After ‘Chapel Hill Shooting’: Double Standards in the Media Discourse

Both the psychological and physical attacks against the Muslim community in the West have been a problematic issue for years. The historical root of the problem is a topic of another article. But in the 21st century, the relation between the West and the ‘other’ has gained a new format with the existence of a large Muslim community in the European public sphere. The visibility of migrants and Muslims in particular who were pointed as the source of every social problem by some politicians and media motivated the anti-Islamic movements.

With the arrival of 2015 and mass protests organized by the anti-Islamic movement PEGIDA in Germany, the already existing problem of Islamophobia has come into the spotlight. Additionally, the discussion on the relationship between Islam and the West emerged after the Charlie Hebdo and Kosher market attacks in Paris. The points raised after the attacks were not only about the radical groups gaining ground in the Middle East but also were about the Islamophobia challenge for the U.S. and European politics and the media’s biased attitudes towards the Muslim community. It is also critical to do unbiased socio-cultural and political research into the reasons behind the attack and their relation to the issue of radicalization as well as the role of western political/military policies regarding Syria and Iraq.

While the Paris attacks as a terror action were strongly condemned publicly for the first time, a political leader in Europe, French President François Hollande said, “It is the Muslims who are the first victims of fanaticism, fundamentalism and intolerance. Anti-Muslim actions, like anti-Semitism, must be denounced and severely punished”. Islamophobia is not perceived as a crime and President Hollande underlined an important problem. It is clear that Muslim communities need moral and political support in their attempts to convince decision-makers and some media to change their anti-Muslim discourses which are contributing to hate speeches and motivating hate crimes. Now, the killing of three Muslims in the U.S. has added a new page to the book.

TERROR IN THE NAME OF ‘RADICAL ATHEISM’ OR ‘MENTAL ILLNESS’ AGAIN?

Three young Muslims  were shot to death in their home in Chapel Hill of North Carolina in the U.S. Police have named the victims as 23-year-old Deah Shaddy Barakat, his wife Yusor Mohammad, 21, and her sister, Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, 19.

The killer Craig Hicks is an atheist who mostly shares strong anti-religion posts on his Facebook page and  has posted a photo of his gun on Facebook. Some media sources are claiming the attack may have begun as a “parking dispute.” This ignores Craig Hicks’ fanatical anti-religious sentiment and nobody raises the question if there is a ‘radical atheism’ because some concepts are used due to some conditions.

If a radical ‘non-Muslim western’ commits such an attack, one of the first questions raised is whether he has a ‘mental illness’ or is a ‘lonely wolf.’ Was this not the case when we witnessed the terror attack of Breivik in Norway in 2011? Imagine the media headlines if it were committed by someone with a ‘Muslim’ background who had presented himself as an anti-atheist.

Ignoring facts make people who are sensitive for human rights and justice angry. For the Muslims around the world the attacks are a reminder of the increase in Islamophobic attacks across the world in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo shooting. The lack of press attention to the horrific murders of three young Muslims shows that the test is still on and there is a need to put it under the spotlight.

MEDIA HYPOCRISY

The problem with the media is that it was, and still is, not ready to handle these issues. When there is an attack perpetrated by ‘radical Islamic groups’ around the world, the international media rapidly cover the story in the fr