Disenfranchised
Along with most of the rest of the world I learned of the most recent bombing outside of a country which is publicly at war early in the morning on March 22, 2016 while I was on the treadmill at the gym. There I was trying to maintain my health in the safe confines of the gym to which I belong while across the world many were attempting to find out the fate of loved ones while others were getting treated in Belgium hospitals. As is now true for most people, the shock was somewhat muted by the knowledge that these events have become nearly common place. In addition to my thoughts about family members of those who were killed, injured or missing, my thoughts went to the families of those who had committed these terrible acts and then to the relatively young people who had carried out these acts. As is always the case, my mind drifted to the images of these young men and women who, not long ago, were the infants being cradled in the arms of their parents and for whom the parent had dreams of happiness and accomplishment.
Throughout the days which followed, along with much of the rest of the world, I heard the reaction of people from various countries, social classes, and political groups. Not surprisingly, but sadly, here in the United States there were more calls or demands for restrictions of Muslims. It was as if many, especially those in some parts of the United States, could not wrap their brains around the fact that violent fanatics can use any philosophy or religion to convince themselves that they have an important purpose for which they will be rewarded by the God(s) of their understanding. We humans like easy explanations and, thus, are attracted to those who blame a religion, a law enforcement group, a government, a group or just the individuals themselves.
One of the seeming facts about this latest series of bombings is that many of the Muslim refugees in Brussels live in a section of the city known as Maelbeek. It appears that the young people thought to be responsible for these and the Paris bombings lived in this section of Brussels – a section which has been labeled as a ghetto. At least one of the young men had grown up the recipient of some of the social service programs for the youth in this area of the city. He had played and laughed with the other young boys and girls.
The question on everyone’s mind is what attracts a seemingly intelligent, otherwise kind, loving person to such a radical, violent life purpose. To be able to ask this question one has to convince oneself that the action of this person or group of people is something very different than that of the average, law abiding, civilized person. We have to “know” that the average person would never commit such a senseless, random act of violence. They are, in other words, as different as possible from us. Who then are they?
· They are terrorists meaning that they have no conscience about killing “innocent people” just because these people they kill are different or have different religious rules.
· They are irrational, uncivilized, barbarians.
· They are willing to die to fulfill their mission.
· They do not feel a part of the privileged community or know that that community is seeking false gods of money, privilege, etc.
In other words they are much different than the average, civilized, moral person. They are not like us. We are:
· Those that never intentionally kill innocent people. We only kill bad people who deserve to be killed or who are collateral damage in our justified wars.
· Those who are civilized members of the larger community who have worked hard to claim our place.
· Those who go to war willing to die for our country and the causes of our country even if we have some questions about the justness of the war our country has waged – directly as a solder or less directly as an intelligence agent or the “innocent” one directing drones with bombs from a safe place or being a member of a police force who has been taught to shoot to kill or a member of a legislative body that decides who is worthy or not worthy.
· Those who make laws which codify who is worthy and unworthy.
Throughout history, religious and political extremism has appealed to those who feel left out, less then or have been labeled as undeserving. Religious and political extremism also appeals to those who fail to see the moral imperative to worship the God of things, positions, or power. In the 1970s in this country many people, particularly young people, were disenchanted with what they understood to be the Gods of the military industrial complex, the senseless Vietnam war and the seemingly emptiness of the lives of their parents. Ironically, many of these same young people became the very people for whom they had disdain. Some did establish intentional communities which are still functioning. Some, if not dead, are still numbing themselves with alcohol, other drugs, sex or other addictive behaviors. Some went on to make significant contributions in medicine, education, the judicial system, technology, the arts, disposal of nuclear waste and other areas. Some went on to skilled labor jobs which they later lost or, if lucky, eventually retired from. Many of those later learned the guaranteed health coverage and other benefits would be later taken away.
