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‘9/11 planner’s set for Guantanamo Bay trial April 4, 2012

Summary: Five al-Qaeda militants will be sent to court on charges of terrorism, hijacking, conspiracy, murder, and destruction of property. These five men are suspected of planning the 9/11 attacks. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed has claimed responsibility for the attacks “from A to Z.” If he or the others, who will be tried with him, are found guilty they could face the death penalty. The men will be tried in a military commission. They were accused by the Bush administration but have finally been charged in June 2011, ten years after the attacks. Khalid has stated that he will plead guilty and he “would welcome martyrdom.” He was captured in March 2003 and has been held at Guantanamo Bay since 2006. He is also accused of being a part of other terrorist activities. Khalid reported being abused while at Guantanamo Bay, and it was confirmed by the CIA that he was water boarded 183 times. The others facing trial are ones who helped find flight schools, travel, and setting up money, clothes, and credit cards.

Relevance: Whenever the US is threatened or attacked; the first thing Americans do is point fingers. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Americans accused any Japanese American of siding with Japan or being a spy. In turn, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Executive Order 9066 which forced all Japanese Americans to be placed in internment camps. Two thirds of the Japanese Americans moved were US citizens, and the total was 110,000 Japanese Americans on the West Coast moved to internment camps. Here they stayed for 3 years in shacks that were quickly built and just meet the requirements of international law. They were monitored in the camps and guarded at all times while living inside a barbed wire fence. After 9/11, Americans didn’t send off all the Muslims in New York City to camps, but they did point fingers, and news stations in both cases didn’t help. Newspapers would bash on Japanese during WWII stating personal views. Many showed support for the removal of Japanese. One columnist, Henry McLemore, stated, “I am for the immediate removal of every Japanese on the West Coast to a point deep in the interior. I don’t mean a nice part of the interior either. Herd ‘em up, pack ‘em off and give ‘em the inside room in the badlands… Personally, I hate the Japanese. And that goes for all of them.” It also did not help, when movie companies, such as Disney, were making short films that encouraged Americans to be anri-Japanese. A similar use of entertainment was used against Muslims or those of Arab decent after the 9/11 attacks. News organizations, such as Fox News, were “accused of playing to Americans’ fears of Muslims.” Others are accused of assuming all terrorist acts are committed by Muslim extremists. TV shows and movies have also used the assumption that all terrorists are Muslim. Shows often try to make light of the subject; however, it can be seen as offensive for Muslims. During the spread of Communism in Asia, Americans got scared that Communism was going to spread to the US, and once again they started pointing fingers at anyone who they suspected of being a communist. This caused the second Red Scare, or McCarthyism, from 1947-1957. The name McCarthyism came from Senator MacArthur who accused over 200 government employees of communism, but when asked to provide evidence his list dropped dramatically. The entertainment industry took a huge hit during this time. Under the House Un-American Activities Committee, Hollywood figures were accused of communist beliefs or ideas, stating it affected their filmmaking. The HUAC Act led studios to create a blacklist consisting of people not to hire. Many people were blamed with little or no proof at all. Muslims faced a similar fate after the 9/11 attacks. A leap in anti-Muslim hate crimes came as a direct result of the attacks. While the numbers are starting to drop, tensions are still there. Vandalism has also come out of the hate for Muslims with bricks being thrown in windows and signs stating “Wake up America, the enemy is here.” The results of many wars have started discrimination against races, cultures, or religions. Currently, Muslims are faced with the discrimination that has come from the War in Iraq.

Explanation: The fact that the planners of 9/11 are just now being sent to trial astounds me. Why was this not accomplished years ago? But I guess it’s better late than never. I am pleased to see the planners being sent to trial, as they should be pushed for their actions that killed thousands of people. I was surprised to see how many times Khalid was water boarded. This type of torture I feel is going too far. While I understand it is necessary to get information out of suspects, almost drowning them 183 times is out of control. What more did they really get out of him after the first water boarding? However, their actions did start the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and have since then changed America. After the attacks, the daily life of an American was spent suspecting others of being involved in terrorist activities. The Blame Game started by calling every Muslim a terrorist. Today airport security has become very tight, and they don’t play games. Since the attacks there has been an increase in pat downs, limits on what can be cared onto a plane, scans that can see through clothing, and a no-fly list. Pat downs and the new scans have upset many travelers, stating it violates their constitutional rights. However, I see these things as necessary. Many people have said they feel violated when they have to walk through the scans that can see through clothing, but what they have to remember is the people looking at the scans aren’t perverts. They are trying to do their job and make sure the planes are safe. They’re not trying to look at your privates. If people don’t want to go through the scans they can choose a pat down. I do see this as a bit invasive, but again it is the person’s job to keep the plane safe, and not to feel you up. Everything they are doing in airports is to keep it safe, and I find it necessary. If we didn’t have all the precautions we have now, and there was another attack, the first one to get pointed at would be the airlines who didn’t do enough. Economics and politics also took a toll after the 9/11 attacks. The attacks itself cost an estimated $40 billion loss in insurance. The attacks caused such a shock, that global markets dropped dramatically. New York City suffered a huge loss in tourism and jobs. And because of the attacks, it lead to the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and thus increased spending towards homeland security. Today the main concern of Americans is to bring the troops home, and is the topic at the top of many politicians’ lists. It is great to see that the ones who planned the attacks on 9/11 will finally be sent to trial. It has been 11 years since the attack, and I fell like it may bring some closure to the victims’ families. The actions the men took to plan the attacks may have helped us become more protected in airports, but it has caused much hardship elsewhere, and it is good to see justice being served.

Questions: 1)Where the other men tortured at Guantanamo Bay? 2)What was the opposition about the men being tried in a civil court? 3)Why has it taken so long for the men to be tried? 4)Will the ones who tortured Khalid face any punishments? 5)Are the other men pleading guilty?

Sources:

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"Japanese American Internment in World War 2 - The Free Information Society." The Free Information Society - Educating and Entertaining since 2003. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. .

"Japanese American internment - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. .

PBS. "Drastic Changes in Airport Security After 9/11 Stir Controversy | PBS NewsHour | Sept. 8, 2011 | PBS." PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. N.p., 8 Sept. 2011. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. .

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