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Who is a Terrorist?

The Perception of Sikhs in Post-9/11 New York City

- Ravieshwar G. Singh Ram, Dr. George A. Hero, Director of Social Science Research, Dr. Ernest Pysher

Midwood High School at Brooklyn College

 

 

 

With the help of Dr. George A. Hero, director of Social Science Research at Midwood, Ravieshwar (Ravi) managed to complete “Who is a Terrorist? The Perception of Sikhs in Post-9/11 New York City” as his senior thesis. The paper analyzes the extent to which Sikhs were associated with terrorism 5 years after the 9/11 attacks. Ravi was previously an intern at Senator Hillary Clinton’s office and hopes to explore a career in law/politics in the future.


Introduction

            Terrorist stereotypes in post-9/11 New York City is a problem that deserves attention due to the effect it has had on the American political and social landscape. A stereotype is defined as a generalization about the characteristics of a specific group based on simplified concepts that purportedly represent traits of the entire group (Bodenhausen and Wyer, 1985, as cited in Burns and Gimpel, 2000). Stereotypes do not necessarily mean a person is prejudiced; it is the composition of the stereotype that usually dictates whether or not a problem exists (Burns and Gimpel, 2000). However, Harding, Proshansky, Kutner, and Chein (1969), Secord and Backman (1974), as cited in Devine (1989) found that prejudice is merely a “cognitive component” of stereotypes. Many theorists (Allport, 1954; Billig,1985; Ehrlich, 1973; Hamilton, 1981; Tajfel, 1981, as cited in Devine 1989) subscribe to the view that prejudice is inextricably linked to stereotypes; that is, knowledge of the stereotype automatically means prejudice of the group. Certain groups, like Muslims, Persians, Arabs, and Sikhs face prejudice because many believe they are associated with terrorism or acts of violence in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan (Connelly, 2003).


Ravieshwar Ram

            This study will examine the terrorist stereotype of Sikh men, who have faced a great deal of discrimination in America since the September 11th attacks (Stammer, 2001). Despite being a religion entirely independent of Islam, many mistakenly believe Sikhs are Muslims who play a role in the radical-Islamic terrorist movement and are involved in its attacks. This study will try to create an empirical basis for the notion that Sikhs are stereotyped as terrorists rather than rely on anecdotal evidence, something a lot of past research has relied on. (Han, 2006)

 

            The common “Osama-bin-Laden” (mastermind of the 9/11 attacks) terrorist stereotype (defined as a dark-skinned male with a headscarf) has been cited as a reason for the misconception of Sikhs (Stammer, 2001). This misconception is most ironic since not one of the hijackers in the 9/11 attacks wore a headscarf or had an uncut beard (9/11 Commission Report, 2004). This study will therefore attempt to empirically determine through surveys which people are popularly suspected as terrorists and what influence the “Bin Laden” stereotype has on their suspicion. The paper will also investigate if the lack of knowledge of the Sikh culture plays any role in determining whether or not a Sikh male is racially profiled.

 

Background Literature

 

            Following the 9/11 attacks, numerous reports surfaced describing harassment, violence and discrimination towards groups like Muslims, Persians, Arabs, and Sikhs. According to FBI hate crime statistics (Kaplan 2006), anti-Muslim hate crime skyrocketed from 33 crimes in 2000 to 546 crimes in 2001. Ironically, even the FBI included Sikhs in this statistic (Kaplan, 2006). One Sikh, Balbir Singh Sodhi, was murdered soon after the attacks at an Arizona gas station by someone who claimed to be a patriot (Thomsen, 2001). In New York City, between the time period of 9/11/01 and 10/10/01, the New York Police Department (Sengupta, 2001) reported 80 bias incidents out of 120 that were directed at Arabs or South Asians.

