With all the controversy surrounding Park51, the emotional pain of Sept. 11 began to resurface. The intensity of these emotions has been revealed in numerous ways. Small riots against ‘Islam’ have popped up all over the nation, and even the much-talked about Rev. Terry Jones planned to burn over two hundred copies of the Quran, the Islamic holy book, on the anniversary of Sept. 11. Even though Rev. Jones suspended the burning of the books, his acts showed there’s still a misconception surrounding the Muslim world.

As the ninth anniversary of Sept. 11 grew closer, the issues many people had laid in the understanding that Islam destroyed the Twin Towers. This same ideological system is what’s behind the proposal of the Cordoba Center, which many have protested because of an insensitivity attached to its creation. But that is an entirely different opinion piece. For me, it involves the term ‘Islam.’

For many Americans, the term ‘Islam’ refers to much more than just the religion. It provokes a fearful emotion derived from chaos. Most Americans who haven’t studied the Middle East or are unfamiliar with the region consider Islam to be a stereotyped individual rather than a religion.

In most cases, the thinking is that Islam equals the Middle East. What about those who do not reside in the Middle East and are not Arab, but practice Islam?

Recently, students in my Islam religion class began discussing the notorious Samuel Huntington and his theory of ‘The Clash of Civilizations,’ which further complicated the issue.

When boiled down, Huntington’s theory basically states it is the West vs. Islam, but even he used the term ‘Islam’ incorrectly. Geographical locations cannot directly fight a belief, nor can one arguably say the term ‘Islam’ incorporates all the many complex facets of the Muslim world.

I had to see what other Syracuse University students thought about the term ‘Islam’ to present as unbiased an opinion as possible.

Senior marketing major Jessie Mehlhoff had quite a bit to say about the topic.

When asked what the term Islam first brought to mind, she responded, ‘I think of religion, war and the understanding that not everyone practicing Islam is a terrorist.’ She then went on to say, ‘The media portrays the enemy as being Islam so naturally, there is an underlying view that Islam could or could not be connected.’

The last point Mehlhoff made was what I had in mind. The media depicts Islam as America’s enemy. It doesn’t always differentiate Islam from location, ethnicity, the individual or group causing the problem. This inaccurate reporting needs to be addressed immediately.

Islam did not destroy the Twin Towers, Islam did not propose the Cordoba Center, Islam did not warrant the war in Afghanistan. Understanding this will allow people to comprehend that making signs and speeches marking Islam as terrorism makes absolutely no sense.

Americans need to realize that while we continue to feel the heartache of Sept. 11 and the current war in Afghanistan, we cannot justifiably wage war against a belief. It would be just like waging war against Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Confucianism, and all other beliefs and practices.

We must realize the small number of individuals who wrongly portray the Islamic faith do not make up the ideology as a whole and do not depict the other practitioners of the faith. Until this happens, many Americans will not be able to emotionally grow.

John Sumpter is a senior political science major. His column appears weekly, and he can be reached at jsumpte@syr.edu.

 

Published on September 14, 2010 at 12:00 pm