(NAME-MCE) 'We Are Part Of The Terror'

[Bill Howe]

Note: I found this article heart-breaking. No parent should have to go
through this. 

 

courant.com/news/opinion/hc-commentarychaudry0124.artjan24,0,7346117.story


Courant.com


WHY ARE THEY MAD AT US?


'We Are Part Of The Terror'


Americans Won't Regain Security At Home While Innocents Are Being Killed In
Our Name


By RABIA CHAUDRY

January 24, 2010

My 12-year-old daughter is a frequent flier. Almost every month she catches
a flight from Bradley International Airport to Baltimore to see her father.
Because she is a minor, I am allowed to escort her to the gate. My anxiety
levels have been steadily increasing each time she flies.

I nervously eye the other waiting passengers. I can't help but glance more
than once at swarthy-looking males and whisper prayers under my breath that
there will be no nuts on the plane. Ironically, as I scan the airport for
suspicious characters, more often than not, all eyes are on me and my
daughter.

As Muslims, we are rather conspicuous with our head scarves. It doesn't help
that we are always patted down (as I hold my infant girl) in full view of
others going through security. My daughter, a bespectacled, unassuming and
completely sweet-looking girl, usually giggles as the Transportation
Security Administration agent runs her hands over legs and under her arms,
but I can't help but wonder if the giggles will eventually turn into
humiliation, which is a bit of what I feel.

Having been raised pre- 9/11 in an America that I felt fiercely a part of,
that never questioned my patriotism or challenged my faith, it is difficult
for me to imagine how my daughter and other children growing up in the
shadow of 9/11 must feel. I wish desperately that my daughters could
experience the carefree childhood I had and I wonder how long the road will
be to get there again.

As violence abroad and at home increases, and the divide between the West
and the Muslim world grows larger, the questions remain the same: How do we
win this war? How do we gain back our security? How do we stop the loose
cannons that pack their underwear with explosives? And, of course, why are
they mad at us?

On the night of Dec. 27, 2009, Western soldiers (whether military or private
contractors is in dispute) allegedly awoke eight sleeping Afghan children
from the ages of 11 to 17, seven of them relatives and one an unrelated
12-year-old shepherd boy. The children were dragged out of the school where
they were sleeping; some were handcuffed and all eight were executed.

This story, widely reported in the international press and confirmed by
Afghan and U.N. representatives, was virtually blacked out in the U.S. So,
although Americans were kept in the dark about it, the rest of the world
heard the story loud and clear.

In the past two weeks, allegations have surfaced that on the night of Nov.
15, 2006, British troops tortured and executed a 62-year-old Iraqi
grandmother, Sabiha Talib, and later dumped her body by the side of the
road. If you Google this story you will find that it although it has been
given extensive coverage by the British and international media, and
photographs of the victim have been published, it is nearly impossible to
find the story covered in the American press.

Now Harper's magazine is reporting that three Guantanamo detainees, who were
reported to have committed suicide as an "act of asymmetrical warfare" in
2006, were murdered by interrogators. The source of this information is a
number of military guards who were present the night all three detainees
were found dead with rags stuffed down their throats.

Again, Google the story and you will find a dearth of coverage by U.S.
popular media, whereas it has been extensively covered in the international
press.

The stories of the many atrocities committed in the name of our misguided
war on terror goes on. Whether or not Americans are aware of these stories
because our press won't cover them, the rest of the world is painfully aware
and they build resentment and anger toward us. The civilian bodies add up in
Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan while our pundits sit around arguing about
why they are mad at us.

When I read these stories, I know why they are mad at us. Can we really
expect, and do we deserve, security when we are denying it to hundreds of
thousands of others? How do we reconcile our desire for peace at home when
we will not allow others to have the same?

I am certain, if there is cosmic justice, that it cannot happen. We cannot
win the war on terror when we are part of the terror.

The next time my daughter flies, she will probably be patted down again. But
instead of feeling insulted, this time I will remember the 12-year-old
shepherd boy who was dragged from his sleep and executed by those purporting
to keep us in the homeland safe, and I will feel shame at the price others
are paying for our security.

.Rabia Chaudry of Bloomfield is a lawyer specializing in immigration.

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Bill Howe

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