 

            One explanation of the surge in violence and prejudice can be attributed to the “frustration-aggression hypothesis.” This theory states that frustration (a state originating from the incapacity to fulfill some need) produces some aggression or negative emotions. However, a physical reaction toward the immediate source is improbable or impossible; thus the frustration is released on some easily accessible, less threatening object. If the “frustration-aggression” hypothesis is applied to September 11th, one can see why violence may have risen against Sikhs after the attacks. Many may have been frustrated and angry over the 9/11 attacks. Since it had been a suicide attack, it was impossible to release aggression on the hijackers. Thus many probably encountered some Sikhs, an easily identifiable minority group that appeared similar to Osama-bin-Laden, and released their physical anger and their frustration on them (Dollard et al., 1939, as cited in Petrenko et al., 2002).

 

            In order for this theory to be true, once this initial “frustration” period ends, hate crime against Middle Easterners, Arabs, Muslims, and Sikhs should have decreased significantly. According to Kaplan, (2006), hate crimes did indeed decrease dramatically the next year; FBI statistics show that from 451 reported incidents in 2001, only 155 incidents were reported in 2002, then to 149 incidents in 2003.

 

            Yet 2005 public opinion survey (CAIR, 2006) found evidence that suggests that one in four Americans believe Islam is a religion of hatred and that sixty percent were “not very knowledgeable” about the Islamic religion. The Sikh Coalition, founded in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks to address the issue of Sikh racial profiling and discrimination, still has 454 reports of bias incidents up to November 2006 (Sikh Coalition's Justice Watch Database, 2006).  Therefore the racial stereotyping and bias incidents of Sikhs cannot be explained by just the “frustration-aggression hypothesis” since racial profiling and bias incidents continue to occur more than half a decade after the attacks. Clearly there must be some underlying reason why Sikhs are still being racially profiled and discriminated against.

 

            A key study by Fishman and others (1987) found evidence that suggests that the ethnicity of a portrait of a person, when given to a participant to attribute the portrait to a listed crime, is the most important variable in determining the attribution of the crime to the person. It confirmed the belief of the attribution theory (Allport and Postman, 1947, Loftus and Palmer, 1974), which stated that the attribution of meaning to any situation or face depends on the stereotype established in the mind.

 

Hypothesis

 

            This paper hypothesizes that people still suspect that an image of a male Sikh – that is, a turban wearing, bearded South Asian male – is associated with terrorism. If the established stereotype in the mind of an American student equates a turban and an uncut beard with terrorism, when asked to attribute “terrorist attack” to a portrait, the student will choose the Sikh’s picture. Chiricos and others (2001) found evidence that suggests that females perceived risk in their neighborhoods significantly higher than males did.  It is hypothesized (hypothesis 1) that among high school students grade 9 through 12, females will be more likely to select the Sikh as a suspect of terrorism since they perceive danger more significantly than males do. Males among the same grade population will choose the Sikh less as a suspect of terrorism, since they will be less likely to perceive danger from just the terrorist stereotype (sub-hypothesis 1).

 

Dovidio and Gaertner (1999) noted that the traditional method of reducing prejudice is through education and other attitude changing techniques. It follows then that if students score high on the Sikh Knowledge Test they will be less likely to choose the Sikh as a suspect of terrorism (hypothesis 2). It is also hypothesized (sub-hypothesis 2) that if the student is in a higher grade level, because they have gone through more years of education, they will be less likely to choose the Sikh as a suspect of terrorism. A third hypothesis is that students who ethnically identify as South Asians will be less likely to stereotype Sikhs because of ethnic proximity to the Indian sub-continent region.

 

Questionnaire: CLICK

Survey Results: CLICK

Experimental Design

 

            The survey was based on the Fishman and others (1987) experiment. In this experiment, Fishman and others studied what effect ethnic origin had on the attribution of crimes to faces seen in portrait photographs. It was focused on the 3 major ethnic groups in Israel – Ashkenazic Jews, considered the highest on the social ladder; Sephardic Jews, considered below the Ashkenazic; and Arab people, lowest on the social ladder of all three. Participants in the study were shown portraits of the three ethnic groups and were told to assign a listed criminal offense (rape, homicide, armed robbery, breaking and entering, and fraud.) The Sikh survey was designed in as similar way. The surveys were anonymous; it asked for grade, age, gender, whether they were born in the United States, and ethnicity. The first question put the participant in the role of a Homeland Security Agent in the fictional “Anti-Terrorism Squad.” Given a set of 5 portraits, they were told they had to select passengers to investigate. They were asked which they would think would be a likely suspect of terrorism. They were told to choose only those they would actually suspect and to only choose up to two people (they had the option to select none).

