Public Opinion - Middle Eastern Discrimination

After the September 11, 2001 (9/11), terrorist attacks against the United States, in which Middle Eastern terrorists hijacked four planes—crashing two into the World Trade Center in New York City, one into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and one into a field in Pennsylvania—the number of accusations of discrimination against Muslims or people of Middle Eastern descent increased. Shortly after the attack, many Arab Americans believed they were being treated poorly by other Americans because they were of the same ethnic background and/or religion as the 9/11 hijackers.

One of the most common charges made by Arab Americans immediately after 9/11 was that they were victims of racial profiling. In "Public Opinion: Racial Profiling and Islam at Home" (2002, http://www.publicagenda.org/specials/terrorism/terror_pubopinion9.htm), Scott Bittle and Jean Johnson examine the problem of racial profiling in the African-American and Arab American communities. Bittle and Johnson found that more Americans were outraged by profiling against African-Americans than were upset by profiling of Arab Americans. According to the survey, 52% said there was no excuse for racial profiling of African-Americans. Forty-one percent of respondents said that racial profiling of African-Americans was understandable but they wished it did not happen. Only 4% said there was nothing wrong with racial profiling of African-Americans.

According to Bittle and Johnson, when survey participants were asked about the racial profiling of Arab Americans, they were more accepting of the practice. Only 21% of respondents said there was no excuse for racial profiling of Arab Americans. Approximately 67% said racial profiling of Arab Americans was understandable, though they wished it did not happen. Roughly 11% of respondents said there was nothing wrong with racial profiling of Arab Americans.

A Gallup poll conducted in June 2002 found that 60% of non-Hispanic whites believed that the civil rights of Muslims were respected by the criminal justice system, and 58% believed that the civil rights of Arab Americans were respected. By contrast, Hispanics and African-Americans offered a different perspective. Only 43% of Hispanics believed that the civil rights of Muslims were respected, with the number dropping to 42% when it pertained to Arab Americans. African-Americans were even more critical: only 36% believed that the civil TABLE 9.1 Public opinion on the criminal justice system's respect for civil rights, June 2002 Darren K. Carlson, "Do You Think the Civil Rights of Each of the Following Groups in Society Are Being Respected by This Country's Criminal Justice System, or Not?" in "Civil Rights: A Profile in Profiling," The Gallup Poll News Service, July 9, 2002, http://poll.gallup.com/content/default.aspx?ci=6361&pg=1 (accessed January 30, 2006).Copyright © 2002 by The Gallup Organization. Reproduced by permissionof The Gallup Organization.rights of Muslims and Arab Americans were respected by the criminal justice system in the United States. Also of significance, the poll found that even fewer African-Americans (33%) believed that their own civil rights were respected. (See Figure 9.9.)

TABLE 9.1
Public opinion on the criminal justice system's respect for civil rights, June 2002
DO YOU THINK THE CIVIL RIGHTS OF EACH OF THE FOLLOWING GROUPS IN SOCIETY ARE BEING RESPECTED BY THIS COUNTRY'S CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM, OR NOT? HOW ABOUT …
Percent saying "yes, respected"—June 2002
	National adults	(NA) Men	(NA) Women	Non-Hispanic whites	Blacks	Hispanic
SOURCE: Darren K. Carlson, "Do You Think the Civil Rights of Each of the Following Groups in Society Are Being Respected by This Country's Criminal Justice System, or Not?" in "Civil Rights: A Profile in Profiling," The Gallup Poll News Service, July 9, 2002, http://poll.gallup.com/content/default.aspx?ci=6361&pg=1 (accessed January 30, 2006).Copyright © 2002 by The Gallup Organization. Reproduced by permissionof The Gallup Organization.
Whites	82%	82%	83%	84%	73%	81%
Asians	73	79	68	79	52	61
Hispanics	63	70	56	69	35	53
Immigrants	63	69	57	70	34	43
Blacks	62	69	56	69	33	48
Muslims	55	64	48	60	36	43
Arabs	53	62	46	58	36	42