Commemorating 9/11 victims is “offensive to Muslims” - The Daily Beast

MakeEmLaugh

Students at the University of Minnesota have shut down an attempt to hold a minute's silence for of the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, on the basis that to do so would lead to “Islamophobia”, according to an article on website The Daily Beast.

In the article, titled College Students Say Remembering 9/11 is Offensive to Muslims, Theo Menon, a Minnesota Student Association, is said to have introduced a proposal to memorialise 9/11 on 6th October, asking the college to institute a “comment of recognition” during all future 11th Septembers.

Director of Diversity and Inclusion at the university, David Algadi, was severely critical of the proposal. He claimed that there was a “racial politic” present in efforts to commemorate the event, and that 9/11 shouldn't be commemorated unless they “start having moments of silence for all the times white folks have done something terrible”.

9/11 is often used as reasoning for Islamophobia that takes both physical and verbal forms. The passing of this resolution might make a space that is unsafe for students on campus even more unsafe. Islamophobia and racism … are alive and well. I just don’t think that we can act like something like a moment of silence for 9/11 would exist in a vacuum when worldwide, Muslim and Middle Eastern folks undergo intense acts of terrorism around the 11th of September each year, and have since 2001.

In addition there is a particular racial politic present wherein when folks of color do something it becomes a stereotype, when white folks do something it becomes forgotten. Dylann Roof? James Eagan Holmes? Joseph Stack? Timothy McVeigh? When will we start having moments of silence for all of the times white folks have done something terrible?

A majority of student government representatives sided with him, voting down the resolution in a 36-23 vote this month.

To be clear, the original proposal was thirty-one words long, and did not mention Islam, Muslims or al-Qaeda once. It simply said

That the Minnesota Student Association formally recommends to the University of Minnesota Administration that there be a moment of silence on the morning of September 11th, 2016 and all years following.

What do people think? Is it necessary to show balance in commemorating the 9/11 attacks, by commemorating other attacks on American soil by terrorists who weren't Muslim? Or is this hypersensitivity taken a step too far?

looking_around

Why only have a minute silence for 9/11?
Why not for all the school shootings?
Why not for the crimes americans have committed on others?

I don't think the answer is to have a silence for all, we'd be doing it daily. The few days, even a year after something ... but afterwhile it's time to let it go, and move on.

but I don't agree the reason not to have a moment silence should be down to "fear mongering"... why don't these people set their own or add in a moment silence for people in other countries ...that would add a balance wouldnt it?

suicide_circus

We really need to move away from worrying about offending people.

TheLastMohican

Minnesota "harbours" the most Somalians in the US. Try getting a taxi there. Some of these have not left the, er, old way of life behind them. Just ask the driver for his views and once he realises that you're a foreigner ...... he'll open up.
True story.

Cienciano

Shouldn't do the minutes silence at all

Hitchens

popcorn thread? absolutely!

Jim Bob Scratcher

Muslims being offended by things offends me.

Nodin

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

Students (..........)taken a step too far?

Do you have a link to the original article? There's nothing whatsoever in the segment you posted that suggests that the minutes silence was objected to or ultimately rejected because it was "offensive to muslims" yet you have that term in quotes in the thread title.

Royal Legend

popcorn out of the microwave, kicks back on the recliner and ....................

Richard Hillman

Students, probably aged 19-22. They would have been 5-8 during 9/11 and sheltered from the horror of that day.

That day means alot more to us older folk than the young-uns but to do it to not to offend then it is disrespectful

lawlolawl

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

Director of Diversity and Inclusion at the university,

This is an actual job title?

Pack it up guys, we're done. We've failed as a culture.

Herb Powell

lawlolawl wrote: »

This is an actual job title?

Pack it up guys, we're done. We've failed as a culture.

We are not American. So hold tough.

MakeEmLaugh

Nodin wrote: »

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

Students (..........)taken a step too far?

Do you have a link to the original article? There's nothing whatsoever in the segment you posted that suggests that the minutes silence was objected to or ultimately rejected because it was "offensive to muslims" yet you have that term in quotes in the thread title.

It was reported by The Daily Beast 17 hours ago. Their headline was

"College Students Say Rememebering 9/11 is Offensive to Muslims"

If you don't think that headline matches the story, take it up with them.

One eyed Jack

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

Students at the University of Minnesota have shut down an attempt to hold a minute's silence for of the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, on the basis that to do so would lead to “Islamophobia”.

On 6th October, Theo Menon, a Minnesota Student Association, introduced a proposal to memorialise 9/11, asking the college to institute a “comment of recognition” during all future 11th Septembers.

Director of Diversity and Inclusion at the university, David Algadi, was severely critical of the proposal. He claimed that there was a “racial politic” present in efforts to commemorate the event, and that 9/11 shouldn't be commemorated unless they “start having moments of silence for all the times white folks have done something terrible”.



