The gun attack on the Canadian Parliament by someone who identified as a Muslim is not only tragic for the families of his victims but for Muslims everywhere today. I feel like the decision of western media to repeatedly show the photograph of the man who perpetrated this crime wearing a Palestinian-style kuffiyeh (checkered-scarf) over his face is yet another example of an ongoing effort to contribute to a general fear of Muslims in the West that manufactures consent for broken and repressive policy not only in Muslim countries abroad but also against Muslim communities here at home. Several ordinary photos of this man in which his face is fully visible were published online and in print before the CCTV stills of the attack were released; surely these would be more appropriate for a public interested in knowing who this man was? The focus on the image of him wearing a hijacked symbol that many in the US have come associate with militancy seems to be an obvious and vulgar display of sensationalist and highly biased reporting. The kuffiyeh does not mean terrorist. The despicable acts of the Canadian Parliament shooter can and should not be equated with a national symbol that one is more likely to see waved in the air while dancing, smiling and laughing than wrapped around the face of a violent extremist.
Posted on: Fri, 24 Oct 2014 14:46:34 +0000
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