Characteristics of Orientalism, Prejudice, and Discrimination

Muslim and Arabs are uniquely different. Muslims are tied to a belief, which means that they are a follower of Islamic Faith. Islamic faith is based off the will of Allah, and is shown with the teaching of the Qur’an, and the actions of Muhammud, the prophet. Islam is the second largest religion to Christianity. Arabs, on the other hand, are not tied to a faith or belief, but they are tied to an ethnic origin. This applies to more than one country. Muslims and Arab Americans are different groups in the United States and although some Muslim Americans overlap with Arab ancestry, they are different from one another. The name Arab Americans refers to the immigrants and their descendents from the countries that now comprise the Arab world.
In terms of changes to U.S. policy, there have been some signs of an informal reverse in the terrible backlash against Muslims and Arabs which occurred after 9/11, however according to one 2008 report, actual policies may be more biased than ever before. The Justice Department has recently announced changes to their investigation policies for FBI agents in which would allow questioning based on ethnicity rather than probable cause, and allow for general, open-ended questions rather than the current policy of pursuing on predetermined line of questioning. Orientalism is the simplistic view of the people and history of the Orient, with no recognition of change over time or the diversity within its many cultures. Because of Orientalism, many Muslims and Arabs are being stereotyped against due to their religion. As of today, September 10, 2010, a Florida Pastor Terry Jones has threatened to burn copies of the Quran (Islam’s Holy Book), because he feels the Book of Quran is of the Devil. With the rise of hate crimes toward Arabs and Muslims on the rise, this course of action would be devastating for the Arab and Muslim communities. Although many Americans do not agree with Pastor Ted Jones, his actions will cause further separation... [continues]

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