MENU

HOME

DAILY BRIEF

LATEST POSTS

J.M. BERGER

ISIS: STATE OF TERROR

JIHAD JOE

LINKS

Blogs of War

Hizballah Cavalcade

Internet Haganah

Jihadology

Jihadica

Kremlin Trolls

Making Sense of Jihad

Selected Wisdom

Views from the Occident

TAGS

American Terrorists

Anwar Awlaki

Al Qaeda

AQAP

American Al Qaeda Members

Inspire Magazine

Revolution Muslim

OKBOMB


News, documents and analysis on violent extremism


Saturday, December 10, 2011
 

Monsters and Children: How Politicians Talk About Muslims and Islam

I have a new piece out in Foreign Policy, "Monsters and Children: How Politicians Talk About Muslims and Islam."
The power centers in American politics, both left and right, have grown increasingly counterproductive in their attitudes toward Muslim Americans.

On the right, embodied in comments by Republican presidential frontrunner Newt Gingrich, Muslims are treated largely as monsters, a seething mass of people who do not share American values and could, at any moment, establish a Taliban-style theocracy right here in the United States.

On the left, as epitomized by President Barack Obama's new strategy, Muslims are treated as children who cannot be left to their own devices, who must be carefully tutored in proper behavior but not made to feel like they are singled out, lest someone pick on them.
Read the whole piece here.

For more about homegrown violent extremism, check out J.M. Berger's new book, Jihad Joe: Americans Who Go to War in the Name of Islam, on sale everywhere.

Labels: ,



Views expressed on INTELWIRE are those of the author alone.


     



     

Tweets referencing this post:

loading..



BOOKS

"...smart, granular analysis..."

ISIS: The State of Terror
"Jessica Stern and J.M. Berger's new book, "ISIS," should be required reading for every politician and policymaker... Their smart, granular analysis is a bracing antidote to both facile dismissals and wild exaggerations... a nuanced and readable account of the ideological and organizational origins of the group." -- Washington Post

More on ISIS: The State of Terror

"...a timely warning..."

Jihad Joe: Americans Who Go to War in the Name of Islam:
"At a time when some politicians and pundits blur the line between Islam and terrorism, Berger, who knows this subject far better than the demagogues, sharply cautions against vilifying Muslim Americans. ... It is a timely warning from an expert who has not lost his perspective." -- New York Times

More on Jihad Joe

ABOUT

INTELWIRE is a web site edited by J.M. Berger. a researcher, analyst and consultant covering extremism, with a special focus on extremist activities in the U.S. and extremist use of social media. He is a non-resident fellow with the Brookings Institution, Project on U.S. Relations with the Islamic World, and author of the critically acclaimed Jihad Joe: Americans Who Go to War in the Name of Islam, the only definitive history of the U.S. jihadist movement, and co-author of ISIS: The State of Terror with Jessica Stern.

RECENT

Newest posts!

Al Qaeda and the U.S. Military: Resources For Jour...

Nasser Al-Awlaki Blasts U.S. For Killing of Son an...

Kevin Harpham Sentencing Exhibits

Zawahiri Calls For Release of American Jihadist El...

Bail Denied for Remote-Control-Plane Jihadist Rezw...

White Nationalist David Duke Reportedly Arrested a...

Documents: Sirhan Sirhan Claims Second Gunman, 'Hy...

Philippines Hacker Ring Said to Have Financed Lash...

NYC pipe bomb suspect Pimentel posted on Revolutio...

The Value Of Exposing Collaborators

EXCLUSIVES


New York Pipe Bomb Suspect Linked to Revolution Muslim

The Utility of Lone Wolves

Interview with Online Jihadist Abu Suleiman Al Nasser

A Way Forward for CVE: The Five Ds

How Terrorists Use The Internet: Just Like You

PATCON: The FBI's Secret War on the Militia Movement

Interview About Jihad With Controversial Cleric Bilal Philips

Forgeries on the Jihadist Forums

U.S. Gave Millions To Charity Linked To Al Qaeda, Anwar Awlaki

State Department Secretly Met With Followers of Blind Sheikh

State Department Put 'Political Pressure' On FBI To Deport Brother-in-Law Of Osama Bin Laden In 1995

FBI Records Reveal Details Of Nixon-Era Racial Profiling Program Targeting Arabs

Gaza Flotilla Official Was Foreign Fighter in Bosnia War

U.S. Had 'High Confidence' Of UBL Attack In June 2001

Behind the Handshake: The Rumsfeld-Saddam Meeting