Field Reflection Paper on Fahrenheit 9/11

When it comes to the September 11th terrorist attacks, the film Fahrenheit 9/11 put many of these political components into perspective. What is important to note here is that there are a large number of political components acting upon one another simultaneously, and this makes these events much greater than the sum of their parts. Furthermore, the nature of this event was one that included large amounts of terror but which quickly turned to determination on the part of the United States.

Indeed, this terrorist attack, as portrayed in Fahrenheit 9/11, included a number of critical elements of Islamophobia. One of the sources here states that following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, indirect or direct discrimination against Muslims actually rose by 82.6 percent (Sheridan, 2006). This is an important element because it denotes the highly political and racial motivations and elements of the attack. Furthermore, this also helps to demonstrate that there were many profound political ramifications.

Aside from the aforementioned examples of racism that so prominently emerged following these attacks, there were also numerous sanctions that were created against many countries in the Middle East, as we as Muslims in general. These sorts of sanctions were indicative of specific trends and issues that were related to them directly and helped to put into perspective the importance of being able to respond to these attacks in a way that was swift and effective.

As a result, there were clearly defined political sides and angles that were clearly able to be observed here. The United States, itself, was naturally one of the most prominent of sides here and made it clear that this attack was one that would have something of a ripple effect for many years to come. There also was the Taliban, Al Qaeda, as well as the Middle East as a whole. Each of these sides of the conflict acted as fulcrums, of sorts, and allowed the layman to be able to easily observe just how and why this conflict was so destructive in the long-term and short-term.

There are numerous observations that can clearly be made surrounding these attacks and their profound implications. For one thing, another of the sources here states that there were numerous psychological components that were present here, including that of PTSD, and that these psychological elements created numerous clashing issues within the purview of these attacks (Bonanno, Galea, Bucciarelli, & Vlahov, 2006). What made these psychological elements salient and important, in particular, was the unique way that they allowed for power relations to come about.

There were numerous sanctions and responsive actions that were taken on virtually all sides here, and when looking at them from a somewhat basic perspective, it becomes clear that there was a clear psychological trend within each of them. For instance, there were numerous components of fear, leading to prevention, that were able to be prominently observed in the ways that the United States pragmatically responded to these terrorist attacks. At the same time, the response on the part of the Middle East was largely one of trepidation although this differed depending on the specific country.

Of course, one of the key leaders of these attacks was Osama Bin Laden, and, on the side of the United States, President George W. Bush. Both of these figures were just that, figureheads, and not necessarily entirely responsible for these attacks. However, what is important here is that they functioned as figureheads, of a sort, and this allowed for numerous elements of examples to be led by them, creating situations wherein people were able to rally behind them, causing some complications.

Primarily, these leaders were controversial in their own right, and there are many that believe that these attacks would not have happened in the first place were it not for the thoughts and actions of these leaders. Whether or not this is true, it is made clear here that there are a large number of important political elements that are able to be observed here. For instance, as another of these sources points out, there are clear elements of immigration that became important following the September 11th terrorist attacks, especially as they relate to immigration law (Miller, 2005).

Power relations, at the time, were such that it was made clear that there were key major players here that contributed directly, as well as other players that contributed more indirectly to these components. This is a key element of the ways that individuals and countries were able to discuss and communicate this issue with one another following these attacks. This attack, it can be said, was one that was highly political, and as such, made these elements of power relations that much more apparent.

These elements of power relations were a direct contributor to many of these laws that were passed that inhibited Islam as a whole in the United States, and, again, there are a large number of ripple effects from this that are able to be prominently observed. This is because these elements are indicative of a sort of sense of racism and fear that permeated the country following these attacks, even if there are many that are not able to admit it. Fahrenheit 9/11 alluded to many of these elements.

Obviously, this meant that there were numerous political ramifications that came from these attacks. Some of these political ramifications focused on the ways that immigration was tackled and perceived, while others focused on the war on terrorism as a whole and the ways that these sorts of attacks could be prevented in the future. This led to numerous initiatives and even attacks that were instigated by the United States with the stated goal to ensure that these attacks were not able to continue.

As such, there was something of a war in the Middle East that was initiated as a result of these attacks, and this led to a massive number of both direct and indirect attacks, particularly in regards to relations with these countries in the Middle East. What is also important to note here is that this led to numerous effects in regards to the ways that it impacted the concept of oil and the pricing therein. In fact, there were many that believed that these attacks on the Middle East were fundamentally motivated by oil in the first place.

This is a unique perspective, to be sure, but it is one that is not without merit. This is because these attacks in the Middle East seemed to have, on at least some level, economic motivation in some way. This is what led to many believing that the September 11th attacks were something of an excuse to be able to escalate the role that the United States played in the Middle East as a whole. Unsurprisingly, this component of the issue is one that is alluded to many times throughout Fahrenheit 9/11.

Furthermore, this terrorist attack was one that increased global awareness and even fear of terrorism as a whole, and in that regard, these attacks can be thought to be profoundly successful. At the same time, though, these attacks were the beginning of a much wider and more impactful series of events that would cascade for many years until reaching the point that the United States is today. This terrorist attack, to be sure, was one that led to many unexpected effects.

Ultimately, then, this attack was one that was inherently political and fear-based and enabled the layman to be able to observe the ways that these sorts of attacks can lead to many different effects. The United States is still feeling the effects of 9/11, as are many of these other countries that were impacted by it, and this enables one to understand just how prevalent and salient these attacks were.

References

Bonanno, G. A., Galea, S., Bucciarelli, A., & Vlahov, D. (2006). Psychological resilience after disaster: New York City in the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attack. Psychological Science, 17(3), 181-186.

Miller, T. A. (2005). Blurring the boundaries between immigration and crime control after September 11th. BC Third World LJ, 25, 81.

Sheridan, L. P. (2006). Islamophobia pre–and post–September 11th, 2001. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 21(3), 317-336.