what makes a terrorist

A few weeks ago a man at takeaway restaurant said to me “you’re not one of those Arabs aren’t you”. This man also went to say he did not like Arabs and that I should get rid of the black thing on my head, which was in fact my dark hair. Now I am not sure this man has ever met an Arab in his life, and even if he has there is no justification for this level of disrespect and hatred. In telling others the story, they are asked me how someone could have that opinion and be so happy to offend another person they have just met.

A day later, the commercial news stations in Australia were reporting on an incident in Russia where a woman was carrying a girl’s severed head. It was reported that she was wearing black and yelling “Allahu akbar”. Allahu akbar means in Arabic “God is greater” or “God is greatest”.  My social media and what I caught of commercial news stations were calling this a terrorist act. If a non-Arab person committed a crime and yelled anything about God they would be labelled “mentally unstable”.

Terrorist has become in recent years something that is attached to only actions by Arab and Muslim people. There is no international definition of terrorism but it has been defined as the planned use or unlawful violence or threat intended to cause fear or intimidate governments or society to obtain a political, religious, or ideological objective[1].

From 1970 to 2012, in the United States (US) only 2.5% of terrorist attacks were carried out by Muslims[2]. More Muslims die from terrorism than other group. Yet if you are to believe the Western media – and therefore Western society – the greatest fear we have is Muslim terrorists.

In the wake of the Brussels terror attacks last week, every expert expressed the well documented knowledge that terrorism is related to social, economic and political conditions. The reasons for joining terror groups and committing terrorist acts are a result of circumstances and/or pre-existing social bonds[3]. Studies have found that terrorists seek to develop strong affective ties with fellow terrorists and it appeals to the lonely and socially alienated with the majority of terrorist organisations composed of unmarried young men, not employed prior to joining them[4]. Studies on Al Qaeda found a condition for joining was having a friend or relative in it and that was a greater indicator than jihad[5]. In other cases, terrorism is the only choice in failed or failing states to obtain an income or stay alive.

The attacks in Brussels two weeks ago and the Paris attacks in November were committed by brothers, and while this was described as a “new phenomenon” it isn’t. Terror groups operate like any other gang in recruiting members. Instead of focusing on the word of many experts the world continues to ask why such evil can exist. That Muslim people are all criminals and murderers. Refugees fleeing the violence of ISIS every day cannot be trusted, they must be terrorist too if they are Muslim. And this is why.

On November 27 2015, two weeks after the Paris terror attacks, Robert Lewis Dear, the man accused of killing three people and wounding nine others at a Planned Parenthood[6] clinic in Colorado was motivated by his opposition to safe and legal abortions. Mr Dear used unlawful violence intended to cause fear and intimidate governments or society to obtain a political, religious, or ideological objective against abortion. But his not Muslim, so he’s not a terrorist.

In December 2015, 14 people were killed and at least 17 injured in shooting in San Bernardino by Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik. Farook worked at the Inland Regional Centre where the original incident took place. He was at a party at the Centre, left and returned later to open fire. So a worker in the US, killed his co-workers using a gun. Well unfortunately that is not really a new story. Workplace shootings are well-known. But wait, he was Muslim so now he is labelled a terrorist.

In January 2016, a group of men in the US stormed a federal government building, armed and declared their plan to occupy it for years unless that influence government to obtain their objectives. There wasn’t blanket coverage by media, the nation guard wasn’t sent. They were an armed group of American ranchers, so this wasn’t terrorism.

Terrorism isn’t new, and it’s not something created by Muslim people. Many groups over the years have used methods, labelled as terrorism, to achieve their goals including the African National Congress, to which Nelson Mandela was a member and the Irish Republican Army. For the same actions, to label one person a terrorist and the other a mental unstable person, or worse not action taken, only isolates Muslim people, a main cause of terrorism. The fact that the media does not report on matters fairly is no excuse for ignorance and hatred. If the media and governments focused on what many experts have found are the causes for terrorism then we might have a chance of living without fear of it.

Albert Einstein once said “the world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people that don’t do anything about it”. We don’t blame people of other religions and groups for the actions of a few. So instead of blaming all Muslim people for the actions of a small amount that commit terrorism - due to social, economic and political conditions - we should be questioning why the media keep perpetuating the myths and our governments keep ignoring the experts.

[1] Michael Wallace (2012) U.S. National Security Requires a Legally Binding International Definition of Terrorism: Does a Broader Definition of Terrorism put us in the Proper Condition to Punish those who challenge our National Security?, Creighton International and Comparative Law Journal, 3, 105-127, page 320.

[2] START Global Terrorism Database (2012) National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START), as retrieved from http://www.start.umd.edu/gtd.

[3] Pete Lentini (2008) Understanding and combating terrorism: Definitions, origins and strategies, Australian Journal of Political Science, 43:1, page 136

[4] Max Abrahams (2008) What Terrorists Really Want Terrorist Motives and Counterterrorism Strategy, International Security, 32:4, pages 98-100

[5] Max Abrahams (2008) What Terrorists Really Want Terrorist Motives and Counterterrorism Strategy, International Security, 32:4, pages 97-98

[6] A network of not-for-profit women’s health care clinics that offer pregnancy check-ups, contraceptives and abortions.