Transcript Status of Arabs and Muslims in America after 9/11

September - Starkville, MI:
The Islamic Center of Mississippi in Starkville
was pelted with eggs, tomatoes and rocks. (AP,
9/16/01)
September - Matawan, NJ:
A Hindu temple was fire bombed. (The Cornell
Daily Sun, 9/17/01)
September 11 - New York, NY:
A Sikh taxi driver reported that people threw
bottles at his car. (Newsday, 9/16/01)
Civil Liberties and Arabs and Muslims in
the US Shortly After 9/11:
PSRA/Newsweek: In response to the terrorist attacks (on the
World Trade Center and the Pentagon, September 11, 2001),
do you think the United States should put Arabs and ArabAmericans in this country under special surveillance, or that it
would be a mistake to target a nationality group, as was done
with Japanese-Americans after Pearl Harbor?
Should increase surveillance
Would be a mistake
Don't know
N
9/01 11/01
27
30
68
62
5
8
1,005 1,002
On November 25, 2001, after a resident of Torrington,
Connecticut, told police that he had heard two “Arabs”
talking about anthrax, police officers followed two Pakistani
men suspected of having had the conversation at a gas
station. The officers arrested the two men and also
Ayazuddin Sheerazi, an Indian businessman who was
minding the station temporarily for his uncle, the owner,
and another man from Pakistan who happened to be there
at the time. According to Sheerazi’s attorney, the police
never offered any reason for arresting Sheerazi or
suspecting him of wrongdoing. He told Human Rights
Watch, “Torrington is a small place, so they arrested the
Arabs in the community.” Even though Sheerazi was
legally in the country, the INS kept him eighteen days in
detention before he was released on bond. (The caller who
made the complaint to the police later failed a voluntary
polygraph test).
Civil Liberties and Arabs and Muslims in
the US Shortly After 9/11:
Based on the events of September 11th (2001, the date of the
terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon), do
you think the U.S. (United States) immigration laws should be
tightened to restrict the number of immigrants from Arab or
Muslim countries into the United States?
Yes
No
Don't know/Refused
9/01 6/02
83
76
16
22
1
2
N
1,003
3,262
At a November 19 meeting with local
Georgia officials, Congressman Saxby
Chambliss (R-GA) made the anti-Muslim
comments that, in order to combat
terrorism, a Georgia sheriff should be
turned loose to “arrest every Muslim that
comes across the state line.”
How Do People Feel about Arabs and Muslims?
PSRA: Is your overall opinion of ... Muslim Americans,
very favorable, mostly favorable, unfavorable, or very
unfavorable?
Pre-9/11
Post-9/11
August November
2000
2001
June
2003
Very to Mostly Favorable
50
59
51
Mostly to very Unfavorable
21
17
24
Never heard of 'em
2
1
1
October 22 - Orlando International Airport, FL:
Four Hispanic businessmen were escorted off a Delta
flight after passengers alerted airline staff that the
men appeared to be Middle Eastern. The men were
checked against the FBI watch list and cleared. They
were able to board a later flight. (The Orlando
Sentinel, 10/23/01)
November 5 - Boston Logan International Airport, MA:
An Arab-American passenger scheduled to fly from
Boston to Los Angeles International Airport was singled
out during the boarding process and forbidden by an
American Airlines manager to enter the aircraft. The
manager explained to him, “One of the passengers is
not comfortable flying with you.”
How Do People Feel about Arabs and Muslims?
Compared with other American citizens, do you think
Arab-Americans are more sympathetic to terrorists or
not?
CBS/NYT CBS/NYT CBS/NYT
9/01 12/01
9/02
More sympathetic
26
33
33
Not more sympathetic
62
58
57
Don't know/No answer
12
9
10
N
1,216
1,052
937
Thomas Iverson pled guilty to telephoning a bomb threat
on September 29, 2001, against a Jordanian American
liquor store in Beloit, Wisconsin. Iverson was sentenced to
27 months incarceration on April 12, 2002.
September - Detroit, MI:
A 14-year-old daughter of Palestinian immigrants received
death threats from her fellow high school students. (Toronto
Star, 9/15/01)
What Do People Think about Islamic Religion?
ABC: Do you think mainstream Islam encourages
violence against non-Muslims, or is it a peaceful
religion?
1/02 10/02 9/03 3/06
Encourages violence 14
23
34 33
Peaceful religion
57
53
46
54
No opinion
29
25
20
13
N
1,023 1,018 1,004 1,003
On September 17, 2001, President Bush visited the
Islamic Center of Washington, DC, where he met with
Muslim leaders and defended Islam. The following are
excerpts from his statement:
“These acts of violence against innocents violate the
fundamental tenets of the Islamic faith. And it’s
important for my fellow Americans to understand that.
The face of terror is not the true faith of Islam. That’s
not what Islam is all about. Islam is peace. These
terrorists don’t represent peace. They represent evil
and war… “Women who cover their heads in this
country must feel comfortable going outside their
homes. Moms who wear cover must not be intimidated
in America. That’s not the America I know. That’s not
the America I value.”