Mansour El-Kikhia
Dr. Mansour El-Kikhia is an associate professor of political science at the University of Texas at San Antonio, where his specialty is Middle Eastern politics and international relations. A native of Libya, he received his undergraduate degree in political science from the American University of Beirut. After coming to the United States, he received his master of arts and Ph.D. in international relations from the University of California at Santa Barbara. Before coming to UTSA in 1989, he taught at the University of California at Riverside and the University of Arizona. The author of two books, he is working on a third.
Mansour El-Kikhia: Lies and racist distortion unfairly point fingers
Web Posted: 07/11/2005 12:00 AM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
As soon as I heard of the terrorist bombs going off in London last week, I called a friend to make sure he was unharmed.
My friend owns a cafe on Edgeware Road, quite close to where one of the bombs went off. When I visit London I always go there to sample the variety of Middle Eastern foods or just sip Arabic coffee in one of the street's many outdoor cafes.
Connecting was difficult, but I did get to talk to him. Although shaken, he was not injured. He confessed that his major fear was not from the bombs but from what was to come. Like many Arabs and Muslims living in Europe, my friend believes that the finger of blame would point to them.
I advised him to close shop and take a few days off until the British authorities ascertain the true identity of the terrorists who committed the atrocious act or until the hostility dissipates. On the Internet, a small, unknown group claiming to be an al-Qaida offshoot took responsibility for the crime. However, only time will tell who is responsible.
London is home to a large number of Muslims who found refuge from oppressive regimes in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia. Most have lived there for many years, peacefully and productively, within the bounds of British law and democracy. But since 9-11, terrorist incidents have sent shock waves through their communities, and no matter who committed them, they have become the first suspects.
However, the British government and, to a large extent, the majority of people have been expecting this event and were wise enough not to blame their Muslim citizens and guests. And based on BBC interviews, reports and news bulletins, it appears the British do appreciate the shared feelings of sympathy, empathy and disgust expressed by Muslims in Britain at a crime against their society.
The same cannot be said for the racist bigots and Islamphobes inundating America's television screens and airwaves. It was fascinating to see these modern black shirts compete to find the best insult to label Arabs and Muslims. Distorting reality with lies and half-truths were the rules of the day, and none was more proficient at that than the so-called "terrorism expert" Steve Emerson.
Appearing on the "fair and balanced" network, Emerson appears to have no qualms about lying as long as he can verbally hurt an Arab or a Muslim. Listening to him leaves me feeling that to him, a Muslim or Arab must be guilty for merely being an Arab or a Muslim.
It doesn't take an expert to determine that the majority of these widely interviewed "terror" experts know as much about Arabs and Islam as I know about quantum physics, which is practically nothing.
And if only they spoke Arabic, their pain could have been eased by merely tuning to the Arabic service of the British Broadcasting Service on their computers. They would have heard Arab and Muslim institutions in Britain, as well as listeners from Egypt, Lebanon, the Persian Gulf and North Africa, condemn the atrocity.
It is easy for these charlatans to blame Arabs and Muslims, yet nothing is ever mentioned of the individuals and policies that brought about this tragedy. Misguided policies diverted the war from Afghanistan to Iraq and, in the process, spared al-Qaida and provided it with new training grounds in Iraq. The event in London can be seen as a direct consequence of President Bush's Iraq policy, and it will not be the last calamity the world witnesses.
These murderous wackos are not hesitant about killing civilians. It doesn't matter if they are Muslims, Christians, Jews or believers in the red Genie. Their purpose is to create chaos, and they have.
Bush has foolishly opened Pandora's box and unleashed forces of radicalism and intolerance that are not willing to abide by the rules he set for conflict. They have demonstrated they don't care what it costs, and New York, Madrid and London are their proof.
________________________________________ |
