The
Aftermath of the World Trade Centre Tragedy:
Making Sense Of It Together
Abul Hussain & Rufus May
September 2001
The
disaster in New York has been devastating for many of us. It is
important to raise awareness of some of the emotional and practical
consequences of this event. The collective grief for the loss of
innocent lives has been deeply distressing. There is also much
uncertainty about what the consequences will be. Rather than quests
for justice, there has been the more unfortunate use of the term
"War" by the American government. As is established
however, the first casualty of war is the truth.
For example, while the New York event was being televised, timely scenes
were also shown of Palestinian Arabs rejoicing without any narrative
attribution. Interestingly to
note was also the fact that there was a candlelight vigil in East
Jerusalem on the night of the attacks; schoolchildren around the country
took part in moments of silence in reaction to the attacks. Also, a
large part of the nations public figures spoke sensibly and generously
about the American victims. What happened to these scenes? Perhaps
a sudden outburst of emotion simply makes for better and more powerful
television than a reasoned response. Its not difficult to gather how this
was nothing more than opportunistic media trying to feed the frenzy of
anger at Muslims.
The
intense coverage of the disaster has been unsurpassed particularly in
comparison to occurrences of destruction of lives in many parts of the
Muslim and non western world. Despite the lack of strong evidence, the media has been all
too ready to point the finger towards some Muslim people for being
responsible for this event. Some press reports have been
Islamophobic in tone. This has added to the stereotype view that
some people hold that Muslims are either terrorist or have no tolerance of
others. This prevailing notion fails to assist in bridging the gaps
and instead helps to perpetuate myths. The powerful role of the
mainstream media is then questionable, as it appears to act as a precursor
for further racism. In the aftermath of the incident and the media
hype we have witnessed a further increase in racist attacks on Muslims in
the UK.
Given
this, we as professionals in the mental health and social care field
should consider how this increasing stigma can affect our perception of
clients who have religious beliefs and how our clients who are Muslims may
be feeling. This is likely to also affect the attitudes of
non-Muslim clients towards Muslims; they may be resentful and unsure as to
the appropriate ways to respond. Having talked to some Muslims in
the local community, it is very clear that they feel somewhat vulnerable
given the way the media has been portraying them. Some Muslim
clients have described feeling frightened about going out on their own;
wearing traditional Muslim clothing; fearing hostility from some members
of the non-Muslim community. While
other Muslim clients have reported increased feelings of confusion and
paranoia. Could this be the start of a series of rejections and
exclusions?
We have seen over the past decade how MIND (a mental health pressure
group) has campaigned and published extensively on the negative effects of
stigma and discrimination and how this is a major factor, which gives rise
to mental health difficulties and encourages isolation. And so,
religious discrimination or victimisation in this respect is no exception
to that rule. All groups, regardless of their social construct, have
some universality that holds them together, often manifested as a set of
ideas and action. Should the ideas found in a person with religious
belief be any less valid than the ideas found in a person with secular
beliefs? It is only the silencing of those who suffer from
discrimination and the fate of irresponsible journalism that facilitates
oppressive explanation and intervention.
Once a group has been identified as alien and threatening mistrust and
misunderstanding can increase between communities. As mental
health professionals we realise the importance of the social context in
effecting people's mental health. Alienation is a problem for all
living in the inner city, particularly those from poorer circumstances and
ethnic minorities. Islamophobic media coverage exacerbates the situation.
Racism and prejudice affects one's personal and social identity.
Results of negative stereotyping sanctioned by the media can
increase hostility and undermine self-esteem. Unless challenged,
this situation may make things worse for young people suffering
psychological distress and confusion.
It is important to raise consciousness of the harm the media has done by
promoting negative views of the Muslim and we must all do our bit to
challenge this. Everyone can combat the harmful effects of prejudice by
being open minded and accepting of differing views, offering support and
understanding, rather than becoming judgemental. It is that critical
eye and the questioning mind that can help us start to become free from
the generally held biases of our current times. Minority ethnic
people struggle more than dominant groups, to be heard and represented in
the health care system. The huge sorrow caused by the World Trade
Centre massacre must not be allowed to be manipulated by western
mainstream media to perpetuate discriminative ideas about Muslim people.
Because of the enormity of this event and its ensuing media profile we
have found it productive to discuss and reflect on these issues with
colleagues from a range of disciplines. This has enabled us to consider
how this wider context is affecting the climate of people's everyday lives
in the community. The creation of such a dialogue has then allowed
us to supportively discuss both the distress of this event and its
consequences with clients, in a way that includes the socio-political and
cultural as well as the emotional and interpersonal. As Michel
Foucault has described 'knowledge is power'. Therefore by reflecting
critically with clients with mental health problems about the mainstream
media coverage we feel this is likely to be an empowering process. For
example, one Christian client was able to discuss with an author his
strong feelings of hostility towards people in Muslim traditional wear,
despite his better judgement. By discussing examples of mainstream
newspaper's bias in their presentation of Muslims, the client felt more
able to distance himself from his initial thoughts.
We are raising these issues as they are not just Muslim issues but also
issues, which are related to empowering and anti-discriminatory, work in
general. Our experience of reflecting on this subject has made us
realise the potential for similar work in other areas where the mainstream
press is judgemental, mental health itself being a clear example. If
we are to revisit our value base, we will find that analysing our
attitudes and taking steps to counter prejudice is central to enabling
work and creating accepting communities. Can we truly connect with
human suffering and promote recovery, if we do not seek to understand the
historical and oppressive positioning that shapes peoples resistance?
Without this reflection, we fall prey to assumptions that are
unfounded, we become less collaborative and engaging with people who have
different ways of making sense of their reality and wider world. In
this sense, the recognition of the cultural and moral strength of the
Muslim community may well be overlooked.
The event has affected us all in many ways. The thoughts and
feelings in the current climate can raise difficult issues and strong
views. Unexpressed anger or despair can always be difficult emotional
experiences to manage. It can be helpful to discuss these issues
collectively in a gathering or team meetings at work. This may help
desensitise the issue and enable us all to reflect and develop
understanding in our work in this difficult time.
We live in an unsafe world characterised by exclusionary attitudes. To
resist such powers we must be prepared to critically rethink the way we
think!
Abul
Hussain & Rufus May
September 2001
Community Mental Health and Social Work
East London
United Kingdom
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