One of the main themes that we have been discussing in our class the past few weeks is the theme of fear within our society. I would argue that this fear has been especially rooted in our system sense the tragic event of 9/11 took place. This event was framed with a very particular narrative influenced heavily by the developed, Western world. At the time of the 9/11 attacks George W. Bush was the president and his immediate reaction to this horrific event was to retaliate on Muslim countries associated with Islamic terrorist groups and declare war. Responding with war was appreciated and understood by many people, as they believed it was the best and only way to protect our nation from further terrorist attacks. However this extreme and abrupt security breach forced us to see 9/11 from one very particular perspective.
This fear certainly existed long before 9/11 but was heightened post 9/11 when people took advantage of there being a single culture that could be targeted as “evil” and “bad.” This was how the US government defended their decision to go to war in Afghanistan. This reminded me of one of my favorite Ted Talks called “The danger of a single story” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. In this speech Adichie delivers several examples of times where a certain story was mistakenly only perceived by a one-sided perspective. For example, the association of all African people being impoverished has been deeply affected by the influence that the media has in patronizing and belittling such a vastly diverse culture (economically and otherwise). As Adichie says, it is typical for African people to be represented as a population that is “unable to speak for themselves and waiting to be saved by a kind white foreigner.” Whether we choose to be or not, in our modern culture we are all immersed in this web that technology and media sources have cast over us. Again, this was especially prevalent post 9/11 with the hostile attitude that many American’s directed towards Muslims around the world because of a lack of understanding and communication. This is an example of fear driving us towards an irrational conclusion about an entire race, religion, or culture. This fear caused many people within the Muslim population both in the US and abroad to feel isolated and discriminated against.
Adichie emphasizes that this inaccurate narrative we so often profile certain groups with is driven by power. And this power is used “not just to tell the story of another person but to make it the definite story of that person.” We must be aware of the immense impact that the government and the use of propaganda can have on citizens to drive them to be fearful and have a misunderstanding of cultures outside of their own. Fear is fed by the media and pop culture in their attempt to convince people to perceive events from one-side only. When we look beyond this manipulative system and educate ourselves further about why an event like 9/11 took place or who else it affected, we become engaged and active global citizens of the world.
Hi Emma,
I think you blog post is very moving, and opens up a discussion that is incredibly important in current events. As I read it, I thought about the Canadian government’s new proposed bill, Bill C-51. Bill C-51 is an anti-terrorism bill, that many argue takes away Canadian’s human rights. I think this bill is a form of propaganda and fear mongering, and it’s introduction is timely after the shooting in Paris.
Our government is taking advantage of our fear to create a stronger cultural anti-terrorist and anti-Muslim push. I believe in a multicultural country like Canada, this bill is embarrassing and deserves debate and attention. Adichie’s point needs to be stressed to North America, rather than citizens being blinded by government agendas.
It is upsetting to me that the Canadian government is “criminalizing” discussion around terrorism and Muslim culture rather than supporting discussion, which I believe is the only way for misunderstanding to be solved.