Ethics in Research, Sociology, and Individual Decisions

            The question of ethics is one that often coincides with many areas of life ranging from the decisions we make on a daily basis to the type of work we dedicate our lives to and our treatment and behavior towards other beings. The field of ethics, as the Santa Clara University explicates, has to do with established standards that distinguish right and wrong which stipulate what humans should do, often in relation to “rights, obligations, benefits to society, fairness, or specific virtues.” Additionally, ethics involves the continuous examination and cultivation of our own moral behavior and beliefs—or our “ethical standards”. Thus to be ethical means to abide by these established moral codes that prescribe what we should and should not do as humans. Personally, ethics refers to the principles that reaffirm my moral convictions that serve as a kind of roadmap that lead me to the right decisions and help divert me from the wrong. For my major, Sociology, being ethical means being professional, unbiased, respectful, and socially responsible when studying the complex world of human society.

            This year in Humanities Core, we learned about the world of war in great depth and with our analysis and examination of the brutal reality of warfare that has inflicted the world throughout history and today, I learned that maintaining some ethics has been attempted and yet is often unsuccessful and deemed impossible. Why impossible? The answer lies in the simple fact that war in its own is not ethical. This obvious yet impactful truth made me question why it is that war is so prevalent if its unethical. The answer is not that we are all unethical beings deprived of any sense of moral. But, rather the answer lies in the fact that along with ethics, there are other internal and external pressures such as greed, corruption, political pressures, and desperation that often overtake the ethical side that would prevent war. Another thing that striked me in Humanities Core was the fact that even though war is unethical, us humans still try to add and impose some ethics into it, perhaps to justify warfare. Our Fall quarter readings, The Art of War, and Just and Unjust War exhibited some of the attempts to craft guidelines that determine the most ethical way to go about war and how to establish if a war is consequently just or not.

            Employing ethics is crucial when conducting research, like what we are doing for our research papers this quarter. Our research influences those who examine and utilize it in that they are doing so with the hopes that our information is valid, unbiased, and attained through ethical means. Along with the responsibility to ensure that those expectations are met lies the responsibility to use and cite the sources of our research accurately and justly in a way that gives proper credit where it is due. Overall, the world of ethics in research establishes guidelines that are crucial for any research endeavor such as mine. Ethics in research is also critical for my major: Sociology. According to the Merriem-Webster dictionary, Sociology refers to “the study of society, social institutions, and social relationships” and the research conducted in this field often examines the structural, developmental, and functional nature of our society. The world of ethics is vital when conducting research in Sociology in order to ensure the rights and respect of the people being studied and presenting gathered data in a professional, credible, and unbiased way. The International Sociological Association (ISA) has established an elaborate “Code of Ethics” that guidelines the ethical conduct that should be followed when conducting Sociological research. Along with this, there are many guidelines that dictate moral rules and regulations when conducting any type of research. Some of these guidelines that could be applicable to all research is explicated in The Craft of Research, (2^nd edition).

            One guideline is to avoid plagiarizing and stealing credit for someone else’s findings. This is vital for my research paper as I need to be careful when citing my sources properly. This also applies to my Sociology major because it delineates that if I make a finding during a Sociological experiment or research project, that the rightful credit be given to those responsible if it was not me. Another ethical consideration that is significant for my research project is to avoid misreporting or making up results. The topic of the Hazara-Pashtun conflict is very complex and the Hazaras have undoubtedly been victimized, but it is crucial that I ensure that all of my data is accurate and nothing is false. This also applies to my major because in Sociological experiments, it is extremely important that all results are genuine and valid and nothing is false as a result of inaccurate reporting. Also, another ethical concern in research is that the researcher does not hide the opposing view or change it to their own benefit. This applies to my research paper because it is important that I address the opposing view often expressed by Pashtuns and represent them as they are and I can analyze them through my counterarguments and rebuttals. Sociological research and experiments must be unbiased, therefore it is important to consider all sides correctly, instead of hiding or changing varied positions, in order to validly convey the gathered information.

            In life we are faced with innumerable ethical dilemmas that often force us to decide between right and wrong. One of the most important things that I’ve learned as an individual about being faced with an ethical dilemma is to consider how your decision will affect not only you, but others. Oftentimes, our decisions are centered around ourselves and what the consequences will be for ourselves. By neglecting the effects our ethical decisions will have on others, we run the risk of making a choice that wrongs the other individuals tied into it. Therefore, I learned that by being aware of the broader consequences that our decision will produce for others, I believe that we can work to make wiser choices in ethical dilemmas that truly abide by the rules of morality.

 

Didactic Memorialization and Mediating Truths of War

            The world of warfare and the military is complex and filled with a myriad of truths that often only those physically present know of. But different mediums such as documentaries and advertisements seek to mediate some aspect of the entire truth of the military and war to fit their purpose. The Invisible War, a documentary film, and army recruitment advertisements exhibit this difference in mediation of war truths.

