I see this thrown around a lot as defense of the Islam is the threat and Stop claiming there are peaceful Muslims. Thats ironic, because, while I Gabriel is not really qualified as a terror analyst, she actually confirms that 75-85% of Muslims are, in fact peaceful and that radicals make up only 15-25% of the population. The point she makes, and it is a legitimate one, is that history shows us that when radicals arise within a population, the peaceful majority of that population has generally had no obvious impact on the outcome. Her historical examples include Nazi Germany, Maoist China, Imperial Japan and Stalins Russia. She does not say All Muslims are radical. She says we have to worry about the radical, who happen to be Muslim. So, the folks throwing this bit out in defense of All Muslims are evil and Islam is the problem are only showing their willingness to parse words to support their own worldview rather than an ability listen to this piece for the actual content. I am not a fan of Gabriel. But, she is, factually right here. And, we do need to be concerned about and address the threat of ISIL and other extremists ... who happen to be Muslim. Where I think this argument, and those like it, breaks down is in assuming that the peaceful majority needs to be irrelevant in this conflict. All one needs as an example is the 442nd Infantry Regiment in WWII, which was comprised almost entirely of Japanese-American soldiers, many of whose families were kept in internment camps back home. The young lady who starts this segment is asking why the language of this conflict always focuses on Islam and Muslims and not Extremism and Terrorism, which is the real problem. While her response is factually accurate, it is tone deaf as is the round of applause she receives. Rather than saying, You are correct. Islam is not the broader problem, extremism is. We need to engage peaceful and moderate Muslims and make them part of the solution., Gabriel effectively shouts her down and chides her for being selfish and unAmerican. If 75-85% of the worlds Muslims are peaceful, should we not be engaging them and winning their hearts and minds? In doing so, we would be building allies and resources to collapse terrorist cells before they rise. Instead, people like Gabriel only further isolate and disenfranchise moderate Muslims, both here in the US and abroad by not making a clear distinction between Terrorists (who happen to be Muslim) and the broader Muslim world. In the long run, that does more damage than good.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Sep 2014 19:36:43 +0000