen still wonder about the outright justification2005 for the destruction of both lives and property at the world trade center in New York. “Some legal definitions of terrorism in the United States that represent this point are: The term “terrorism” means premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience”. (Onwudiwe, Ihekwoaba 2005).
Terrorism first was brought into the United States when 9/11 occurred. Since then, American citizens have been extremely suspicious of any terrorism activities. Many people suspect that if you see a Muslim, that Muslim is a terrorist. President Obama mentioned that not all Muslims are terrorists by making an example.
The fact that someone is a Boston Roman Catholic doesn't mean he's in league with Irish Republican Army bomb makers, just as not all Orthodox Christians have ties to Serbian war criminals or Southern Baptists to the murderers of abortion doctors”.To some people “The United States is facing a persistent and evolving terrorist threat. That threat is changing, and we must adapt to meet that change. Among other things, that means addressing some legal challenges. We must use every known national security and homeland security tool we can—military, civilian, law enforcement, ideology—to keep the country safe from terrorists”.They are making the reference to Muslims and that they are part of the terrorists A Third event that occurred following the event of 9/11 was the creation of the patriot act.
“The patriot act was as an Act to deter and punish terrorist acts in the United States and around the world, to enhance law enforcement investigatory tools, and for other purposes. " The bill was a bipartisan effort, or a joint effort by both Democratic and Republican members of Congress.However, its more restrictive clauses were championed by the staunchest Republicans in the Bush administration. The Act is actually a package of amendments to several already-existing laws”. (Current Issues, 2010) This would be unfair because of how there can be a chance of people being wrongly accused of being a terrorist and that person will be punished very harshly for something that he did not do.
In conclusion, the events following 9/11 have been a major reason why there is discrimination against the Muslims in the United States is: the event of the rise of islamophibia, the introduction of terrorism, and the Patriot Act. It’s these events that caused the discrimination of Muslims in the United States. If these events were to never occur, discrimination against Muslims may not be happening right now. Discrimination will never go away, but eventually the discrimination against Muslims will.