            The Invisible War is a documentary that spreads awareness about the unfortunate prevalence of military sexual abuse and the military’s extremely poor way of responding to it through interviews from military sexual assault victims, their family members, congressmen, and military personnel. A documentary film aims to present “the facts about a person or event”. Thus, as a genre, documentaries are made with the intent to capture and mediate to the world a specific reality. That reality is often an ignored subject or one that isn’t well-known. In the case of The Invisible War, the subject of sexual abuse within the military was one that was often overlooked and not given the proper attention by the world.

Image: This documentary spreads awareness about the presence of military assault that leaves its victims scarred and often punished instead of helped.

            Oftentimes, documentaries give a call to action, which is what this film does. The Invisible War seeks to reach out to advocates and lawmakers with the hopes of diminishing the prevalence of rape within the U.S. military. Thus, The Invisible War successfully works to present the unfortunate truth of military sexual assault and the military’s unjust responses to cases through witness accounts. The documentary tells numerous women’s stories and one man’s story that ranged in detail of the actual assault and aftermath but their stories were unified by the fact that they all shared the trauma that came with rape and the military’s unresponsiveness to their pleas for help. By having real people tell their real stories of abuse and of being punished instead of helped by the military, the documentary provides an authentic outlet of an often neglected truth in the military. The film also features interview clips of victims saying they’d advise other women not to join the military (which is precisely the very opposite of what recruitment advertisements work to do) with the prevalence of rape and the way that the military approaches sexual assault. By showing how the military abuse left physical, mental, and emotional scars on the victims, the documentary highlights the trauma of the military experience which is not exhibited in military recruitment advertisements.

            Army recruitment advertisements seek to portray the positive facets of military involvement while they underplay the traumatic, physical reality of warfare. An advertisement is defined as “something that is shown or presented to the public to help sell a product or to make an announcement”. That is essentially what military recruitment ads work to do—sell the army to potential candidates who would be fit to join.  Unlike documentaries like The Invisible War, advertisements mediate the world of war in a light that would attract people to recruit by highlighting positive facets of the army like brotherhood, strength, patriotism, and fulfillment of duties. For redemptive purposes in which the military seeks to save itself from any evils and errors and to focus on the positive areas of the military, these advertisements resist mediating the traumatic and violent truths of the military. As The National Academies Press explicates, “the primary role of advertising in military recruiting is to support recruiting by influencing youth attitudes about military service (as reflected by measures of the propensity to enlist). Indeed, it seems likely that military advertising may be the most audible voice in society conveying information about careers and life in the military.” Recruitment advertisements use slogans and phrases such as “There’s strong, and then there’s army strong” and “more than a uniform” along with dramatic, moving music in the background and images of teamwork and patriotism to emotionally sway the attention of views to the positive parts of the military world.

            The very genre of advertisements makes it so that the attractive aspects of the army sphere are glorified while the atrocities are ignored because advertisements in general seek to enhance the image of the product/service being sold and convince consumers to be sold.  If military advertisements sought to reflect on the brutal reality of the military and war—the bloodshed, loss, incessant threat of death, PTSD, destruction, deprivation of individuality in exchange for the collective, etc.—the army would undeniably defeat the purpose of attracting recruits.

Image: Military ads feature messages of strength and power that come with joining the military as seen in the picture.

            While army recruitment ads are often targeted towards youth or those physically and mentally fit to be potential recruits, The Invisible War has a wider audience range. The Invisible War seeks to expose the hidden truth of army sexual abuse that innumerable women (and men) in the military are victims of. The audience may be deemed the general public, but it is important to note that it is specifically impactful for the youth and adults (who can be potential army recruits) and potentially for outlets of political power like government organizations who can work towards alleviating the problems of military sexual abuse and how the military responds to cases.

            The perspective portrayed in military recruitment advertisements differs from those that are delineated in The Invisible War. The military recruitment advertisements highlight the perspectives of proud, strong servicemen who advocate joining the army and the perspective in which the military is an esteemed outlet for self-improvement, unity, brotherhood, power, and dedication to one’s nation. Advertisements highlight the perspectives that exhibit the “good” military experiences instead of shedding light on the traumatic experiences such as PTSD and military sexual abuse—which is what The Invisible War depicts. The Invisible War depicts the perspectives of actual military abuse victims who have been ignored and often punished by the military system for speaking out and taking action against sexual assault attacks against them by their fellow army men. Through interviews and testimonials by victims, this documentary morally instructs viewers about this problem by exposing the unfortunate reality of the violence, sexual abuse, and trauma within the army—the perspective that military recruitment advertisements ignore to prevent deterring potential recruits from joining.

            The Invisible War and military recruitment advertisements mediate different truths of the military world. While The Invisible War works to mediate the unfortunate truth of military abuse and thus the physical and emotional trauma that comes with it, recruitment advertisements work to emphasize the positive side of the military and highlight the attractive truths such as gaining brotherhood and strength by joining the military. The Invisible War seeks to represent the violent and brutal nature of the military, while army recruitment advertisements resist mediating the traumatic sides to the military. Both the film and the advertisements are cultivated with pathos and are powerful in their messages—however, it is up to the viewer to decide which truths of the military and war he or she will follow.

