How Obama Thinks About Islam and Terrorism

[applegrove]

How Obama Thinks About Islam and Terrorism

By William Saleta at Slate

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/frame_game/2015/02/how_obama_thinks_about_islam_and_terrorism_why_he_chooses_his_words_so_carefully.single.html

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2. Our enemies want us to associate them with Islam. Obama noted that al-Qaida and ISIS:

… try to portray themselves as religious leaders, holy warriors in defense of Islam. That’s why [ISIS] presumes to declare itself the “Islamic State.” And they propagate the notion that America, and the West, generally, is at war with Islam. That’s how they recruit.
This is the main thing Americans need to understand. The word Islam is central to our enemies’ strategy. The more you apply it to them, the more you help them. In his remarks, Obama called anti-Muslim bigotry “counterproductive,” noting that it would “aid terrorists.”

3. We must choose our language to thwart the enemy’s strategy. Obama used the word narrative seven times in the two speeches. In his view, we’re not just fighting men with guns. We’re fighting a story. “When people spew hatred towards others, because of their faith or because they’re immigrants, it feeds into terrorist narratives,” he said. “If extremists are peddling the notion that Western countries are hostile to Muslims, then we need to show that we welcome people of all faiths.” In general, he argued, we “need to reject the terrorist narrative that the West and Islam are in conflict.” That’s why Obama doesn’t use the word Muslim to describe the attacks in Paris or Copenhagen. He’s depriving the enemy of rhetorical fuel.


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