New Zealand’s Terrorist Attack Should Awaken the Otherwise Nonchalant
It is yet another unbelievable bestial atrocity.
Whenever terrorist attacks are so frequent that it makes us feel numb, such a massacre will always make us can’t help but ask “why”, but it seems that we can’t find the answer. I don’t even want to give the white supremacist a recognition of name here. I do not want to post his manifesto, his sickened belief and distorted, anti-immigrant world view radicalized through online social networks and platforms. After a series of psychological distortions, this demented individual convinced himself, holding rifles engraved with “symbolic meanings”, charging the quiet prayers of mosques, and live-streamed his massacre. I don’t want others to know his despicable thought motives. Let me, as a civilian, to the ordinary people who have lost their lives, to say that we are owe huge debt on you.
“This is your home and you should have been safe here,” minced 25-year-old Ruby Jones, a New Zealand female comic artist, in this drawing expressing her anger and frustration. Yes, New Zealand is a multi-ethnic, culturally rich country that is considered one of the most transparent countries in the world in the rankings. In addition to the local Maori culture and whites that have lived in the area for centuries, New Zealand is also a place of warmth for immigrants. people from politically unstable regions such as the former Yugoslavia, Palestine and Syria have chosen to come to this developed country throughout the recent two decades and settle down there. They are men, women, old people, young people, children; they are refugees, residents, athletes, ordinary people; they have all became innocent victims. They crossed the ocean to find new destinations, and thought that they would continue to be respected for their religious freedom, integrate with this community and the country, but could not foresee the catastrophe while practicing, to be only ruthlessly murdered because of their faith.
New Zealand has had a period of dark history. The Treaty of Waitangi, which gives Maori and whites the same rights, is nothing but a relatively decent compromise. The place that was originally called Aotearoa by the Maori witnessed enough colonization and oppression, just like any other European colonies. The relatively fragmented culture and history have led many young New Zealand whites to choose to vent their dissatisfaction with “political correctness” on social networks, where it is the same as the mob who has experienced a brand new one. A society built by and with hatred is created: Everyone here blames their failures and lack of success as so-called immigrants, calling them “locusts,” “heterogeneous,” and “invaders.” New Zealand police officers never record “hate crimes” because they do not think they exist. When columnist Susan Devoy publicly stated in New Zealand that local people should choose their own Christmas celebrations, the shameless tabloids cast her and the Muslim community as people who tried to change the culture. In interviews with local news, almost every Muslim woman interviewed suffered endless harassment or even attacks on the Internet or in reality because of her identity or attire. New Zealand, like any other place, is a hotbed of discrimination and hatred, and it is the media’s major dereliction of duty that has not been discovered and valued.
Some people may say, “I am not a New Zealander. Why should I care about this?” Even so, shouldn’t a person with empathy and empathy feel the misfortune of others? Can you understand the tragic disasters of those who only want to continue their lives? When we repeatedly declare “radical Islamic terrorism” through the echo chambers of Fox News, Jihad Watch and other biased, extremely anti-Muslim outlets known for spewing hate, there will always be people with ulterior motives who “confuse” Islam with terrorism. 9/11, the July 5th riots, the attacks in Kunming and the attacks in Paris were so painful that many people who do not directly communicate with Muslims in their lives chose to be blinded by hatred and claimed to be “blood debts.” This is the motive of the shooter in this tragic event. This is the motive of the terrorist in the Oslo bombings and Utoya shootings in Norway, the motive of the terrorist in the Quebec City mosque shooting, and the motive of all the mobs who harassed others because of their different beliefs. These past events are the burdens that people will be forced to remember and carry, no matter how unsympathetic, and are the past we have to face.
Some people may say, “Where are you when the self-proclaimed refugee Lakmat Akilov is driving a truck to the people?” Can they remember the white supremacist, James Fields, who rushed to the public? Can you remember Robert Bowers rushing to the synagogue? Can you remember Mark Conditt, who sent bombs to a minority neighborhood? As far as data is concerned, the number of right-wing terrorism has far exceeded that of Islam in recent years. When the father of the innocent girl killed by Akilov heard about the atrocities in New Zealand, he was so terrified that he had to clarify that he firmly opposed white supremacy and opposed the innocent name of his daughter to be tied with these terrorists. “It’s unimaginable to see my daughter’s name on a rifle (Men då hade jag självklart inte ens kunna tänka tanken att någon skulle skriva min dotters namn på ett gevär),” he wrote.
