The Normalization of Anti-Arab & Anti-Muslim Hatred in the United States
The Normalization of Anti-Arab & Anti-Muslim Hatred in the United States
Plus, Secretary of State Antony Blinken lies to Congress; Bearing witness to violence against the global SWANA community; and what is noteworthy in the news.
The Normalization of Anti-Arab Racism & Islamophobia by U.S. Government Officials & Corporate Media
The extent to which Anti-Arab racism has been normalized in the halls of power over the last year is disgusting, absurd, and reprehensible. What leaders in government and media are getting away with saying while also minimizing or completely ignoring problematic behavior or rhetoric is 1) a dereliction of their duty to their Arab and Muslim constituents and 2) morally wrong and unjust.
The first example happened in a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on hate crimes last week. As Maya Berry, an Arab American and Muslim woman, who is the Executive Director of the Arab American Institute took the stand to answer questions about hate crimes, she was demeaned by Senators John Kennedy (Louisiana), Lindsay Graham (South Carolina), and Josh Hawley (Missouri) in straight up racist and Islamophobic ways. Kennedy was particularly insulting, telling Berry she needed to “hide her head in a bag.”
Although Kennedy was widely condemned by a number of organizations and some Democrats, he was not censured by Congress for his anti-Arab racism at the hearing, as Rashida Tlaib had been earlier this year for sharing a video that included a call for Palestinian liberation: “from the river to the sea.”
What stood out about the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing was how blatant, unapologetic, and in your face the racism and hate directed towards Berry by Graham, Hawley, and Kennedy was. Recorded on video, broadcast on C-SPAN, and shared on social media - these elected leaders in government actively normalized dangerous and hateful behavior towards an Arab and Muslim woman.
And just days later, the National Review published a racist cartoon by Detroit News cartoonist Henry Payne of Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib sitting at her desk with a smoking pager, a clear reference to the pager attacks that occurred in Lebanon just days before. The cartoon played upon a racist trope that all Arabs are terrorists, and played off of Israel’s claim that the pager attack targeted Hezbollah operatives and leaders. Ironically, the pager attack itself was both a violation of international law and act of terrorism; identified as such by none other than a former U.S. Secretary of Defense - Leon Panetta.
That such a cartoon propagating racist tropes was greenlit to be published says a lot about the current state of normalizing anti-Arab racism in our media environment. But what happened next was even worse.
Tlaib, who was already the target of the racist cartoon, should have drawn support and empathy in the face of a cartoon that essentially called her a terrorist. Instead, some elected leaders, non-profit leaders, and the media immediately smeared her as antisemitic by inventing things she never said.
It started with Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel who initially opened her statement in support of Tlaib by calling the cartoon “Islamophobic” (event though it is more accurately racist and based on Tlaib being Arab, not Muslim), and then went on to claim that Tlaib claimed Nessel could not perform in her role as AG fairly because she’s Jewish. This was the lie that launched the smear campaign - Rashida never said anything about Nessel’s religion.
From there, CNN’s Jake Tapper took the lie and reported on it as fact, and fellow propagandists including the outlet Jewish Insider, the Anti-Defamation League’s Jonathan Greenblatt, and CNN’s Dana Bash fueled the lie which amounts to defamation of Tlaib. The full breakdown of the smear campaign has been documented by Zeteo here.
But once accusations of defamation began circulating on social media, and many called for Tlaib to sue both CNN and its reporters, Tapper and Bash for their lies, Bash issued a ‘clarification’ via CNN yesterday. I personally hope that Tlaib sues CNN and both Tapper and Bash for defamation.
Zionists regularly conflate the political ideology of Zionism with the religion of Judaism to counter any criticism of Israel, any support in favor of Palestinian liberation, and to cancel people who they deem to be threats to their political ideology. We’ve seen it time and time again - it’s what Nessel did in her false claims against Tlaib, and it’s what Tapper and Bash used to smear Tlaib.
Fortunately, since they literally made up words that Tlaib never said, it backfired on them. However, the damage is done - they used their influence and expansive reach to broadcast audiences to put damning lies out there. And they should be held accountable for the harm caused by their actions.
Both Tapper and Bash were instrumental in manufacturing consent for Israel’s genocide in Gaza in the final months of 2023 by reporting Israeli propaganda and lies in the immediate days, weeks, and months following October 7.
Additionally, per journalist Said Arikat, neither Tapper or Bash have ever had any Palestinian on their respective shows - given their biases and pattern of actions, we know why.