 

 

            The second question was the same except the participant was in the role of a passenger about to board an international flight – one of the people in the portraits was going to sit next to him/her and the participant had to decide who they thought could be a suspect of terrorism. To truly test the saliency of the stereotype, included in the 5 portraits were three actual terrorists. Portrait A was Abdelmajid Dahoumane, a Caucasian Algerian national indicted for international terrorism for placing explosives near an airport terminal (FBI Rewards for Justice, 2006). Portrait B was of Saeed al-Ghamdi, a Saudi Arabian man who was a hijacker on United Airlines Flight 93 in the September 11th attacks (FBI Rewards for Justice, 2006) . Portrait C was the Sikh. Portrait D was an African Muslim with a kufi, Portrait E was Mir Aimal Kansi, a light-skinned Pakistani executed for the murder of 2 CIA employees in November of 1997 (FBI Rewards for Justice, 2006).

 




            On the back of the survey was the Sikh Knowledge Test. The test was made up of seven questions, all with the same answer choices: Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, Sephardim, Sufi, Sikh, Hasidim, Shinto, Sunni, Jain, Hindu, and Buddhist. Three of the questions were testing Sikh knowledge; the four other questions were distraction questions (See survey in appendix).

 

            If more female than male participants choose Portrait C, both hypothesis 1 and sub-hypothesis 1 will be correct. If a student does not choose Portrait C and scores high on the Sikh Knowledge Test, hypothesis 2 will be correct. If a student in a higher grade-level does not choose Portrait C and then scores high on the Sikh Knowledge test then sub-hypothesis 2 will be correct.

Sampling

            This survey was randomly distributed among 640 different high school students in the New York City education system. Students were both male and female, with ages ranging from 13 (age of an incoming freshmen) to 19 (age of an outgoing senior). Grade level could be grade 9 (freshmen), 10 (sophomore), 11 (junior) or 12 (senior). Students were able to specify whether or not they were born in the United States. Students were also able to specify ethnicity: Caucasian, Black/African American, Middle Eastern, East Asian, South Asian, Hispanic, Mixed, or Other.

 

Results

ID Terror by Religion

Yes

No

High knowledge of Sikhs

32

39

Low knowledge of Sikhs

272

110

Chi-Test

< 0.001

 

           

 

There was a significant difference in identification as terrorists between people who had knowledge of Sikhs and those who did not.

 

            Results for question one, about selecting passengers to investigate, were examined. For Portrait A, the Caucasian Algerian, data showed that 41 female students chose him (10.5%) as the suspected terrorist, 349 did not (89.5%). Data showed that 45 males chose Portrait A (19%) and 185 students had not (80%). Portrait B, the Middle Eastern Saudi Arabian, showed that 246 females selected him (63.1%) and that 144 females did not (36.9%). For males, 130 students selected him (56.5%), 100 students did not (43.5%).  Portrait C, the Sikh, had 270 female students who selected him (69.2%) and 120 who did not (30.8%). Portrait C was selected by 124 males (53.9%), 106 males did not choose Portrait C (46.1%). Portrait D, the black male with the kufi, had 69 females who did selected him (17.7%) and 321 females who did not select him (82.3%). For male students, 54 chose him (23.5%), 176 did not (76.5%). Portrait E, the light-skinned Pakistani, had 120 female students who picked him (30.8%) and 270 students who had not (69.2%). For males, 85 students chose him (32.5%) and 145 students had not chose him (67.5%).

