How may Orientalism and prejudice contribute to hate crimes against Muslims and Arabs?

Answer 1

Answer 1

Some people may hate them just because some Arabs and Islamic people were behind the bombings and stuff no offence but just because some of the bombers were Muslims i don't think that the whole religion and people who are Muslims should be hated.

Answer 2

You should read an orientalism article by Edward Said. Orientalism was something that traditionally divided the East and West, and it is still used as a powerful political tool today. Orientalism basically states that people from the East (including Middle East as we now call it) were exotic, seedy, deviants... all sort of negative connotations. You can see a great example in the Disney movie Aladdin. Ali is portrayed as a "street rat" and he steals and lives this bohemian-type life, but he is mostly cavalier and has grown used to living a simple life. This is a very charming and endearing reading of his character, but orientalists would say that his stealing means that he is without morals and order, and that his simple lifestyle is the result of a simple mentality. When people commit hate crimes against Arabs and Muslims they are seeing the systems that those people follow as more primitive, simple, and inferior. For many people, this view justifies imposing an order on others, which leads to war and oppression. Arabs and Muslims are simply viewed by many as one entity, one body that acts a certain way and looks a certain way. Orientalism is a form of stereotyping that for centuries scholars believed to be valid and true.