Khaled A. Beydoun writes at Al-Jazeera that using color and culture to determine who is a terrorist puts us all at risk.
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The colour of violence often dictates what and who qualifies as a threat to national security. In the United States, the list of dangers to national security and the American way of life is topped by an Islamic menace, but excludes the proliferation of white supremacist groups. This movement not only openly espouses racist and xenophobic goals, but has also effectively executed the most savage attacks on innocent Americans during this past year.
In the American imagination there is a one-dimensional portrait of terrorism — one that adorns turbans, beards, and brown skin. However, white terrorism, driven by racial supremacy and xenophobia, should rank as the greatest threat to national security in America today.
The recent attack in Oak Creek, and the mosque burnings across the country are evidence that white supremacy is far more than merely a veiled threat, but a realised one.
Read Khaled A. Beydoun's entire piece at Al-Jazeera.
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