In the United States we continued to increasingly become a nation of law and punishment. We became the so-called developed nation which incarcerated an increasing number of people. Much of this occurred as a result of “the war on drugs.” A lot of this occurred as a result of overt and covert racism. In 2010, three in 10 black/African American men at some point were incarcerated in the United States. Various studies report statistics close to those which Wikipedia are reporting:
The process of gathering and analyzing statistics on the incarceration in the United States of African-American males has been taken by several studies on a specific age group, geographical location, causes of incarceration or simply the upbringing of a child over a course of years. Approximately 12–13% of the American population is African-American, but they make up 35% of jail inmates, and 37% of prison inmates of the 2.2 million male inmates as of 2014 (U.S. Department of Justice, 2014).,[2][3] Census data for 2000 of the number and race of all individuals incarcerated in the United States revealed a wide racial disproportion of the incarcerated population in each state: the proportion of blacks in prison populations exceeded the proportion among state residents in twenty states.
This is only part of the story. Not only do we continue to incarcerate more people than any other so called developed nations, we remain, along with the Great Britain, one of the few countries which disenfranchise those who are convicted of a felony. Many states in the United States deny voting rights to all who are convicted of a felony. Sometimes this is for life. Sometimes one can later appeal to the governor or a state legislator to have their voting rights restored. In some states, after a sentence and parole/probation are completed voting rights are restored depending on the nature on the particular felony. In a couple of states even in prison one retains the right to votes. The most recent statistics publicly available were for 2010. Those states with the most disenfranchised voters were:
Florida 1,541,602 10.42
Mississippi 182,814 8.27
Kentucky 243,842 7.35
Virginia 451,471 7.34
Alabama 262,354 7.19
Tennessee 341,815 7.05
Wyoming 25,657 5.99
Nevada 86,321 4.24
Arizona 199.734 4.19
Georgia 275,866 3.83
In 1960, the number of voters who were disenfranchised due to a felony conviction was 1,762,582. By the late 1970s this number dropped 33% to 1,176,234, but then began to rise.
By 2010 the number of people who lost the vote due to a felony conviction had grown to 5, 852, 180.
This information was taken from the Sentencing Project’s July 2012 report “State-Level Estimates of Felon Disenfranchisement in the United States, 2010.”
The European Convention on Human Rights has determined that disenfranchising individuals is a violation of human rights. The United Kingdom has chosen to not abide by this decision although it is a signatory to the convention.
Terrorist organization leaders, physically violent or non-physically violent, tell recruits:
· You have a holy mission. If you do action x, God, Allah, your Fuhrer will reward you.
· You are not like others. You are special.
· You belong.
As a counselor who is also a certified addiction counselor I have attended many 12-step meetings and met with many individuals struggling with addiction and recovery. With no exceptions, what one hears from every addict is, “I always felt different. I never felt a part of. For the first time in the room of the 12-step program I feel a part of.” For those who fully allow oneself to become a member of the recovering community which requires getting rid of all those secrets that keep one separate, they feel a part of and are almost always successful in their recovery. They go on to become successful, contributing members of the community.
In the Christian tradition, it is Easter season. The Christian Church hails as its leader, one who says to the person in jail, the prostitute, the tax collector and the thief, “Welcome home. You belong.” Despite the fact that the very human organization of many established churches has since imposed limits on who belongs, the inclusiveness of Jesus was the original, primary attraction of the Christian church.
If we are going to decrease terrorist activity it is not going to be by demonizing Muslims, those who are attracted to Terrorists organizations, those who live in the Ghetto of all the Maelbeeks of the world, and those who have been convicted of a felony. It is going to be because we honestly believe that they are sacred, valuable members of the larger community. Building walls, disenfranchising even more people, responding to name calling with more name calling and excluding our political opponents will, in the long run, guarantee an increase in terrorists cells no matter what one labels them.
(I am indebted to Bryan Stevenson and the work he is doing as outlined in his Ted Talk: We need to talk about an injustice.)