Blinken Must Resign: How the Secretary of State Lied to Congress
Damning reporting from ProPublica outlines how two U.S. government humanitarian assistance authorities, USAID and the State Department’s refugees bureau, reported to top officials that Israel had been blocking aid to Gaza. Despite these findings by the U.S. government, Blinken and the Biden administration refused to accept the findings, accepting the Israeli government’s claims that it was not and would not block aid.
Jack Lew, the U.S. Ambassador to Israel, urged the U.S. government to trust the Israeli government on this issue. On Lew, one official in the ProPublica article stated: “He’d be a great spokesperson for the Israeli government.”
Famine in Gaza had been widely reported. Videos of Israeli settlers blocking aid trucks and destroying aid were circulated on social media. Massacres at the hands of the Israeli military have happened as aid was distributed. This issue was no secret to Blinken or Biden.
Despite the facts and internal reports, Blinken told Congress that “We do not currently assess that the Israeli government is prohibiting or otherwise restricting the transport or delivery of U.S. humanitarian assistance.”
Blinken committed perjury.
Why did he lie? Because U.S. law requires that weapons shipments must be cut off to countries that impede humanitarian relief efforts, because doing so is a crime against humanity. As we all know, the U.S. has armed Israel to the hilt for decades, and has had no red lines for it since October 7, 2023.
And now CAIR National is calling for Blinken’s resignation for lying to Congress. I imagine many organizations will join in calling for his resignation in the coming days as more information comes to light.
Bearing Witness: The Worst Things I Saw This Week
Marcellus Williams, an innocent man, is lynched by the state of Missouri.
Some Israelis are opting into genocide boat tours to watch Gaza get bombed.
IOF soldiers throw the bodies of Palestinians off roofs in the West Bank.
American universities, in a notably fascist move, are buying weapons of war to quash dissent of their students protesting genocide.
Noteworthy & In the News
Israel bombs Lebanon in an act of aggression as it plans to invade the Southern part of the country. As a result, Lebanon sees its bloodiest days since 1989. Thousands have been injured and more than 500 people are dead, including mostly civilians and women and children.
Cornell University suspends and threatens deportation of graduate student Momodou Taal over his participation in a pro-Palestinian protest.
The Return of Ta-Nehisi Coates [Paywall] - Coates, a thought leader on racial justice, turns his attention to uplifting the Palestinian struggle. His new book, The Message, addresses the collective global struggle and how Israel’s military occupation of Palestine is “a moral crime.”
Macklemore releases Hind’s Hall 2 featuring Anees, MC Abdul, and Amer Zahr. All proceeds from the song are going to UNRWA.
Arab.vote launches to ensure the Arab American community votes. Arabic language resources are available via this site.
Something Nice: Supporting the Haitian Community in Springfield, Ohio
I recently visited some family in Ohio and was fortunate enough to enjoy a delicious meal at Rose Goute Creole Restaurant, a Haitian restaurant, in Springfield.
Haitian residents in Springfield have been facing hate and threats to their safety including bomb threats, acid attacks, and broken windows due to ugly lies from J.D. Vance and Donald Trump that were platformed during the presidential debate earlier this month and have been repeated irresponsibly in press interviews and proliferated on social media.
Despite the hateful rhetoric and lies about them, the local community in Springfield and surrounding areas is rallying to support its Haitian neighbors. Per local news, this restaurant has been PACKED recently.
In Case You Missed It
TikTok: New SWANA SF Newsletter
Twitter/X: Hillary Clinton Continues Her Disinformation Book Tour
Threads: Kamala Harris’ Irresponsible Signaling to Gun Owners
Instagram: The Lynching of Marcellus Williams
The posts above are highlights of some of the social media content I produce across channels. Follow me on your favorite social media platforms to access all of my content: TikTok, Twitter/X, Threads, YouTube, Instagram, Medium
Up Next
I am attending the Muslims for Just Futures Convergence in Chicago this week, and look forward to sharing what I learn with you in next week’s newsletter. This past week has been full of so much bad news on the Muslim front - the Islamophobia from leaders in U.S. government; the constant smears and vilification of high profile Muslims in U.S. media; the lynching of Imam Marcellus Williams; the bombings and murder of hundreds of civilians in Lebanon in addition to the genocide in Gaza - it is all too much. I hope to find solace, support, and hope in community at this convergence.