Why do they hate us? President George Bush posed this question to the American public shortly after 9/11 terrorist attacks. And in a strong affirmation of the power of propaganda, he replied: “They hate our freedoms -- our freedom of religion, our freedom of speech, our freedom to vote and assemble and disagree with each other.”
Tellingly, the presidential rhetoric was exposed by the 2007 Gallup survey of 500,000 Muslims in more than 35 Islamic states. Only about 7 per cent of Muslims condone terrorist attacks, but none of these "politically radicalized" gave religious justification for their beliefs, instead voicing fears that the West and the United States are seeking to occupy and dominate the Islamic world.
The Gallup poll findings are not surprising. President Bush’s rhetoric - Why do they hate us? - was dehumanizing the enemy which is the first unwritten rule of war. To dehumanize, the enemy is portrayed as rude, crude and uncivilized. He is the other. He is not human. He is irrational.
Since a group stripped of its humanity is not seen as having human worth, they have no human rights. Such a demonized, out-group is not deserving of the protections that other human groups are entitled under international law and conventions. Such a development helps powerful governments and military alliances, and their media outlets, to justify the bombing and killing of civilians, and the ignoring of the human rights of the demonized group. (Burchfield cited by Erin S. LaPorte, The Criminal Race)
Once demonized and stripped of their humanity, it not only makes it easier for the battlefield solider to kill the “faceless, non-human enemy,” it is also easier to indiscriminately kill any member of “the enemy.” (Sam Keen cited by Erin S. LaPorte)
The “war on terror” was premised on this key question: why do they hate us? The common answer from Washington is that Muslim ‘radicals’ hate our way of life, our freedom and our democracy. It means that Muslims do not believe in freedom and democracy, in other words they are primitive people. After stripping Muslims from their humanity it was possible for us to indiscriminately kill them in Afghanistan and Iraq. (12)
And finally, it will not be too much to say that the horrible US abuses in the Abu Ghraib prison of Iraq were possible after dehumanizing the Muslims.
The Gallup Poll results are outlined in the book titled: Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think. Based on the largest and most in-depth study of its kind, this book perhaps presents the first ever data-based analysis of the points of view of more than 90% of the global Muslim community . Between 2001 and 2007, Gallup conducted tens of thousands of hour-long, face-to-face interviews with residents of more than 35 nations that are predominantly Muslim or have substantial Muslim populations (approximately 1.3 billion Muslims). Here are the key findings of the Gallup poll: (13)
While many believe anti-Americanism is tied to deep West-East religious and cultural differences, the data contradict these views. When asked what they admired most about the West, many Muslims – both politically radicalized and moderates – say they admire the West’s technology, freedom of speech, and value system of hard work.
In contrast, 57 percent of Americans when asked what they most admire about Muslim societies offer two responses: “Nothing” and “I don’t know.”
And even more surprising, the politically radicalized are more likely than moderates to associate Arab/Islamic nations with an eagerness to have better relationships with the West: Fifty-eight percent of the “politically radicalized” (versus 44 percent of moderates) expressed this.
Finally, no significant difference exists between the percentage of the politically radicalized and moderates who said: “better understanding between the West and Arab/Islamic cultures concerns me a lot.”
"The Decline in America's Reputation: Why?"
Tellingly the Gallup poll findings were confirmed by a US congressional report of June 2008 titled "The Decline in America's Reputation: Why?" (14)
The report finds that unilateral behavior by the Bush administration, a lack of contact with Americans and the "perceived war on Islam" contributed to America's unfavorable image in many nations.
According to Subcommittee Chairman Bill Delahunt: "The data presented at these hearings make it clear that people in other nations don't "hate us because of our values" - but rather they are disappointed with us because we aren't always true to those values."
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