Written March 24, 2016
Along with most of the rest of the world I learned of the most recent bombing outside of a country which is publicly at war early in the morning on March 22, 2016 while I was on the treadmill at the gym. There I was trying to maintain my health in the safe confines of the gym to which I belong while across the world many were attempting to find out the fate of loved ones while others were getting treated in Belgium hospitals. As is now true for most people, the shock was somewhat muted by the knowledge that these events have become nearly common place. In addition to my thoughts about family members of those who were killed, injured or missing, my thoughts went to the families of those who had committed these terrible acts and then to the relatively young people who had carried out these acts. As is always the case, my mind drifted to the images of these young men and women who, not long ago, were the infants being cradled in the arms of their parents and for whom the parent had dreams of happiness and accomplishment.
Throughout the days which followed, along with much of the rest of the world, I heard the reaction of people from various countries, social classes, and political groups. Not surprisingly, but sadly, here in the United States there were more calls or demands for restrictions of Muslims. It was as if many, especially those in some parts of the United States, could not wrap their brains around the fact that violent fanatics can use any philosophy or religion to convince themselves that they have an important purpose for which they will be rewarded by the God(s) of their understanding. We humans like easy explanations and, thus, are attracted to those who blame a religion, a law enforcement group, a government, a group or just the individuals themselves.
One of the seeming facts about this latest series of bombings is that many of the Muslim refugees in Brussels live in a section of the city known as Maelbeek. It appears that the young people thought to be responsible for these and the Paris bombings lived in this section of Brussels – a section which has been labeled as a ghetto. At least one of the young men had grown up the recipient of some of the social service programs for the youth in this area of the city. He had played and laughed with the other young boys and girls.
The question on everyone’s mind is what attracts a seemingly intelligent, otherwise kind, loving person to such a radical, violent life purpose. To be able to ask this question one has to convince oneself that the action of this person or group of people is something very different than that of the average, law abiding, civilized person. We have to “know” that the average person would never commit such a senseless, random act of violence. They are, in other words, as different as possible from us. Who then are they?
· They are terrorists meaning that they have no conscience about killing “innocent people” just because these people they kill are different or have different religious rules.
· They are irrational, uncivilized, barbarians.
· They are willing to die to fulfill their mission.
· They do not feel a part of the privileged community or know that that community is seeking false gods of money, privilege, etc.
In other words they are much different than the average, civilized, moral person. They are not like us. We are:
· Those that never intentionally kill innocent people. We only kill bad people who deserve to be killed or who are collateral damage in our justified wars.
· Those who are civilized members of the larger community who have worked hard to claim our place.
· Those who go to war willing to die for our country and the causes of our country even if we have some questions about the justness of the war our country has waged – directly as a solder or less directly as an intelligence agent or the “innocent” one directing drones with bombs from a safe place or being a member of a police force who has been taught to shoot to kill or a member of a legislative body that decides who is worthy or not worthy.
· Those who make laws which codify who is worthy and unworthy.
Throughout history, religious and political extremism has appealed to those who feel left out, less then or have been labeled as undeserving. Religious and political extremism also appeals to those who fail to see the moral imperative to worship the God of things, positions, or power. In the 1970s in this country many people, particularly young people, were disenchanted with what they understood to be the Gods of the military industrial complex, the senseless Vietnam war and the seemingly emptiness of the lives of their parents. Ironically, many of these same young people became the very people for whom they had disdain. Some did establish intentional communities which are still functioning. Some, if not dead, are still numbing themselves with alcohol, other drugs, sex or other addictive behaviors. Some went on to make significant contributions in medicine, education, the judicial system, technology, the arts, disposal of nuclear waste and other areas. Some went on to skilled labor jobs which they later lost or, if lucky, eventually retired from. Many of those later learned the guaranteed health coverage and other benefits would be later taken away.