            Results for question two, about being a passenger on an international flight, were examined. For Portrait A, 43 females selected him (11%), 347 did not (89%). For males, 44 students chose him (19.1%), 186 did not (80.9%). Portrait B showed 213 females chose his picture (54.3%) and 177 did not (45.4%). Portrait C showed 266 females who chose him (68.2%), while 124 (31.8%) did not. For males, 118 students chose him (51.3%), and 112 did not (48.7%). Portrait D showed that 67 females chose him (17.2%) and 323 did not (82.8%). For males, 53 chose him 23% and 177 did not (77%). Portrait E showed that 117 females chose him (30%) and 273 did not (70%). For males, 75 chose him (32.6%), while 155 did not (67.4%).

            The grade level of students and selection of terrorists was examined for question one.

 

·         For Portrait A, students in the ninth grade, 120 chose Portrait A (87%), 18 did not (13%). For students in the tenth grade, 16 students chose Portrait A (13.6%), 102 students did not (86.4%). For students in the eleventh grade, 32 chose Portrait A (15.4%), 176 did not (84.6%). For students in the twelfth grade, 22 students chose Portrait A (12.8%), and 150 students did not (87.2%).

 

·         For Portrait B, 69 students in the ninth grade chose him (50%), 69 students did not (50%). In the tenth grade, 75 students chose Portrait B (63.6%), 43 students did not (36.4%). In the eleventh grade, 133 students chose Portrait B (63.9%), 75 students did not (36.1%). In the twelfth grade, 108 students chose Portrait B (62.8%), 64 did not (37.2%).

 

·         For Portrait C, 100 ninth graders chose him (72.5%), 38 students did not (27.5%).  In the tenth grade, 86 students chose him (72.9%), 32 students (27.1%) did not. In the eleventh grade, 126 students chose Portrait C (60.6%), 82 students did not (39.4%). In the twelfth grade, 94 students (54.7%) chose Portrait C, 78 did not (45.3%).

 

·         For Portrait D, 35 ninth graders (25.4%) chose him, 103 students did not (74.6%). In the tenth grade, 19 students chose him (16.1%), 99 students did not (83.9%). In the eleventh grade, 37 students chose Portrait D (17.8%), 171 students did not (82.2%). In the twelfth grade, 36 students chose Portrait D (20.9%), 136 students did not (79.1%).

 

·         For Portrait E, 37 ninth graders (26.8%) chose him, 101 students did not (73.2%). In the tenth grade, 32 students chose him (27.1%), 86 students did not (72.9%). In the eleventh grade, 72 students chose him (35.6%), 134 students did not (64.4%). In the twelfth grade, 63 students chose him (36.6%), 109 students did not (63.4%).

           

            The grade level of students and selection of terrorists was examined for question two.

 

·         For Portrait A, 23 ninth graders chose him (16.7%), 115 students did not (83.3%). In the tenth grade, 17 students chose him (14.4%), 101 students did not (85.6%). In the eleventh grade, 29 students chose him (13.9%), 179 students did not (86.1%). In the twelfth grade, 20 students chose him (11.6%), 152 did not (88.4%).

 

·         For Portrait B, 65 ninth graders (47.1%) chose him, 73 did not (52.9%). In the tenth grade, 65 students chose him (55.1%), 53 students did not (44.9%). In the eleventh grade, 117 students chose him (56.3%), 91 students did not (43.8%). In the twelfth grade, 100 students chose him (58.1%), 72 students did not (41.9%).

 

·         For Portrait C, 90 ninth graders (65.2%) chose him, 48 did not (34.8%). In the tenth grade, 79 students chose him (66.9%), 39 students did not (33.1%). In the eleventh grade, 132 students chose him (63.5%), 76 students did not (36.5). In the twelfth grade, 94 students chose him (54.7%), 78 students did not (45.3%).

