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A historically inaccurate take.
Sikhs and Muslims were hunted down, beaten, and killed on the streets in retaliation - months and even years to follow. The first person killed in backlash was Balbir Singh Sodhi, a turbaned Sikh on 9/15/01 in AZ, by a white man seeking revenge. https://twitter.com/paulkrugman/status/1304385740063805440
Sikhs and Muslims were hunted down, beaten, and killed on the streets in retaliation - months and even years to follow. The first person killed in backlash was Balbir Singh Sodhi, a turbaned Sikh on 9/15/01 in AZ, by a white man seeking revenge. https://twitter.com/paulkrugman/status/1304385740063805440
Brand new civil rights orgs were founded to address this rise of hate violence. The @sikh_coalition was founded on the EVENING of 9/11 bc of the extreme & intense rise of hate and violence against Sikhs - who were perceived to be terrorists bc of our turbans & beards.
Sikhs, Muslims, Arabs, Middle-Easterners, and South Asians were not only subject to intense hate violence but also profiled & humiliated in airports, thrown off airplanes bc of our appearance for things like using our cellphones in airplane mode or using the bathroom too long.
Our kids were terrorized at schools and subjected to intense bias-based bullying. We faced extraordinary high levels of employment discrimination.
The backlash caused an intense disruption to the wellbeing of many cmmties of color bc of America's bigotry. Still does.
The backlash caused an intense disruption to the wellbeing of many cmmties of color bc of America's bigotry. Still does.
Sikhs & Muslims & anyone perceived to be Muslim dramatically changed our lives. We were unlawfully profiled, questioned, or detained by law enforcement for appearing Muslim. We feared for our safety and our loved ones' safety for months & years. This was a mass disruption.
Point being that the response to 9/11 fundamentally altered brown cmmties' relationship w/ America, and gave rise to a new generation of civil rights activists to address these incredible challenges. Indeed every 9/11 anniversary, we mourn & remain vigilant for our loved ones.
And yes GWB didn't vocally call for anti-Muslim hatred but what kind of message do you think it sent when he initiated war with Muslim majority countries not involved with 9/11, when he tortured Muslims, when he detained & opened up Gitmo, Abu Ghraib, waterboarded?
Dehumanizing Muslims was a bipartisan governmental project for years after 9/11, and to this day. And that gave a green light for the rise in domestic discrimination & violence against actual or perceived Muslims.