In the United States we continued to increasingly become a nation of law and punishment. We became the so-called developed nation which incarcerated an increasing number of people. Much of this occurred as a result of “the war on drugs.” A lot of this occurred as a result of overt and covert racism. In 2010, three in 10 black/African American men at some point were incarcerated in the United States. Various studies report statistics close to those which Wikipedia are reporting:
The process of gathering and analyzing statistics on the incarceration in the United States of African-American males has been taken by several studies on a specific age group, geographical location, causes of incarceration or simply the upbringing of a child over a course of years. Approximately 12–13% of the American population is African-American, but they make up 35% of jail inmates, and 37% of prison inmates of the 2.2 million male inmates as of 2014 (U.S. Department of Justice, 2014).,[2][3] Census data for 2000 of the number and race of all individuals incarcerated in the United States revealed a wide racial disproportion of the incarcerated population in each state: the proportion of blacks in prison populations exceeded the proportion among state residents in twenty states.
This is only part of the story. Not only do we continue to incarcerate more people than any other so called developed nations, we remain, along with the Great Britain, one of the few countries which disenfranchise those who are convicted of a felony. Many states in the United States deny voting rights to all who are convicted of a felony. Sometimes this is for life. Sometimes one can later appeal to the governor or a state legislator to have their voting rights restored. In some states, after a sentence and parole/probation are completed voting rights are restored depending on the nature on the particular felony. In a couple of states even in prison one retains the right to votes. The most recent statistics publicly available were for 2010. Those states with the most disenfranchised voters were:
Florida 1,541,602 10.42
Mississippi 182,814 8.27
Kentucky 243,842 7.35
Virginia 451,471 7.34
Alabama 262,354 7.19
Tennessee 341,815 7.05
Wyoming 25,657 5.99
Nevada 86,321 4.24
Arizona 199.734 4.19
Georgia 275,866 3.83
In 1960, the number of voters who were disenfranchised due to a felony conviction was 1,762,582. By the late 1970s this number dropped 33% to 1,176,234, but then began to rise.
By 2010 the number of people who lost the vote due to a felony conviction had grown to 5, 852, 180.
This information was taken from the Sentencing Project’s July 2012 report “State-Level Estimates of Felon Disenfranchisement in the United States, 2010.”
The European Convention on Human Rights has determined that disenfranchising individuals is a violation of human rights. The United Kingdom has chosen to not abide by this decision although it is a signatory to the convention.
Terrorist organization leaders, physically violent or non-physically violent, tell recruits:
· You have a holy mission. If you do action x, God, Allah, your Fuhrer will reward you.
· You are not like others. You are special.
· You belong.
As a counselor who is also a certified addiction counselor I have attended many 12-step meetings and met with many individuals struggling with addiction and recovery. With no exceptions, what one hears from every addict is, “I always felt different. I never felt a part of. For the first time in the room of the 12-step program I feel a part of.” For those who fully allow oneself to become a member of the recovering community which requires getting rid of all those secrets that keep one separate, they feel a part of and are almost always successful in their recovery. They go on to become successful, contributing members of the community.
In the Christian tradition, it is Easter season. The Christian Church hails as its leader, one who says to the person in jail, the prostitute, the tax collector and the thief, “Welcome home. You belong.” Despite the fact that the very human organization of many established churches has since imposed limits on who belongs, the inclusiveness of Jesus was the original, primary attraction of the Christian church.
If we are going to decrease terrorist activity it is not going to be by demonizing Muslims, those who are attracted to Terrorists organizations, those who live in the Ghetto of all the Maelbeeks of the world, and those who have been convicted of a felony. It is going to be because we honestly believe that they are sacred, valuable members of the larger community. Building walls, disenfranchising even more people, responding to name calling with more name calling and excluding our political opponents will, in the long run, guarantee an increase in terrorists cells no matter what one labels them.
(I am indebted to Bryan Stevenson and the work he is doing as outlined in his Ted Talk: We need to talk about an injustice.)
Written March 24, 2016
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