A majority of student government representatives sided with him, voting down the resolution in a 36-23 vote this month.

To be clear, the original proposal was thirty-one words long, and did not mention Islam, Muslims or al-Qaeda once. It simply said



What do people think? Is it necessary to show balance in commemorating the 9/11 attacks, by commemorating other attacks on American soil by terrorists who weren't Muslim? Or is this hypersensitivity taken a step too far?

There's no link to any article in your OP, so I don't know if they have or haven't commemorated 9/11 in previous years, or if it's only being proposed now in the context of the current global climate?

If it was just a proposal this year, it looks like shìt-stirring IMO. Something doesn't sound kosher there anyway.

c_man

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

"...that 9/11 shouldn't be commemorated unless they “start having moments of silence for all the times white folks have done something terrible”.

A Diversity and Inclusion knob-end trying to turn something into a rant against "white" people? Well I never.

Arbiter of Good Taste

One eyed Jack wrote: »

There's no link to any article in your OP, so I don't know if they have or haven't commemorated 9/11 in previous years, or if it's only being proposed now in the context of the current global climate?

If it was just a proposal this year, it looks like shìt-stirring IMO. Something doesn't sound kosher there anyway.

Just as well it's not kosher, that would offend the Muslims as well :P

lertsnim

I am fed up of people being offended about nothing. Everyday there is a new thing that people are offended about.

DownOneTourist

lertsnim wrote: »

I am fed up of people being offended about nothing. Everyday there is a new thing that people are offended about.

It really doesn't make a difference to me if people are offended by anything I say or do, well at least until they 'correct' me or try to stop/silence me.

Nodin

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

It was reported by The Daily Beast 17 hours ago. Their headline was

"College Students Say Rememebering 9/11 is Offensive to Muslims"

If you don't think that headline matches the story, take it up with them.

Nobody at the students union mentioned anything about "offensive to muslims" according to the original article
http://www.mnrepublic.com/msa-rejects-moment-of-recognition-resolution-for-911/
nor did the article in the washington post referred to by the "daily beast".

MakeEmLaugh

Nodin wrote: »

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

It was reported by The Daily Beast 17 hours ago. Their headline was

"College Students Say Rememebering 9/11 is Offensive to Muslims"

If you don't think that headline matches the story, take it up with them.

Nobody at the students union mentioned anything about "offensive to muslims" according to the original article
http://www.mnrepublic.com/msa-rejects-moment-of-recognition-resolution-for-911/
nor did the article in the washington post referred to by the "daily beast".

Well, then I guess you should fire off an email to The Daily Beast and chastise them for reporting the story with that headline.

Nodin

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

Well, then I guess you should fire off an email to The Daily Beast and chastise them for reporting the story with that headline.

Indeed I might. Of course I have to ask why you're using the headline, considering that it is inaccurate and misleading, and has been taken up by a number of posters on this thread as being factual.

Piriz

TheLastMohican wrote: »

Minnesota "harbours" the most Somalians in the US. Try getting a taxi there. Some of these have not left the, er, old way of life behind them. Just ask the driver for his views and once he realises that you're a foreigner ...... he'll open up.
True story.

What are the views of a Somali taxi driver in Minnesota?

rubadub

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

Director of Diversity and Inclusion at the university, David Algadi, was severely critical of the proposal. He claimed that there was a “racial politic” present in efforts to commemorate the event, and that 9/11 shouldn't be commemorated unless they “start having moments of silence for all the times white folks have done something terrible”.

I find it amusing that this presumably overly PC cunt fuck uses the term "white folks". Sure if you look at polls loads of people in the US think it was "white folks" who are responsible for 9/11...

RandomName2

lawlolawl wrote: »

This is an actual job title?

Pack it up guys, we're done. We've failed as a culture.

American education? There's an oxymoron if ever I've heard one.

There are serious problems with students there. They seem to be complaining about all the wrong things. They don't care that their government is becoming more authoritarian, but do care about people being allowed wear what they want at Halloween.

MakeEmLaugh

Nodin wrote: »

Indeed I might. Of course I have to ask why you're using the headline, considering that it is inaccurate and misleading, and has been taken up by a number of posters on this thread as being factual.

I'm getting pretty tired of repeating myself, but I'll tell you again: I used the title because it's almost identical to that of the news story I read.

I included every pertinent detail of the article, short of simply copying and pasting it here (and that would have been shut down pretty quickly - Boards.ie is not a news dump).

You may think the the article's headline and content were misleading, but that's your opinion.

As for posters "taking up the title as being factual", they have the option of reading the OP. They may agree that the reason the University of Minnesota voted against commemorating 9/11 is that it would be "offensive to Muslims". They may not.

