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 Ten years after the devastating attacks of Sept. 11, this somber anniversary provides an opportunity to reflect on the turbulent decade behind us, and to recommit ourselves to the values that best define our nation.
In the days immediately following the attacks, Americans were united by a sense of resolve. We believed that despite the terrible tragedy that befell us, our nation, its institutions and values would not just survive but thrive. As President Bush stated then, “Our country is strong. Terrorists’ acts can shake the foundation of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America.”
Sadly, our government’s actions since 9/11 have too often betrayed these values, while simultaneously undermining the very security they meant to protect. We compounded the tragedy of that shattering day by betraying our principles with thoroughly un-American practices — specifically, those that stigmatize fellow citizens based on race, religion and ideology.
After 9/11, tens of thousands of Muslims were questioned, thousands deported for civil immigration infractions, and hundreds subjected to secret, arbitrary detention and abusive interrogation. Yet not a single person was arrested or publicly prosecuted for a terrorism-related crime as a result.
The truth is, terrorism knows no religious or other boundaries. Terrorism is not a “Muslim” phenomenon. In the 10 years since 9/11, we witnessed an American citizen fly a plane into an IRS building in Texas, killing himself and an IRS manager; he left behind an anti-government rant against taxes. We saw the targeted killing of Dr. George Tiller, an abortion doctor, while he was serving as an usher in his Kansas church. In 2005, the FBI declared eco-terrorists the country’s biggest domestic terrorist threat.
Nonetheless, no area of American Muslim civil society has been left untouched by discrimination and intolerance since 9/11. A New York City public school principal was forced out of her job after unsubstantiated accusations that she was a “terrorist” and a “9-11 denier.” A former college football star from the University of Idaho was arrested — strip-searched and shackled — and held for more than two weeks without charge. Though never convicted of any crime, he was portrayed in the media as a terrorist sympathizer; his arrest touted as an FBI “success story.”
As Americans, and particularly as Utahns, we should appreciate the dangers of allowing a minority religious group to be singled out for discrimination. Our history shows that when we target people based on their race, ethnicity, religion or political associations, there are disastrous consequences for our democratic ideals. Lynching. Japanese internment. McCarthyism.
We should be repelled by the suggestion that Muslim Americans must prove that they are not guilty of being un-American. Such bigotry undermines one of America’s greatest strengths: the ability to integrate diverse strands into a unified whole on the basis of shared, pluralistic, foundational values.
The way forward lies in decisively turning our backs on the policies and practices that violate the backbone of America: our Constitution and the commitment it embodies to freedom and individual determination. It is that strength that is the best rejoinder our nation has to violence and those who advocate it.
Liberty and security do not compete in a zero-sum game. Our freedoms — including religious liberty — are the very foundation of our strength and security. Consistent and fair application of the law must be our most significant and enduring victory over terror.
Karen McCreary is the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah. She has been a practicing attorney and Utah resident for more than 25 years.
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