When we condemn the Islamic fundamentalist riots and attacks, ask questions about our own conscience, and use the same voice to condemn all the terrorist acts against ordinary people. In the dark and even bright corners of the Internet, it’s so easy to see how many people cannot simply hide the distorted joy in their hearts. They cheered in a playful language to insult the victims and even called the terrorist a “sage.” Due to the lack of exposure and the prejudice caused by media brainwashing and fragmentation, perhaps in their eyes these ordinary people can die in the hands of others because of their religious beliefs.
The development of social media is naturally a bitter mix better advancements and failures. Perhaps at the moment when Mark Zuckerberg wrote the Facebook program in his Harvard dormitory, he couldn’t fathom of how many terrorists and extremists would enshrine it as their sanctuary. It is precisely because of these secretive chambers, an ordinary person will be brainwashed and attribute his anger to innocent civilians. Although social platforms like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have been claiming that they are improving algorithms, they have radicalized enough people. Perhaps Reddit has begun to ban extreme groups, but huge consumer demand will only make a new platform to appear soon. For them, these companies that have become the helm of the new era of thought and speech have not had enough strategies to confront the flooding Goliath of hate they have helped to create themselves.
Of course, at this moment when ethnocentric nationalism is on the rise, it may be difficult for us to count on those who are supposed to lead us to make the right move. It was they who launched tyrannical wars that displaced civilians; they also condoned the tech giants to let us lose our own opinion and freedom; they also succumbed to the temptation of money to refuse to control guns under the public protests. They fueled these incendiary remarks and even had foreseen these painful tragedies. If we do not choose to do anything, or even know that things are still imminent, we may be the accomplices to such evil.
When extremism begins to murder, we must never care about only selectively, focusing on the “other” religions. The white supremacist riots in Charlottesville have awakened enough people, but how many people want to rely on continued bloodshed to wake up the sleeping thoughts? When the irresponsible traditional media chooses to report Islamic terrorism more than seven times and ignores the extreme right wing riots, when the vulgar tabloid news repeatedly targets at the entire Muslim community, when the fragmented and separated social media divides our beliefs and independent thinking, When people with different identities are classified as “others” and “potential enemies”, the inner condemnation is not enough to prevent the next occurrence of the tragedy. We have to stand up and we have to put the embraces and accommodations of the minority into action.
Islamaphobia kills.
If you have a Muslim friend around you, please find them and tell them that no matter what the world is, you will always stand behind them and protect them from discriminating and ignorant attacks. This is the greatest relief after them having to worry about personal safety because of their personal identity.
References:
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Collins, Ben, and Brandy Zadrozny. “New Zealand Shooting Leaves Online Extremism Researchers ‘Hopeless and Furious’.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 15 Mar. 2019, www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/new-zealand-shooting-leaves-online-extremism-researchers-hopeless-furious-n983941.
Devoy, Susan. “Hatred Lives in New Zealand.” The Spinoff, The Spinoff, 16 Mar. 2019, thespinoff.co.nz/news/16–03–2019/hatred-lives-in-new-zealand/.
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The Associated Press. “The Latest: Death Toll in Mosque Attacks Rises to 50.” AP NEWS, Associated Press, 16 Mar. 2019, apnews.com/1555efa3ac2f4e24a7b781c4f2ae23a5?utm_medium=AP&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_source=Twitter.
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Woodruff, Betsy, and Spencer Ackerman. “Fewer Than 1 In 5 FBI Terror Cases Target White Supremacists, Stats Show.” The Daily Beast, The Daily Beast Company, 15 Mar. 2019, www.thedailybeast.com/new-zealand-shooting-less-than-1-in-5-fbi-terror-cases-target-white-supremacists-stats-show.
