'The Siege' angers some Islamic students at 'U'

Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox The president allows troops into New York City to control terrorism in the movie, 'The Siege.' The movie's portrayal of the Islamic community angers some University students.

By Lauren Gibbs
Daily Staff Reporter

Everyone knows the premise to a typical action movie. There are the good guys and the bad guys. The bad guys do something really horrible, and then the good guys save the general population from the evils that are thrust upon them. Viewers go home with the feeling that good has prevailed, along with images of several shoot-outs, car chases and heroic feats.

But the movie "The Siege" has left some members of the University's Islamic community angry.

"A lot of movies make Muslims look like the bad guys. This is an extreme. It makes all Muslims look bad," said LSA senior Diba Rab, vice president of the Muslim Students Association. "The stereotype is disgusting, like there is a Muslim army out to get the U.S."

In the movie, starring Denzel Washington and Bruce Willis, a public bus is blown up in Brooklyn, and the entire city is held hostage by an Islamic terrorist group.

LSA junior Aiman Mackie said he saw some strong correlations in the beginning of the movie between terrorism and the Muslim faith.

"The scene where old people are killed on the bus got me pretty angry," Mackie said. "The link between Islam and terrorism at that point was pretty clear."

Muslim students said they are concerned about the way members of their faith are stereotyped in general, and are upset by this movie in particular because of the way that it perpetuates that stereotype.

"It is more extreme in this movie, because it is emphasized strongly at the beginning that Islam is a synonym for terrorism," Mackie said. "Between altering the images of people praying and bombs exploding, this link is clearly exemplified."

While some of these generalizations are clarified in the end, Mackie said, the movie still portrays Muslims in the wrong light.

"If I got up and left in the movie during the beginning or towards the middle, I would have very negative feelings towards Muslims," he said. "It seems that it is Muslims, regardless of nationality, who are simply these people who want to kill anyone that is American.

"However, as the movie continues, the character that Denzel Washington plays tries to teach us that it's not Muslims everywhere who are terrorists," Mackie said. This group of people just happen to be terrorists, he said.

Not all viewers say the movie portrays a negative image of Muslims.

"I actually feel that the final message of the movie is that you can't make a generalization saying that all Muslims are terrorist, and just because one specific group happens to be terrorist it cannot be linked to the entire faith," Engineering junior Christopher Johnson said.

But this generalization goes far beyond this movie, Mackie said.

Our generation, he said, is entrenched with stereotypes - and perhaps hatred - toward Muslims, who represent one in every four individuals in the world.

The Muslims Students Associations, which is in the middle of celebrating Islamic Awareness Week, is trying to get the message across to students that Muslims are not opposed to the western world and their religion does not condone violence, Rab said.

Political science Prof. Raymond Tanter agreed that the religion is a peaceful one.

"Anyone who portrays Islam as part of terrorist enterprise is mistaken," Tanter said. "Tim McVeigh, who was involved in the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City, was part of a Christian militia group, but no one calls him a Christian. Similarly, if Osama bin Laden is involved in terrorist enterprise he should not be identified according to his faith."

Mackie said he has no tolerance for the terrorist acts portrayed in the movie or played out in the real world.

"As a Muslim myself, I have to admit that I am truly disgusted in all the groups and individuals who commit acts against humanity and then use the Islamic faith and beliefs as justification for it" Mackie said.

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