War, Truth, and the Crisis of Knowledge

           

Image: The crisis of knowledge and the blurring of truth can wage a war within for witnesses of past warfare.

            Witnesses to war can often attest to the notion that when reflecting back on their memories, they’re left with gaps in their recollections and their comprehension of all that took place during the horrid past. This is precisely one of the most crippling facets of war—it forever leaves its victims with an incomplete comprehension of the details of that war. Ruth Kluger, in her novel, Still Alive, exhibits how the brutal systematic killing of Jews during the Holocaust continued to affect her from a young child living under Nazi regime to an accomplished adult free from the world of warfare.

            Kluger’s war experience left her with gaps in her memories and understanding of the past. The chaos of warfare with all its inexplicable violence and injustice, rob the victims from being able to holistically piece together their memories and understandings of the war. Throughout her life, the events of the Holocaust induced Kluger to be stuck in a crisis of knowledge despite having witnessed so much of the atrocities with her own eyes. She was deprived of the truth about her father’s death and her brother Schorschi’s whereabouts. She begins to wonder if her father died an inhumane death in the gas chambers. She continuously questioned how her beloved brother was and if he was alive. She hence lived a life trying to recall as much as she could but was never able to completely piece together facets of her past since the nature of the war did not allow it. Perhaps the people around her, especially her mother whom she shared a very rocky, complex relationship, wanted to protect her by depriving her of the truth behind her questions. But in regards to Kluger’s crisis of knowledge, some may argue that much of it was due to this complicated equation she shared with her mother. But it is vital to note that perhaps the Holocaust they lived through was the force that complicated their relationship. Like in all events of war, the Holocaust was filled with excruciating atrocities inflicted upon its victims and knowing of the truth of these atrocities might have been unbearable for those who lived at the time. Thus, witnesses to war are stuck in a crisis in which they can either be faced with the facts that may be unendurable to them or they can be forced to live a life wondering and struggling to uncover the undisclosed truths of their past. This is the unfortunate reality of war.

Image: As the ancient Greek playwright, Aeschylus, said, “The first casualty of war is truth”— a statement that many victims of war can attest to.

            However, sometimes witnesses to war are left with gaps in their memories not because the truth was not told to them, but because in the event of the war, they could not process the truth before them. In “How to Tell a True War Story”, Tim O’Brien delineates how the very experience of war can complicate the storytelling about the war after it concludes. While one can wish to search for some morals and bits of heroism and courage in a real war story, O’Brien makes it clear that a true war story is one of obscenity and evil and brutality—because that is the nature of war. It is this atrocious nature of war that can leave even the people who directly fought in it confused about what exactly occurred during the warfare. See when bullets are being shot around a witness and bombs are being exploded in every corner and their comrades are being savagely murdered in front of their eyes, their primary focus is not to absorb all the happenings in front of them, but it is rather, simply, to survive. Thus, after the horrid bloodshed ceases and they look back on what happened, they are often left unsure themselves because in the moment, the only truth that really mattered to them was that their lives were at great risk. Therefore, as discussed in Dr. Morse’s Humanities Core section, witnesses may recall that certain things “seemed” to have occurred instead of being able to say with full conviction that they happened. This is yet again the very cause of war’s nature. The truth is often blurry and interpreted differently by different witnesses because no war experience is the same.

            War can leave a person with gaps in their memories as was the case with Ruth Kluger and inevitably innumerable other victims of war. The horrid events of annihilation, destruction, separation that embody warfare can leave not just physical wounds but invisible wounds on its witnesses.Mental scars in the form of PTSD for example may forever affect the lives of some witnesses. For others, the continuous battle trying to recall the unknown truths serves as an invisible scar. The truths of their past can be obscured and the already burdensome task of remembering the war becomes more difficult as a result. Thus, warfare can cultivate an internal war for witnesses and that is the war from the crisis of knowledge and memory that they are left with every day.

Image: PTSD, one of the gravest mental consequences of war, is one of the invisible battles inflicted on war victims.

Research Project: The Persecution of the Hazaras

             I am doing my research project on the persecution of an ethnic minority group in Afghanistan and Pakistan named the Hazaras. For decades, these war-inflicted nations have been zones of internal conflict in addition to the overall greater war that’s affected the country as a whole. With this research project, I am hoping to discover the complex history behind the Hazara people in order to learn more about why they have been targeted in the past and continue to be so today. I hope to discover more about how a national war can spark inter-ethnic hostilities and essentially create a war a war amongst the fellow countrymen. I am interested in learning about what led to what is now called the Hazara genocide. Asides from looking a little different and being from the Shia minority sect, what exactly sparked the exclusion of Hazaras in Afghan society? What caused this divide between the historically dominant “Pashtun” group and the Hazaras—a conflict that is made evident in Khalid Hosseini’s award-winning novel, The Kite Runner? Why has the Hazara struggle been ignored and silenced by civilians in Afghanistan and Pakistan? How is this hostility preventing advancement in these nations? Who is to blame—the Taliban? Afghan government leaders? Civilians? Why has this massacre continued even in today’s supposed progressive day and age? What has been done in an effort to stop these senseless killings and raise awareness about the struggles these people are forced to endure every single day? I am dedicated to finding answers to these questions and more upon doing this project.

