Reflections on the Christchurch Mosque Shooting
Naved Bakali, Research Analyst
The horrific events of the Christchurch Mosque shooting in New Zealand this month was a tragedy beyond measure, in which 100 men, women, and children were murdered or injured for no other reason than being Muslim. In times like this it is important to take account of those things we hold most dear, give thanks and show gratitude for the blessing and gift of life, and pray and remember those who died needlessly in this catastrophe. Furthermore, it is essential for us to take heed of any lessons we can learn from this massacre, with the intention of improving our own situation, as well as that of others.
More than anything else, I believe this tragedy highlights the seriousness and threat posed by far-right extremism in Western nations. When discussing issues related to terrorism, countering violent extremism, and national security, Muslims are overwhelmingly perceived as the primary perpetrators of violence and terrorism in public, media, and political discourse. According to one study, terrorist activities committed by Muslims in the US, on average, receive up to 449 per cent more media coverage than other attacks. In the New York Times and Washington Post, between the years 2002 and 2015, failed Muslim acts of violence and terror received 770 per cent more media coverage than non-Muslims who had committed similar actions.[1] Another study indicates that over a 25-year period, Muslims have amassed more negative headlines in the New York Times than cocaine, cancer, and alcohol.[2] The hyper-mediatization of Muslim terrorist acts has significantly contributed to manufacturing the perception that terrorism is a predominantly Muslim driven phenomenon in Western nations.[3] This unbalanced association with Muslims and terrorism, at the exclusion of dominant members of society is also apparent in legislation and policy, as Muslims have been the primary targets of anti-terrorism legislation, policy, and programming across North America and Europe. The perception of violent extremist activities being exclusively a ‘Muslim problem’ is quite different from the reality.
According to Europol, of all terrorist acts in Europe from 2009 to 2013, less than two percent were religiously motivated.[4] Rather, the vast majority of these attacks were committed by non-Muslim separatist groups based in Europe. Similarly, in the United States, studies conducted by the FBI found that only six per cent of terrorist attacks from 1980 to 2005 were committed by Muslims.[5] A more recent study in the US found that from 2008 to 2016 the number of domestic terrorist acts by far-right extremist groups more than doubled that of Muslim extremists.[6] Furthermore, from 2011 to 2016 only twelve per cent of terrorist attacks in the US were committed by Muslims, more than half of the attacks during this period were committed by white supremacists, neo-Nazis, and other far-right groups.[7] Clearly, Muslims are not the only threat, and by far are not the most serious threat to Western nations. However, until these other forms and strands of extremist thought and activism are spoken on the same terms and with the same level of severity, individuals and groups that subscribe to far-right extremist ideologies will continue to fly under the radar and the propensity of such atrocities at their hands will continue to loom.
Another point worth considering from this tragic event, is the reaction of the Prime Minister of New Zealand. The New Zealand Prime Minister did not mince words when addressing her nation calling the shooting a clear act of terrorism. There were no vague euphemistic descriptions, referring to it as a ‘shooting’ or a ‘lone wolf’ act of violence. It was clearly referred to as an act of terrorism, as it should have been described. A number of nations have tiptoed around calling acts of terrorism committed by white supremacists, as such, however New Zealand called it as they, and the rest of the non-white supremacist world saw it. Furthermore, Prime Minister immediately announced that New Zealand would ban the kinds of gun and modifications used in the Christchurch shootings. There was no strung out debate in the country over gun laws and rights to own guns. Rather, these types of weapons, which serve no other purpose than to cause death and destruction were deemed a threat to society, and immediate action was taken to reduce this type of threat. The Prime Minister also showed solidarity while visiting the victims of the attack by voluntarily donning a hijab. This was not done to gain political points, as Muslims only represent approximately 1% of the population of New Zealand. Rather, it was a gesture to show solidarity with the victims of this crime. The hijab is a universal symbol of Islam that is understood and known around the world. This simple gesture imparts the idea, you are us, and we are you. Your grief, if our grief.
The senseless violence that occurred at Christchurch was a somber reminder of the twisted times that we live in. An angry hateful young man, was able to proudly broadcast his repugnant massacre of innocent men, women, and children to the entire world. However, our patience, resilience, and steadfastness in times of difficulties define us as individuals and as a community. Let us aspire to build ourselves up from this horrific incident and work to shape a brighter more inclusive future, where incidents like this are no more than a faded distant memory from our collective consciousness.
[1] Kumar Rao & Carey Shenkman, Equal treatment? Measuring the legal and media responses to ideological motivated violence in the United States (Washington DC: Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, 2018).
[2] Amira Elghawabi, The Globe and Mail: Opinion.April 16, 2018. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-quebec-mosque-killer-epitomizes-islamophobia-in-its-deadliest-form/.
[3] Evelyn Alsultany, Arabs and Muslims in the media: Race and representation after 9/11 (New York: New York University Press, 2012).
[4] Beenish Ahmed, Think Progress (2015, January 8). Retrieved from Think Progress: https://thinkprogress.org/less-than-2-percent-of-terrorist-attacks-in-the-e-u-are-religiously-motivated-cec7d8ebedf6/
[5] FBI. FBI: Reports and publications (2005, December). Retrieved April 15, 2014, from FBI website: http://www.fbi.gov/stats-services/publications/terrorism-2002-2005/terror02_05#forward
[6] David Neiwert, Reveal News: Article (2017, June 21). Retrieved from Reveal News: https://www.revealnews.org/article/home-is-where-the-hate-is
[7] Erin Kearns, Allison Betus, & Anthony Lemieux, Why do some terrorist attacks receive more media attention than others?(Atlanta: Georgia State University, 2017).
