By James Sye
The new war on terrorism
Perhaps I should say, “the new war on civil liberties.” Every time I turn on the news, I hear about this ongoing war on terrorism, and every so often, a new episode with a new warning, which is put in place to keep us on our toes. It got me to thinking about the war that went on in my section of town this summer. While most people were worrying about hitting the beach, catching a good tan, or going on their next vacation, I was looking over my shoulder and I didn’t know who to look out for. I found myself watching any and every car that went by too slow for comfort, looking out for anyone who came on the block ready to let all hell break loose, or the police, who kept trying to end my future. I spent the summer watching my friends killing themselves slowly and taking chances with their lives, whether it was selling drugs, committing blatant felonies, or trying to escape from pending indictments. The fact is, most of them had given up on a bright future for themselves a long time ago. So when I hear about this new war on terror, it makes me question what the media is talking about because my people go to war almost every day, and it’s been a “do or die” mentality for a long time now.
Over the past decades, numerous wars have taken place in the majority of African American communities (Urban America). Those wars range from the fight against police brutality, to the war on drugs, the war on crime, the war on poverty, etc. When the “Patriot Act” passed, I was somewhat baffled as to how it could pass, since in essence it goes against the Constitution. You remember, that piece of paper that is supposed to protect our rights. You know, the ones African Americans had to fight for until the mid 1960’s. I’ve heard arguments on CNN, CSPAN, and MSNBC that the Patriot Act is necessary to keep the country safe. The people arguing for the act were mostly of Caucasian descent, which isn’t surprising because it isn’t them who are in danger of losing their civil liberties since they aren’t the ones who fit the profile in this “new war on terror”. People who resemble Arab descent in any way, shape, or form are, and that’s why it’s a problem. It might not affect you now, but eventually it will.
The idea of President Bush putting this act into play seems somewhat absurd after what just happened to John Walker Lindh, the American Taliban, who was charged as an enemy of the United States, but somehow only got 20 years in prison with a possibility of parole in 17 years with good behavior. What happened to stopping the “axis of evil”? I guess that doesn’t apply when it’s a white kid from the California suburbs. Now our government is trying to oust Saddam Hussein from his regime in Iraq. Maybe it does need to happen, but what if Saddam Hussein tried to do what the United States government is doing to his country? We would expect our government to retaliate, but the United States government expects Iraq simply to comply with its demands. This country proclaims to be the greatest in the world, and in essence it can be, but the fact still remains that it needs to start living up to that claim and stop living on the idea of its potential of being the greatest in the world.
This country has found itself on the brink of destruction, and most of America is running around scared that it might be their last day on earth because of terrorism. I’m not one of those individuals, because I’ve been through wars and I’ve been around plenty of replica Ground Zero’s, so I don’t fear for my life because of this new form of terrorism. I’ve been subjected to a form of domestic terrorism similar to a police state throughout my adult life, so I can’t say that I necessarily fear this new foreign terrorism. However, I do fear the domestic terror that has gripped the African American community for years. Police departments that feel they have the right to beat on African Americans and suffer no consequences. Yes, that can be argued, and trust me, it will. The idea that the majority (white America) in this country still argues that police brutality is a fantasy is ridiculous. The only time people believe it happens is when it’s videotaped, and that only occurs 3 or 4 times every 10 years. The rest of the time, people think we make it up; for what reason, I don’t know.
In this article, I’ve given plenty of examples as to why this new war on terror just doesn’t affect me in the same way as it does others. Instead of throwing a blanket statement in response to this, just realize that all the aforementioned is a major factor as to why I have a different viewpoint (some might say unpatriotic) of this war on terror America has found itself in. For me, I don’t fear Saddam Hussein, Osama Bin Laden or any other terrorist. I fear Officer Friendly, who thinks he has the right to put his hands on me whenever he feels like it.
The idea that a high percentage of the majority in America has never been made to deal with life or death situations is quite apparent in this day and age. There are a lot of people waving a flag at any and every chance they get, but those same people are scared for their lives (and have every right to be). Now the government must protect that right to life, but at the same time, the government should have been cleaning up its own backyard. Bottom line, in 2002, the majority in America is living with that same fear that most African Americans who live in urban areas have felt throughout their lives. The uncertainty of making it to the next day, the idea of what’s going to happen next, the feeling of hopelessness, and the overall feeling that you don’t control your own destiny. May I be the first to say greetings and salutations, welcome to the real world!