            I am expecting to conclude this project with greater insight on this ethnic minority group that has been a victim of a double war—a war against their nation by outsiders and a war against them by people inside their own nation. I am also hopeful that I will learn more about the overall reasoning behind why certain groups are targeted by the supposed “dominant” ethnic/racial groups in society—which has historically sparked many wars.

Image: Hazaras gather to protest centuries of targeted killings

            In conducting my research, I know I will encounter some challenges because this is a topic that has not been extensively covered in the past. It may be difficult to find first-hand accounts of the Hazara struggle from the Hazara community because Hazaras are so frequently silenced. I may also find it challenging to interpret some of the primary sources like “The Kite Runner” and a set of colorful drawings depicting massacres of Hazara people because they may not depict the Hazara perspective. Nevertheless, I plan on using these main primary sources and many secondary sources like scholarly journals, articles, and historical data in gathering information about this marginalized groups brutal battle. I plan on and hope to connect this topic to the topics of war that we have covered this past year in HumCore including some themes such as “witnesses of war,” “mediation of truth,” and “representing war,” and “cost of war.” I also wish to compare how the Hazara plight relates to the atrocities committed against other marginalized groups throughout history that we studied in HumCore including the Jews and African Americans. By connecting these themes and past events to this topic, I want to delineate how the overall nature of war is very similar worldwide regardless of the geographical location. I want to show how war is brutal and undeniably produces atrocious consequences. I can do so by working hard to discover more about this targeted ethnic group that represents the sickening nature of wars between natives of the same nation and hopefully by doing so, I can raise awareness about these victims of war that have unfortunately been neglected by most of the world.

Black, Red, and Green: A Look into Afghan Culture

         

Image: Afghan women dance the national dance, the attan, in their traditional clothing.

            Black, red, and green—each color of the flag of Afghanistan holds a significant meaning to the people that call Afghanistan home. Black symbolizes the dark past of a war-ridden nation. Red symbolizes the blood that was shed throughout each battle. Green, on the other hand, represents a hope for a brighter future despite the incessant warfare that crippled much of the once-prosperous nation. Afghans are known to be perseverant when it comes to defending their homeland, as Dr. Burke mentioned in her lectures about Afghanistan’s history with warfare. As an Afghan-American, I grew up witnessing the immense significance that Afghans attribute to honor or as we call it “ghairat.” A family’s honor and more importantly the nation’s honor are deemed vital to uphold for Afghans, regardless if they still live in Afghanistan or live in a foreign country. As the history of Afghanistan’s numerous victories attest to the fact that Afghans will do whatever it takes, physically or politically to defend their home. As Alexander the Great famously said, “May God keep you away from the venom of the cobra, teeth of the tiger, and revenge of the Afghans.”

            In addition to the crucial significance Afghans give to “ghairat” (honor), Afghanistan has a beautiful culture that is reflected in the traditional clothing. Contrary to many people’s beliefs, the famous blue burqa that veils the face (known as the “chadar”) attributed to Afghan culture is not the traditional clothing of the nation, but rather was imposed by the Taliban. Each pair of Afghan clothing is uniquely embedded with glitter, or as Afghan’s call it “zari,” mirrored sequins, coins, and vibrant colored threads. Traditionally, the women’s clothing is more intricate in detail and comes in various bright colors, whereas the male’s clothing is more neutral in color and plain in design. While women only wear Afghan clothing to special occasions because of the ostentatious design, men in Afghanistan usually wear their traditional clothes on a daily basis. Afghan women often adorn themselves with silver Afghan “kuchi” necklaces, headpieces, and rings that are all too often culturally appropriated nowadays by well-known brands such as ASOS and Urban Outfitters. To the Afghan women, these jewelry pieces represent the beauty of their rich history and culture.

            The national dance of Afghanistan, known as the “attan,” is also one of the most vital facets of Afghan culture. The attan which started in eastern Afghanistan in the Pashto speaking region began as a dance used in times of war. The attan was also danced in weddings and other celebratory gatherings. Men and women traditionally dance separately in this dance. The attan is danced to a traditional beat made specifically for it, sung with lyrics that commemorate the beauty of Afghanistan. The attan consists of people dancing in circle, with clapping, spinning, and jumping motions and props such as scarves are waved sometimes in addition. Like Afghan clothing, this facet of Afghan culture holds a deep meaning of the nation’s cultural past. It is not uncommon to hear Afghans claim that dancing the attan gives them a euphoric feeling of national pride and a strong love for their culture.

