‘Hope Not Hate’ Panel discusses U.S.-Islamic relations

Daniel Smith, professor of global ethics in the School of World Studies, on Tuesday urged students to look at themselves in the mirror to begin to understand the root causes of terrorism.

“It’s not just Iraq that history is going to judge of what we did there,” he said. “It’s what we do here in America.”

There is a deeper reason why terrorists target the U.S., and it has nothing to do with religion, Smith added. Rather there is an underlying social issue that is not being addressed. He cited Western occupation in the Middle East as a cause of nationalist conflicts. He also emphasized the need for Americans to change their lifestyles.

“We’re not going to be able – a world where 3 billion have it, and 3 billion live on $2 a day – we’re not going to be able to live the same just by military action and suppression,” Smith said. “There are too many of them.”

The student organization Americans for Informed Democracy hosted “Hope Not Hate,” a discussion panel that explored topics such as changes in homeland security strategies since Sept. 11 and Americans’ lack of understanding of Islam.

Veronica Tessler, campus coordinator of the organization, said the dialogue was necessary in the wake of the fifth anniversary of Sept. 11. It gave students a chance to consider some of today’s pressing issues.

“Students get so involved with their lives they forget what’s going on with the rest of the world,” Tessler said.

A group of students who studied abroad soon after Sept. 11 formed AID, Tessler said in her opening address. While at first fearful of anti-American sentiment, they received sympathy from foreigners. Slowly the good will vanished, and misperception from both sides grew, she said. Now, the organization wants to “bring the world home to Americans” by hosting dialogues such as the panel discussion.

William Parrish, associate professor of homeland security at the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs, said the U.S. did not fully recognize the capabilities of al-Qaida before Sept. 11. He outlined strategies for national security that have been developed since the attacks. They include prevention of terrorist acts and promotion of a greater understanding of the Islamic faith.

“The key must be education,” Parrish said. “My greatest concern is that actions will be taken after the next terrorist attack in this country.”

Salameh Nematt, Washington bureau chief of Al-Hayat International Arab Daily, said rather than focusing solely on the prevention and consequences of terrorism, people need to focus more on the root causes of extremism.

Killing innocent civilians creates more terrorists, Nematt said, and victims’ family members are perfect recruits for terrorist organizations. The suicide bombers in the Middle East are not the first of their kind, he added, citing the kamikaze pilots during World War II. Historically, anti-Western sentiment stemmed from the West’s support of Middle Eastern regimes to promote its own motives against the citizens’ will.

In Iraq, the U.S. has changed its strategy from supporting regimes to promoting democracy, Nematt said.

“I think that the U.S. government has a big dilemma,” he said. “Do you do what is right, even if it is at your own expense? Or do you just pursue your own interests?”

Isti Arief, among the more than 150 who attended the event, said she enjoyed the different views the speakers presented.

“What I really loved was none of them was one sided,” she said.

Arief, who wears a traditional Islamic headscarf, said she began attending speeches after the insecurity she felt about her appearance and the potential of becoming a target after Sept. 11. Now, she wants to dispel misconceptions about her religion and encourages others to effect change.

“We forget so easily of the plight of people,” Arief said. “Please do something about it. At the very least, attend these meetings, see what they have to say, educate yourself. And maybe from there, you can sprout out ideas of how you can change it with your hands instead of just saying it with your mouth.”