 

·         For Portrait D, 33 ninth graders chose him (23.9%), 105 students did not (76.1%). In the tenth grade, 26 chose him (22%), 92 did not (78%). In the eleventh grade, 29 students chose him (13.9%), 179 students did not (86.1%). In the twelfth grade, 36 students chose him (20.9%), 136 students did not (79.1%).

 

·         For Portrait E, 39 ninth graders chose him (27.5%), 100 students did not (72.5%). In the tenth grade, 29 chose him (24.9%), 89 students did not (75.4%). In the eleventh grade, 73 students chose him (35.1%), 135 students did not (64.9%). In the twelfth grade, 54 students chose him (31.4%), 118 did not (68.6%).

           

The ethnic identity of students and selection of terrorists was examined for question one. The five major ethnicities students identified with were Caucasian, African American/Black, East Asian, South Asian, and Hispanic.

 

Ø      For Portrait A, 29 Black students chose him (17.8%), 134 students did not (82.2%). For Caucasian students, 18 students chose him (11.8%), 135 students did not (88.2%). For East Asian students, 13 students chose him (10.3%), 113 did not (89.7%). For South Asian students, 12 students chose him (16.9%), 59 students did not (83.1%). For Hispanic students, 2 students selected him (3.7%), 52 did not (96.3%).

 

Ø      For Portrait B, 104 Black students chose him (63.8%), 59 students did not (36.2%). For Caucasian students, 102 students chosen him (66.7%), 51 students did not (33.3%). For East Asian students, 63 students chose him (50%), 63 students did not (50%). For South Asian students, 35 students chose him (49.3%), 36 students did not (50.7%) For Hispanic students, 40 students chose him (74.1%), 14 students did not (25.9%).

 

Ø      For Portrait C, 103 Black students chose him (63.2%), 60 students did not (36.8%). For Caucasian students, 98 students chose him (64.1%), 55 students did not (35.9%). For East Asian students, 86 students chose him (68.3%), 40 students did not (31.7%). For South Asian students, 33 students chose him (46.5%), 38 students did not (53.5%). For Hispanic students, 40 students chose him (74.1%), 14 students did not (25.9%).

 

Ø      For Portrait D, 27 Black students chose him (16.6%), 136 students did not (83.4%). For Caucasian students, 25 students chose him (16.3%), 128 students did not (83.7%). For East Asian students, 32 students chose him (25.4%), 94 students did not (74.6%). For South Asian students, 27 students chose him (38%), 44 students did not (62%). For Hispanic students, 8 students chose him (14.8%), 46 students did not (85.2%).

 

Ø      For Portrait E, 45 Black students chose him (27.6%), 188 students did not (72.4%). For Caucasian students, 51 students chose him (33.3%), 102 students did not (66.7%). For East Asian students, 46 students chose him (36.5%), 80 students did not (63.5%). For South Asian students, 25 students chose him (35.2%), 46 students did not (64.8%). For Hispanic students, 16 students chose him (29.6%), 38 students did not (70.4%).

 

Discussion

           

            Analysis of results suggests that hypothesis 1 and 2 are correct. No other portrait, other than that of Portrait B (the Middle Eastern man) received as many selections then that of the Sikh. This evidence suggests that a clear prejudice exists towards turban-wearing male Sikhs that does not exist for any other ethnic group. The 2 White males with no headwear, (Portrait A and E) despite being real terrorists, were not met with the same suspicion the Sikh and the Middle Eastern man met. Evidence also suggests that the stereotype is focused on an easily recalled image – that of a bearded man with a turban. This seems to be the case because even Portrait D, a black man who is wearing the Muslim kufi, was not suspected as much as the Sikh. This evidence suggests that the stereotype exists in a limited spectrum that does not include a man in Muslim garb and a kufi. If results from this study are analyzed, one may conclude that Sikhs, because of the style of clothing they wear, are unfairly stereotyped as specifically being part of the radial-Islamic terrorist movement. Half-a-decade after the attacks, the only ethnic group whose majority did not select the Sikh for a search was South Asian. This evidence suggests that South Asians on a whole may be more aware of stereotypes Sikhs and other similar people face.