            While the detailed clothing, music, and dance are undoubtedly important aspects of the nation’s culture, it is imperative to realize that Afghan culture extends beyond that. Afghanistan to me is not just the birth place of my parents. It is the history of my family. It is resting place of my ancestors. It is the sanctuary of thousands of martyrs. It is the scene of my father’s war memories. It is home. The media often distorts the image of this beautiful nation and its people with their rich history and culture for its own political reasons. Images of terrorism, poverty, and anti-American sentiment is plastered on the media’s portrayal of Afghanistan. But, if the world takes a closer look at the real Afghanistan, they will realize that Afghanistan has one of the most hospitable, loving cultures. Afghanistan holds a beautiful past despite the destructive nature of its historical warfare. Through the collective efforts of the Afghan people, leaders, and neighboring allies, Afghanistan holds the potential for a beautiful future. As an Afghan-American who was born and raised in Los Angeles but whose heart is also greatly attached to the city of Herat, I yearn to see that beautiful future that will hopefully surpass the stories of the once-beautiful past that my parents tell me about.

Literary Journalism Pre-Drafting Plan

            The interview I conducted went very well as I believe I came out of the interview with a plethora of knowledge of not just someone’s personal story about a life-changing uprising, but also about a vital historical event that forever transformed the history of Herat, Afghanistan. I think the openness of my uncle in telling certain details of the story surprised me because I did not expect him to discuss that many of his memories about violent occurrences and bloodshed. I think next time, I would set up a video camera to record his facial expressions, pauses, and changing posture when telling his story because I think that would add an interesting element to the literary journalism piece overall. A follow-up question I’d like to ask is how this interview that brought up such brutal memories affected him—whether adversely or in a positive way—because I know that this event (24^th Hoot uprising) is one that my uncle and anyone else in my family do not really bring up unless asked about.

            I knew that my uncle had numerous different war stories from growing up in a nation inflicted with war, but after this interview, I realized that within story he chose to tell me—the story of the 24^th Hoot uprising—lies many stories of their own. My interview subject told me stories about internal battles and changes when he experienced certain things throughout the uprising. He was a young boy—aged 13—at the time of the war event, but the things he saw forever changed him in that they cultivated in him a desire to help people in whichever way he can—a quality that I see very evident in him today. The events also made him realize that he needs to leave Afghanistan and ultimately pushed him and his family towards escaping a nation ridden with bloodshed—which eventually led my family to immigrate to America (but the story stops after the desire to escape is established). This story is thus, a story of identity transformation and a story of how resisting ultimately led someone to realize the state of his country had gotten so depleted and corrupted with war that he had leave for the mere purpose of making it out alive.

            I think towards the end of the interview my uncle put a lot of emphasis on how this event changed how he viewed people in need and made him want to help innocent victims of war and corruption in whichever way he could after leaving and how witnessing such horrific brutality affected him. Therefore, I want to write about a story of his identity transformation but also include elements of how what began as resistance made him see his war-torn reality in a new light—one that made him realize that there was no place in Afghanistan for him and his family if they wanted to survive. My uncle has a lot of different war stories, including his immigration story, but when I asked him what he’d personally like to tell, he suggested we talk about this particular event because it not only changed him but it was also crucial to the resistance movements in Afghanistan overall. Thus, I want to highlight how in the midst of resistance and violence, as a young boy who was exposed to horrid violence, my uncle’s identity and outlook on war and resistance changed and shaped him to the person he is today—which is reflected in his personality and lifestyle.

            Like in any interview, the interviewer still doesn’t have every single answer to the questions in their minds. I think after conducting this interview, I don’t know how telling the story and freshening the memories of the violence and injustice he witnessed affects him. I wonder if talking about it eases the burden of holding innumerable memories of the events to himself. Or, does talking about it bring up pain from the past and images he may have tried to erase from his mind? These are questions that I don’t know the answer to, but could probably get the answer to by following up.

            In order to better show my subject’s story, I need additional research on the historical/political history behind the uprising. I think by researching the nature of the Communist-infiltrated government in Afghanistan and how it came to power and how citizens were affected by it, I could supplement my uncle’s account of the history and better show his story, rather than merely telling it. The two books I checked out from the library contain valuable information about this history and the political nature of this uprising in Herat, and therefore, I could use those books and perhaps some online resources to conduct this additional research.

Image: Herat’s War Museum showcases exhibits that depict the 24th Hoot Uprising

 

The Beautiful Lie

            My mother was 3 months old when her mother died of cancer. But for half of her life, she did not know she had lost her mother. To her, her mother was alive and well, which was the beautiful lie her family had fed her growing up.

            When my grandmother past away in August of 1978, my grandfather was left with six adult sons, a seven-year-old daughter, and a newborn, my mother, Veda. But days following my grandmother’s burial, my mother was separated from her siblings and father and was taken into custody by her grandmother, who outlived her daughter. This was my grandmother’s dying mother’s wish on her death bed.

            As my mother narrated this story to me, I noticed how she worked hard to recollect the pieces of this story that she had acquired as the truths of her life had gradually unfolded with time. Perhaps the most vital facet of this story, she tells me, is my grandmother’s plea to her own mother as she lay in her hospital bed in Kabul, Afghanistan. Moments after the doctor informed my grandmother that her cancer had spread too far and it was too late to save her, my grandmother called her mother to her bedside. As she held onto her mother, who refused to accept the news of her daughters expected death, my grandmother asked her mother to raise her newborn daughter after she died. Knowing that her husband would be unable to raise their daughter without her, my grandmother wholly entrusted her daughter to her mother—making her promise never to raise a hand on her daughter. When she tells me this story, my mother always emphasizes that part. After her mother took her last breath, my great-grandmother returned to her home in Herat, Afghanistan for the funeral processions and to pick my mother up and take her to her new home.

