Middle easterners wrongfully judged
Aris Brickler
Thesis
Middle Easterners were treated very poorly after the terrorists attack of 9/11. Most Americans negatively viewed the Muslim culture and would view people of that culture as a threat.
Background of 9/11
Ever since the terrorists attacks on 9/11, Middle Easterners have always been harshly judged in this country. An author from history.com said "On September 11, 2001, 19 militants associated with the Islamic extremest group Al Qaeda, hijacked 4 airliners and carried out suicide attacks against targets in the United States" ("9/11 Attacks"). Two planes hit each World Trade Center building, one plane hit the pentagon, and the last one crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. After it was all done, over 3,000 people had died. Many Americans gained a sense of patriotism after these attacks. People began viewing Muslims, or anyone who looked like someone from the middle east, in a very negative way. America soon went to war with Afghanistan and Iraq, which caused even more prejudice towards People of Middle Eastern descent. After all, the main message from 9/11 is "Never Forget", which many people probably think of as never forget the people who did this.
How were Middle Easterners treated in America after 9/11?
Americans for struck with this fear of Muslims, or Islamophobia. They viewed everyone of them as a threat to their country. Conor Friedersdorf, of theatlantic.com, quotes an article that says "According to the FBI, hate crimes against Muslims increased by a staggering 1600% in 2001" ("Was there really a post 9/11 backlash against Muslims?"). This proves that the terrorist attacks of 9/11 definitely made people negatively view Middle Easterners, even to the point where hate crimes were being committed. While the amount of hate crimes has gone down since then, there are still many more than there used to be before 9/11. An author from thedailybeast.com wrote "In October 2001, an ABC poll found that 47 percent of Americans had a favorable view of Islam. By 2010, that number had dropped to 37 percent. And today, alarmingly, only 27 percent of Americans have a favorable view of Muslim Americans" ("13 years after 9/11, Anti-Muslim bigotry is worse than ever"). A lot of what shaped the publics view, though, was the media. When the only thing you ever see from one culture is violence, rebellion and chaos, then it is reasonable to have a negative view of that culture. That being said, it is also ignorant to judge someone based on that without actually knowing about the culture. But when the media depicts Muslims like they have been for years, it easy to view them in a negative way. But the biggest injustices came from law enforcement. They would torture suspected terrorists and used tactics that went against civil rights. Many innocent people were harassed by law enforcement and sometimes prosecuted based on their ethnicity. This trend isn't really changing. The war on terror is less aggressive that in the past, but Middle Easterners are still dealing with much discrimination. According to gallup.com "More than 4 in 10 Americans (43%) admit to feeling at least 'A little' prejudice towards muslim" ("In U.S. Religious prejudice Stronger Against Muslims'). It must be very hard to live if almost half the population feels some prejudice against you.
Relation to the Crucible
One major theme that is presented in the Crucible is that during times of panic, people will make accusations without real evidence. The whole story is based around lies and false accusations. Many people think that the more people accused, the better for society, but in reality it was much worse. Lines that demonstrate this theme in the Crucible are when Abigail points to Tituba and says "She made me do it! She made Betty do it!..she made me drink blood!" (1045). We know from the play that this is a lie and that she is falsely accusing TItuba. Another line is when Abigail is talking to Hale and says "I saw Sarah Good with the devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the devil!". Then Betty continues to say "I saw George Jacobs with the devil! I saw Goody Howe with the devil!" (1048). At this point Abigail is just naming names of innocent people. This shows how Betty felt pressured into also naming names because abigail had just done so. Betty falsely accused people because she felt pressured. Also, in the Crucible, Proctor says to Danforth "I have three children-how may I teach them to walk like men in the world, and I sold all my friends?" (1110). This line shows that Proctor is realizing the flaw in this society. He doesn't want to be like everyone else and continue the path of accusing innocent people. He doesn't want his kids thinking thats OK to do. Most of the society thinks that accusing more people is good, but Proctor sees it is not.
Parallels to 9/11
This Crucible and 9/11 have a very close parallel with the theme that when people are scared, they blame other people. The United states government began unlawfully prosecuting and torturing individuals who they believed were terrorists. The people of salem would unlawfully prosecute and hang individuals who they believed were witches. In each situation, both oppressors did not have much evidence, but because it was during a time of panic, they blamed people anyway. Also, most of modern society would probably agree that there is nothing wrong with the prosecution of these individuals, especially if it helps with the war on terror. Similarly, society in 1692 would have agreed that the Salem witch trials were doing a good thing. But certain people, like John Proctor began to realize it is not, just like some people today are believe that these prosecutions might not be whats best for society.
Works Cited
"9/11 Attacks." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.
"Did 9/11 Justify the War in Afghanistan?" Global Research. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.
Friedersdorf, Conor. "Was There Really a Post-9/11 Backlash Against Muslims?" The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 04 May 2012. Web. 09 Dec. 2014.
"In U.S., Religious Prejudice Stronger Against Muslims." In U.S., Religious Prejudice Stronger Against Muslims. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Dec. 2014.
"Journal OfMuslim Mental Health." Attitudes Toward Muslim Americans Post-9/11. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Dec. 2014.
Miller, Arthur. The Crucible: A Play in Four Acts. New York: Viking, 1953. Print.
Obeidallah, Dean. The Daily Beast. Newsweek/Daily Beast, n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.