            According to the results, 270 females, or about 70% of the total number of females, selected the portrait of the Sikh as the suspected terrorist, while only 124 males, or about 57% of the total number of males, selected him. These findings suggest that females perceive the “Osama-bin-Laden” stereotype with more suspicion than males do. Chircos and others (2001) found evidence that suggest that females perceive risk higher in their neighborhood than a male would. In this case, females also perceive a greater risk from the turban-wearing Sikh since they associate his image with that of terrorism.

            For the Sikh Knowledge Test, most students scored zero to one question right. The students who did score low were also more likely to stereotype the Sikh as a terrorist, while those who scored fairly well were less likely to stereotype the Sikh as a terrorist. Hypothesis 2, which stated that 12th graders would select the Sikh less often than a 9th grader would, seems to be correct. In the 2-year time period between freshman year and senior year, prejudice dropped from 72.5% (percentage of 9th graders who chose the Sikh) to 54.7% (percentage of 12th graders who chose the Sikh), nearly a 20% drop. These results are promising since 2 more years of education seems to lower the level of prejudice towards Sikhs. Evidence suggests that ignorance found in 9th grade does not necessarily transfer into the 12th grade, raising the possibility that if the student enrolls in college, by the time he or she graduates, the level of prejudice will drop off.

 

            Despite this possibility, it is daunting that a little more than half of high school seniors (most of whom will be legal adults by the end of 2007) suspect the Sikh to be a more potent threat than other ethnic groups. Since not one of the hijackers in the 9/11 attacks wore a turban and a beard (9/11 Commission Report) this evidence suggests that the “Osama-bin Laden” stereotype lives and breathes in adverse media images. Results suggest that imagery does not as focus as much white-skinned terrorists; Portrait A and Portrait E, despite being real, convicted terrorists, received 89.5% and 80% of “no” answers from female and male participants, respectively. Evidence from this study suggests that a majority of high school students do not know that Sikhism is an independent religion and believe instead that it is part of the radical Islamic terrorist movement. It is unfortunate that fear is often targeted at the wrong people who do not want to be associated with terrorist acts.

 

Conclusion     

 

            This study attempted to empirically measure the perception of Sikhs in post 9-11 New York City. Half a decade after the attacks, this study tried to determine what characteristics went into the stereotype of a terrorist and how Sikhs were affected. Evidence suggests that Sikhs were wrongly identified as being part of the groups responsible for attacks on the United States and abroad. The role the turban and the beard plays in how one determines who is a terrorist seems to be clear. Only one portrait had a turban and a beard – it was the Sikh. The Black male with a kufi was not identified nearly as much as the Sikh with a turban and uncut beard. The study also found evidence that suggests that Middle Easterners may be wrongly identified as being involved in terrorism. However, the group that seems to be the most unfairly affected is the Sikhs, since they have played and continue to play no role in any of the events related to 9/11 and its aftermath. The turban and uncut beard originated from the Sikh belief that they should be easily identified as people of respect and courage (Sikhnet, Why Do Sikhs Wear Turbans? 2006), instead the attire has been twisted to make people believe Sikhs should be treated with caution and suspicion.

            This study had many limitations on its possibilities. It was not done by a major research organization and was given to just New York City high school students. It would be interesting to see how students in other parts of the country decide who is or isn’t a terrorist. Surveys should be given to parents to analyze a comparison between parents perception of Sikhs and children’s perception of Sikhs. Further research should focus on how adults in general perceive terrorists and to discover if they too associate “Osama-bin-Laden” with Sikhs. Further research should also focus on where the origins of the terrorist stereotype come from and what factors allow it to live on with such strength.

            One suggestion to fix the problem of unfair bias is for more education into what the Sikh religion is. As evidence from this study suggests, more knowledge of the Sikh people means less prejudice – and in today’s turbulent world, the more knowledge people have, the better.

 

 

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