            Growing up, my mother explains to me, she believed that her grandmother, whom she lovingly called “Bobo,” was her blood mother. The story she was told was that her father had passed away and she was an only child who lived with her mother. She tells me how she always wondered why her mother looked older than her friends’ mothers, but she never questioned that her life was any different than what it appeared. Despite the occasional taunts of having an older looking mother and not having a father by her classmates, my mother never felt like she lacked anything in her life. As for her father, he would check in on her, but she was told that he was just her maternal uncle, her “Kaka,” she explains. Until she was 16, my mother believed that everything in her life was as it seemed. However, upon reaching 16, which was typical age in which a young girl could get married in Afghanistan, the truths in her life began to unravel.

            The day her father came to her home and asked her grandmother for his daughter back was the day that forever changed my mother’s life. He told my great-grandmother that my mother was old enough now and that it was his duty as her father to take on the responsibility of getting her married. My grandmother was conflicted. On one hand, she couldn’t separate a father from his biological daughter and on the other hand, she couldn’t bare to separate from the precious granddaughter she had raised and become so deeply attached to. But, she realized she could not lie to my mother forever and chose then to reveal the truth that was hidden for so many years.

            The truth came like a storm, stirring up confusion, anger, fear and unprecedented change in my mother’s life. Following her grandmother’s wishes, my mother moved into her father’s house and was introduced to her siblings for the first time. She tells me that the first night of separation from her grandmother was excruciatingly painful for both of them and as she cried herself to sleep the following nights, it became clear to her father that she needed her grandmother. So, upon the request of her father, her grandmother moved into a small house on the same plot of land as her father’s home. My mother describes the place as a simple house, not like the more extravagant home her father and his new wife and children lived in. But, the simplicity of the home never bothered my mother. For her, her grandmother’s presence was all she could ever ask for.

            At the age of 16, her marriage was arranged with my father, and shortly after she moved to America with him, leaving behind her grandmother who was diagnosed with cancer soon after. Little did she know that her emotional goodbye to her grandmother before she left Afghanistan would be the last time she would ever see her.

            When we took a family trip to Afghanistan in 2004, I remember watching my mother sob hysterically as she embraced her family who hid her grandmother’s death from her for years, in order to protect her. It wasn’t until years later when I had matured that my mother revealed her story to me. When I ask her if she’s angry at her family for lying to her for years, she looks at me with a million feelings reflecting in her eyes, but always explains how this lie was the most beautiful lie of her life as this lie saved her from being deprived of a mother all her life and this lie cultivated the undying bond between the one she calls her “everything”—her “Bobo.”

Winter Quarter’s Lasting Impact

              

Hammontee, Danny. Make Peace.Digital Image. The People’s Voice. The People’s Voice. 17 Oct. 2014. Web. 28 Feb 2016.

               From the very start of the course, we humanities core students were taken on an in-depth journey learning about the multiplex world of war, exploring concepts that changed our perspectives on the consequences of war. This quarter in particular has been incredibly eye-opening for me. The topics we discussed in this quarter—from the anti-slavery movement to torture to Argentina’s Dirty Wars to Cold War society—have edified me on critical historical subjects that  are undoubtedly relevant to our world and the moral crises we continue to face about the war sphere.

               This quarter has allowed me to become more educated about the anti-slavery movement through our lectures, discussions, and compelling readings. Reading slave narratives and analyzing the history of the Civil War and the journey to abolition have allowed me to gain greater insight on the incredible struggle former slaves were inflicted with. In addition, Professor Fah’s lectures and our discussions in class allowed me to learn about the vital concept of historical contingency and examine how war-time society marginalized certain groups of people.

“By educating ourselves and developing opinions, we can create the change we yearn to see implemented in our nation.”

               One of the most crucial impacts this quarter has had on me is that it not only heightened my understanding of the complexities of torture,  but it also strengthened by opposition to it. Before officially learning about the concept of torture, I believed torture was undoubtedly inhumane and should not be used unless it was the absolute only possible way of saving a nation from destruction and death. I learned that people are becoming desensitized to torture through torture-tainment which distorts the truth behind the gruesome act. As a Muslim-American, I grew up hearing about the atrocities that took place in Guantanamo Bay, but this quarter made me see these atrocities in a more gruesome light. The personal accounts of torture in the reader, the images from lecture, and descriptions of torture chambers made me realize that torture exceeded the violation of human rights in terms of physical abuse. Torture was not just physical—it was mental, emotional, and spiritual. Torturers used horrific methods of sexual torture to scar prisoners. In addition, they abused one of the prisoner’s greatest emotional strengths—their religion. Through sexual abuses, deprivation of religious rights, and terrifying threats to the safety of the prisoner’s family, torturers assaulted prisoners on every possible level that surpassed physical maltreatment. It was this gained knowledge on the horrid complexity of torture that further fortified my complete objection to this inhumane act.

