Change in Americans

If anything, Amy Waldman’s fictional novel, The Submission, has further opened my eyes to the absurd amount of prejudice toward American Muslims after the attack by al-Qaeda on the World Trade Center. Throughout the book, the former news reporter details the conflict over the selection of a 9/11 memorial designed by a Muslim architect, Mohammad (Mo) Khan. Many Americans cannot see past this man’s name and heritage and respond with outrage toward Mo and his few supporters. Although Waldman’s novel claimed fiction, I found a definite ring of truth in her depiction of American bigotry. As a result, Waldman influenced a change in the way I see some of my fellow countrymen, and in some ways, I have grown outraged and embarrassed by the discriminatory nature of my fellow Americans toward American Muslims. Immediately after the official announcement that a Muslim would design the memorial, “the threats began” (137). The hostile diction of “threats” implies the anger and hatred coming from Americans toward Mo because of his Islamic background. They “promised to burn him as the terrorists had their victims” (137). By showing how the threat-writers compare their actions to that of “the terrorists,” Waldman indirectly characterizes them as wanting revenge for the actions of al-Qaeda. Yet, they do not direct their anger toward the terrorists but instead toward innocent Mo. With this, Waldman implies that these Americans stereotype all Muslims and classify them as terrorists. The same writers accuse Mo of “stabbing America,” using the abusive diction of “stabbing” to indirectly characterize Mo as a criminal when he has not committed a single crime against them (137). Even the government responds and the “FBI placed him under watch” (137). This action alone implies that Americans see Mo as a threat simply because of his ethnicity. Even during his speech at the hearing, audience members respond in hatred toward his religion yelling “‘save America from Islam!’” (245). The urgent connotation that comes with the desperate diction of “save” implies that Americans see Islam and thus Muslims as endangering their country. Whilst reading all of the heinous remarks, I found myself growing angrier and more ashamed of my fellow Americans. Sadly, I recalled a time when I myself witnessed prejudice toward a Muslim when two of my peers labeled my Muslim friend a “terrorist.” The implication that Americans have grouped Muslims as a group of terrorists disgusts me and Waldman’s writing further contributes to my disgust. Nevertheless, the change she implemented within me has opened my eyes to the actions that I must take. While not only targeting people like me who have developed frustration over the intolerance of Americans after 9/11, she also targets the narrow-minded and prompts them to evaluate their own opinions and perhaps learn to see innocent Muslims as lawful rather than criminal.