I'm not responsible for any comments made here, whether they're insightful or idiotic.

Arbiter of Good Taste

Piriz wrote: »

What are the views of a Somali taxi driver in Minnesota?

Actually, about 4 or 5 years ago I remember reading about it somewhere. Taxi drivers at the airport were refusing to carry people from the airport if they had duty free alcohol on them, and were refusing to carry people with dogs (in carriers so it wasn't about soiling the taxi).

bodice ripper

Given they didn't bother with commemoration up until now, and given current climate, this seems like bull**** posturing to me. I would have voted it down too.

nullzero

Did they propose a minutes silence followed by an art competition to find the best crudely drawn versions of the prophet Muhammad and Allah?

One minute's silence, if we had one minute's silence annually to remember each and every mass murder in recent times, we'd never speak!
It is very easy to overdo commemorations to the point that they become meaningless.

Nodin

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

I'm getting pretty tired of repeating myself, but I'll tell you again: I used the title because it's almost identical to that of the news story I read.

I included every pertinent detail of the article, short of simply copying and pasting it here (and that would have been shut down pretty quickly - Boards.ie is not a news dump).

...which makes it all the stranger you used the original headline.

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

You may think the the article's headline and content were misleading, but that's your opinion.

No, its a rather obvious fact. There was and is no suggestion that the silence was objected to or rejected because it was deemed "offensive to muslims".

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

As for posters "taking up the title as being factual", they have the option of reading the OP. They may agree that the reason the University of Minnesota voted against commemorating 9/11 is that it would be "offensive to Muslims". They may not..

But the objection and rejection of the silence was not because it was "offensive to muslims" and anyone who carries that impression does so because of your misleading reused headline.

Letree

OP you think that is bad. I'll see your 'offensive 9/11 commemoration' and raise you 'cultural appropriation yoga'.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/university-yoga-class-suspended-over-cultural-appropriation-dispute-a6744426.html

c_man

Letree wrote: »

OP you think that is bad. I'll see your 'offensive 9/11 commemoration' and raise you 'cultural appropriation yoga'.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/university-yoga-class-suspended-over-cultural-appropriation-dispute-a6744426.html

*waves the white flag* Lads it's over, let's just leave it.

Actually I didn't mean just "lads", sorry. And I'm sorry for culturally appropriating the native language of the English people... but then again, they're white (men)... but so am I, I suppose? But they persecuted Irish people, but how does that compute in regards to white people having all the privilege throughout time... Then again examining these things logically is appropriating some of the philosophy of the ancient Greeks... *head explodes*

Azalea

Letree wrote: »

OP you think that is bad. I'll see your 'offensive 9/11 commemoration' and raise you 'cultural appropriation yoga'.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/university-yoga-class-suspended-over-cultural-appropriation-dispute-a6744426.html

Crikey. Wtf is causing this shyte? Internet/barmy social media I guess.

TheLastMohican

Here is The Beast and the local daily:

November 22, 2015
9/11 remembrance bill defeated by University of Minnesota student government
By Rick Moran
The most unsurprising news of the day? Earlier this month, the student assembly at the University of Minnesota soundly defeated a measure that called for a moment of silence on campus to remember the victims of 9/11.

The second most unsurprising news of the day is the reason it was defeated.



Daily Beast:

The everything-is-offensive brand of campus activism has struck a new low: students at the University of Minnesota killed a proposed moment of silence for 9/11 victims due to concerns—insulting, childish concerns—that Muslim students would be offended.

Has it truly come to this? Is feelings-protection now such an overriding goal that completely unreasonable fears win out, even if they have no basis in reality? Can we not even have a single moment to recognize legitimate victims of terrorism without worrying that someone will feel marginalized on campus?

Theo Menon, a Minnesota Student Association representative and member of the College Republicans, realized that the university wasn’t doing anything to memorialize 9/11; on October 6th, he introduced an MSA proposal to do just that. The very short resolution asked the university to institute a “moment of recognition” during the mornings of all future September 11ths.

The resolution proved weirdly controversial. According to The Minnesota Republic:

At-large MSA representative and Director of Diversity and Inclusion David Algadi voiced severe criticism of the resolution. He also made sure to emphasize 9/11’s status as a national tragedy in his response.

“The passing of this resolution might make a space that is unsafe for students on campus even more unsafe,” said Algadi, “Islamophobia and racism fueled through that are alive and well.”

To be clear, the resolution did not refer to Islam. It did not impugn Muslim students, or other Muslims. It did not require anyone to contemplate the fact that the terrorists responsible for 9/11 were Muslims. It said nothing about whether Islam itself is to blame for global terrorism. It merely stated that 9/11 has had a lasting effect on many students, and ought to be reflected upon for a single moment, once a year.