Somodevilla, Chip. End Torture. Digital Image. Bring Me the News. Bring Me the News, 10 Dec. 2014. Web. 28 February 2016.

               Additionally, this quarter has introduced me to the topic of the dirty wars in Argentina. Before taking this class, I had never heard of Argentina’s past with black operations during the Dirty War and disappeared civilians (“desaparecidos”). I found this topic extremely interesting and it made me want to learn more about these secret kidnappings and killings. Through lectures that discussed the history behind these events and through The Official Story, I realized how secret political operations can have a scarring impact on not just victims, but families of victims and the social sphere as a whole.

               Prior to this quarter, I saw the Cold War as a critical clash between the warring ideologies of communism versus capitalism. But The Manchurian Candidate and our discussions in section as well as Professor Szalays’ lecture made me see the deeper and hidden truths behind the Cold War. I not only learned about the anxieties and fears of rumored Communist brainwashing operations, but I learned of the manipulation of the consumerist world. This made me reflect about war with a greater sense of critical thinking and research instead of merely seeing what is explicitly presented about the war to the public.

               This quarter has not only educated me on previously unfamiliar concepts of war, but it has also made me realize how imperative it is to cultivate a deeper understanding of war. By gaining this deeper insight on war, I can develop my own opinion on facets of war that are greatly debated such as torture.  In a world where information is at our finger tips and just a Google search away, we can develop our understanding of war affairs through credible sources and researching the history behind it. By educating ourselves and developing opinions, we can create the change we yearn to see implemented in our nation. Our opinions and our efforts can transform the injustice, inequities, and atrocities that undoubtedly exist in our governments—especially in areas that concern the complex world of warfare.

Torture-tainment’s Crippling Effects

              

Zac. 10 Most Shocking Controversies Surrounding Grand Theft Auto. Digital Image. TheRichest. The Richest, 09 Oct. 2015. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

               As I watch my fourteen year old brother playing his daily dose of typical teenage boy video games like Grand Theft Auto 5 and Black Ops, I am astonished at his nonchalant reaction to the seemingly realistic violence and torture scenes. This scenario has become common with the increasing prevalence of torture in entertainment—known as torture-tainment—in our post 9/11 world. From video games to television shows to movies, we find torture being practiced in the plot lines of our everyday entertainment. We often overlook it because mainstream media has stitched torture in the fabric of our entertainment culture, making it second nature to us. That is essentially what torture used in entertainment does—it desensitizes us to torture and makes us believe that torture actually works.

               Torture-tainment has a massive influence in society’s perception of and reaction to torture in that it desensitizes people to the atrocious act. People of all ages are presented with representations of torture with a simple click of a remote. As torture became more prevalent in our post 9/11 nation, as explicated in my previous blog post, “The Changing Face of Torture in Post 9/11 America,” the entertainment industry began to increasingly use torture in our everyday entertainment without us realizing it. We regular citizens are not exposed to the reality of actual torture that has occurred in the past and is possibly occurring to this date and the little images such as those of Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo limit our ability to fully comprehend its gravity. Instead, we rely on the media’s representation of torture which glorifies and glamorizes torture by making it a hero versus villain dynamic. Torturers are labeled and presented as heroes who only inflict pain on detained individuals in order to save the day and uphold our nation’s security. Homeland is a significant example of a show that normalized and justifies torture. In this TV series, Carrie Mathison, a CIA officer, believes that Marine Sgt. Nicholas Brody, who was held captive as a prisoner of war by Al-Qaeda was “turned” by the terrorists and is now threatening to the nation’s safety. Thus, with this plot line, Brody is brutally tortured with by the CIA who wants to weaken him to confess his involvement with the terrorists. CIA agents like Mathison torture Brody using methods such as blasting loud music, bright flashing lights, physical assaults while being handcuffed, and prevention of sleep—all on the premise that their torture is justified because they are doing it to uphold the nation’s security.  Thus, torture is exhibited as a normal facet component necessary for our safety. In her Washington Post opinion article titled “Television convinces Americans that torture is okay,” Catherine Rampell delineates how Brig. Gen. Patrick Finnegan, former dean of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, explicated to a reporter, “The kids see it, and say, ‘If torture is wrong, what about 24?” We find ourselves immune to graphic scenes present in shows such as 24, because the media has deeply and prevalently crafted torture into our sources of entertainment to the point where it has become normalized and justified in our minds.

