Words that shape attitudes

Aref Assaf, 11-13-2007

“Why don’t you do our work for us?”, The FBI was asked. The response came: “I am not here to P.R .for anybody. It is up to you to defend and counter the accusations about your faith and heritage”. This is pretty much what could sum up the entirety of a recent high-level meeting between the FBI and leaders from the NJ Muslim community.

The meeting came about at the request of the Muslim community in response to a front page article by columnist Mike Kelly (Bergen Record, October 15, 2007). Since its publication, many in the community have expressed their fears that the timing, the contents, and connotations of the article may continue to erode our civil rights, engendering more hatemongering and acts of bigotry. They also expressed bewilderment as to why the FBI would grant such a detailed interview about its ongoing efforts to prevent illegal acts and especially domestic terrorism plots.

The Record’s interview was about the continuing efforts of the FBI to combat terrorism in the United States. The article focused on the work of the NJ office of the Joint Task Force on Terrorism of the FBI, headquartered in Newark, NJ and led by Assistant Special Agent in Charge Kevin Cruise. A casual reading would decipher its main message: the continuing presence of varying levels of links between known terrorist organizations and certain New Jersey residents or groups in New Jersey. Obviously, there are no earth shattering discoveries here.

What caught our attention was the absence of two words from the article: Arab and Muslim. We at the AAF took the lead in responding to the article by having an op-ed published a mere three days after the FBI story ran in the Record.

Our approach was a fair, calculated, and responsible one, although we encountered strong reservations from other participants. In our response, we recognized the positive (and as the meeting has abundantly  confirmed) deliberate changes in how the FBI treats the issue of terrorism and the reminder that the safety of our country ought not be  extracted at the high and unacceptable cost of denying the civil and political rights of our community. “So while we urge the FBI and other law enforcement agencies to remain vigilant in their pursuit of our collective safety, we hope this mission will be conducted without infringing upon the rights and freedoms of our community.”

We also argued that it was a quantum leap that for the first time, the words Arab or Islam are not used to describe acts of terrorism. After all, this has been our constant demand that law enforcement need  to de-link Islam from the violent acts of some Muslims. We often argued that the de-linkage is a crucial first step toward rehabilitating the perceptions that fellow Americans have concerning Islam and Arabs. After all, this has been constant demand of ours: that law enforcement delink Islam from the violent acts of Muslims.

On the issue of whether the article was selectively edited to leave out other positive statements, Mr. Cruise stated that several other statements were perhaps unintentionally left out and while he would have hoped that more was said about the positive side of our community, that it was not his final call as to what would be omitted. He suggested that the community should engage Mr. Kelly on the tone, connotations, and placement of the interview. He rejected the call by some that he personally demand a chance to explain the potential misgivings, saying, “This is up to you to follow up.” While I tend to  cautiously agree with Mr. Cruise, I cannot absolve the FBI from its responsibility to ensure that whatever information it decides to make public, to the extent possible, to exclude statements harming our community and inciting anti-Muslim sentiments. This point was not, I believe, well-articulated to the FBI.

I could sense the rising temper of Mr. Cruise as he tried to answer every question. He was firm, but most respectful and he spared no effort to convey his respect for the community, its leaders, its activism, and above all its religion and culture. He made it clear that not all his statements were included in the article. But he confirmed the factuality of everything attributed to him. He stated in no uncertain terms that when he thinks of terrorism, he does not think of the religion of Islam or its adherents. “There is no link between Islam and what Al-Qaeda has committed in the name of Islam. I was deliberate in not using the words Islam or Arab when I gave the interview, and this is how I talk about terrorism to every media outlet, every public or private gathering to which I am invited to speak and more importantly to my staff and colleagues.”

The gathered impassionedly implored the FBI to continue to reach out to the community and nurture a similar positive image of Islam onto other field offices of the FBI. One participant expressed astonishment and perhaps a sense of dismay because the FBI did not acknowledge its good relations with the Muslim community. Mr. Cruise expressed his surprise at the remarks, noting that he did not wish to again tie the issue of terrorism with Muslims for he is not only focused on terrorists who profess Islam but others of other faiths, ethnic or political backgrounds.

I more than ever trust the FBI in its new direction of how to best combat terrorism. The delinkage, which we hope will intensify and permeate through all levels of the FBI’s work, will over time strengthen the rest of us, law abiding Muslim Americans, to join in the fight against terrorism by anyone and for any reason. It should be noted that several “terrorism experts’ such as Steve Emerson and Stephen Flatow have sternly criticized this systemic shift by law enforcement. These pundits argue that it is Islam that is the core and impetus of world terrorism.

The FBI in New Jersey is setting an example which sadly is not being emulated in other parts of the country. A recent news article confirms the plans by the Los Angeles Police Department to “map Muslim communities”… “not as a form of a targeting or profiling… but as an effort to understand communities.” And “to ensure better community policing.” What’s next, a computer chip in the neck of every Muslim? Mr. Cruise, book your next flight to Los Angeles! They can learn from you.

It has taken the FBI a painfully long time to recognize our pivotal role in combating terrorism. There will come a time when our grievances, humiliation, and castigation will extract a national apology.