And yet, in an email obtained by The Washington Post, Algadi expressed concernsthat efforts to recognize 9/11 are sometimes thinly-veiled expressions of Islamophobia.

The remembrance is only a "thinly veiled expression of Islamophobia" if you choose to see it that way. In any other venue Algadi would be hospitalized for observation, to make sure he wasn't a threat to himself or others. Instead, he holds the exalted position of diversity czar.

How about cancelling Christmas vacation so as not to offend Jews or Muslims? It doesn't matter if they call it a "semester break." Obviously it's a thinly veiled expression celebrating the Christian Christmas, right? And don't get me started on Kwanzaa.

Where will it end? I am beyond caring. Some students who will be going out after they graduate to make their way in the world are going to receive a psychic shock so profound that they may never recover. The colleges they are attending are failing them in a way far beyond simply failing to educate. Colleges are supposed to train young minds to think independently and separate what's important from what isn't. Obsessing over mythical offenses that will make someone feel bad - largely because they are taught to feel bad - is the exact opposite of what a "liberal" education used to be.

What's going to happen to these students when they take a job where a manager will yell at them for not doing their job? Will they demand a "safe space" where the manager will be unable to talk to them? What if they work with a difficult employee? The real world is a horrid place compared to college, and from the looks of things, it doesn't appear that many students are prepared for it.

The most unsurprising news of the day? Earlier this month, the student assembly at the University of Minnesota soundly defeated a measure that called for a moment of silence on campus to remember the victims of 9/11.

The second most unsurprising news of the day is the reason it was defeated.


The resolution proved weirdly controversial. According to The Minnesota Republic:

At-large MSA representative and Director of Diversity and Inclusion David Algadi voiced severe criticism of the resolution. He also made sure to emphasize 9/11’s status as a national tragedy in his response.

“The passing of this resolution might make a space that is unsafe for students on campus even more unsafe,” said Algadi, “Islamophobia and racism fueled through that are alive and well.”

To be clear, the resolution did not refer to Islam. It did not impugn Muslim students, or other Muslims. It did not require anyone to contemplate the fact that the terrorists responsible for 9/11 were Muslims. It said nothing about whether Islam itself is to blame for global terrorism. It merely stated that 9/11 has had a lasting effect on many students, and ought to be reflected upon for a single moment, once a year.

And yet, in an email obtained by The Washington Post, Algadi expressed concernsthat efforts to recognize 9/11 are sometimes thinly-veiled expressions of Islamophobia.

The remembrance is only a "thinly veiled expression of Islamophobia" if you choose to see it that way. In any other venue Algadi would be hospitalized for observation, to make sure he wasn't a threat to himself or others. Instead, he holds the exalted position of diversity czar.

How about cancelling Christmas vacation so as not to offend Jews or Muslims? It doesn't matter if they call it a "semester break." Obviously it's a thinly veiled expression celebrating the Christian Christmas, right? And don't get me started on Kwanzaa.

Where will it end? I am beyond caring. Some students who will be going out after they graduate to make their way in the world are going to receive a psychic shock so profound that they may never recover. The colleges they are attending are failing them in a way far beyond simply failing to educate. Colleges are supposed to train young minds to think independently and separate what's important from what isn't. Obsessing over mythical offenses that will make someone feel bad - largely because they are taught to feel bad - is the exact opposite of what a "liberal" education used to be.

What's going to happen to these students when they take a job where a manager will yell at them for not doing their job? Will they demand a "safe space" where the manager will be unable to talk to them? What if they work with a difficult employee? The real world is a horrid place compared to college, and from the looks of things, it doesn't appear that many students are prepared for it.

The Randy Riverbeast

Not seeing anywhere that mentions Muslims being offended.

Letree wrote: »

OP you think that is bad. I'll see your 'offensive 9/11 commemoration' and raise you 'cultural appropriation yoga'.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/university-yoga-class-suspended-over-cultural-appropriation-dispute-a6744426.html

Yoga is already banned in Donegal :pac:

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/religion-and-beliefs/yoga-putting-souls-in-jeopardy-donegal-priest-warns-1.1860881

Nodin

The Randy Riverbeast wrote: »

Yoga is already banned in Donegal :pac:

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/religion-and-beliefs/yoga-putting-souls-in-jeopardy-donegal-priest-warns-1.1860881

They're a pilates county and need none of this foreign yoga lark.

Letree

Azalea wrote: »

Crikey. Wtf is causing this shyte? Internet/barmy social media I guess.

When we try to insulate people from any possible offence by logical extension we end up with nonsense like mentioned above.

BlaasForRafa

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

Director of Diversity and Inclusion at the university

F*****g SJW's again, the american university system is infested with them.