QatzelOk. Torture-tainment from Hollywood’s War Lobby. Digital Image. PoliticsForum. PoliticsForum, 07 Feb. 2008. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

               Torture used in entertainment makes us believe that torture is an effective practice that works, when in reality it does not. As explicated by Rampell in the Washington Post, The Senate report’s top conclusion was: “The use of CIA’s ‘enhanced interrogation techniques was not an effective means of acquiring intelligence or gaining cooperation from detainees.” Robin Kirk’s article “Is Pop Culture Making Us ‘Meh’ About Torture” in Dame Magazine, “On TV, torture always works. Not so in real life. In the CIA’s own words to Senate investigators, torture “failed to elicit detainee cooperation or produce accurate intelligence.” However, in our popular entertainment culture, torture almost always works. It seems that torture is an infallible solution to the torturers problems. In reality, we know that is far from being true. In Eric Deggan’s NPR article, FBI agent and interrogation expert Joe Navarro explains, “I’ve done thousands of interviews, and I can tell you, none of [the TV torture stuff] works.” Instead experts like Navarro believe that humane treatment of detainees and empathy is more effective. But torture-tainment’s portrayal of the unerring practice impedes us from realizing this.

“We may not realize it, but we are becoming desensitized to a dehumanizing practice.”

               Some may argue that torture as depicted in entertainment is harmless and is not capable of affecting how torture is thought of and actually used in real life. While torture-tainment may not directly influence torture policies and legislation, it undoubtedly affects our mentality on torture. Rampell’s article explicates, “repeated exposure to such story lines can affect not just public attitudes but also the behaviors of people who face decisions about whether to use coercion in their daily lives.” In fact, the previous dean of the U.S. Military Academy met with the creators of 24 because he believed the show’s usage of torture “had adversely affected the training and performance of real American soldiers.” Seeing torture being glorified in movies and shows as a tool for protecting the U.S. can spark nationalistic feelings in citizens and soldiers. These feelings may encourage them to support the use of torture and for soldiers to further brutalize torture treatments.  Thus, the argument that torture-tainment does not have the capacity to influence the actions and feelings of people towards torture is inaccurate.

               The entertainment industry’s portrayal and inclusion of torture in movies, television, video games, music videos, and other popular mediums influences how we perceive torture. We may not realize it, but we are becoming desensitized to a dehumanizing practice. By glamorizing torture as an effective government tool, the entertainment world is inhibiting us from standing against torture and working to eradicate it and is instead promoting the atrocity. Therefore, in order to end the cruel institution of torture practices in our government, we need to recognize the heinous reality of torture instead of falling for torture-tainment’s manipulation of the vicious operation that is torture.

The Changing Face of Torture in Post 9/11 America

“Demonstrator Maboud Ebrahimzadeh lies on the pavement after his ordeal in a simulation of waterboarding outside the Justice Department in Washington November 5, 2007. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque”

Lamarque, Kevin. Untitled. Digital Image. Reuters. Reuters, 04 Nov. 2010. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

              After the nation was struck with tragedy on September 11, the political, social, and cultural nature began to see changes. From the rise of Islamophobia, to the strengthened security systems in airports, the country adopted certain measures and mentality that was previously foreign to them. One such measure that became a critical subject following 9/11 was the issue of torture—specifically the use of torture on detainees suspected to be involved with the attacks.

            Within a few days of 9/11, Congress approved the use of “all necessary and appropriate force” against countries, groups, and people who were suspected in helping facilitate the attacks and this decision became the legal basis for much of the Bush administrations following actions in regard to detainees. Less than a month after, the U.S. and British forces initiated airstrikes against Al-Qaeda and Taliban camps in Afghanistan and it was here that interrogation methods were first developed for detainees. According to Barton Gellman, grave uses of violence and force were utilized in order “to establish dominance and fear and uncertainty in the mind of the person they’re capturing.” Questions on whether the Geneva Conventions applied to these detainees were raised and as illustrated in our reading of the “Memorandum to the President,” it was deemed better for the nation to not apply the protections.

            The war on terror was considered “a new kind of war,” that surpassed the traditional idea of war and instead posed an imminent threat to the safety of the nation. As Bradford Berenson, associate White House counsel to George Bush (2001-2003), explicated, “Everybody had to assume at that time that further attacks on the scale of 9/11, or perhaps even worse, were planned. It was these assumptions and the panic of further potential terrors that led the government to develop its tactics of employing torture in Guantanamo Bay prison camps in order to extract information from detainees. The “ticking bomb case,” as we learned in our readings from Dershowitz and Scarry, was used as a defense for using torture to extract information from people who were suspected to know about potential attacks from weapons of mass destruction that would lead to destruction and civilian deaths.

Gormlie, Frank. “Indefinite Detains at Guantanamo.” OB Rag. OB Rag, 23 July 2015. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

            While political and legal justifications were offered for torture, the morality on the usage of torture tactics was still at question. As evidence of cruel tactics such as sexual humiliation methods, brutal physical violence, deprivations of certain religious rights such as prayer and the reading the Qur’an, used in Abu Ghraib prisons and Guantanamo surfaced, many were outraged at the intense degradation of detainees who were stripped of basic human rights. It became evident that torture was not only used to extract information, but also for the amusement of soldiers and for the satisfaction of punishing the suspected detainees—many of whom were proven innocent. The extent of torture utilized and the type of tactics such as the sexual degradation and the disrespect of the Qur’an—actions that were deemed unnecessary and excessive for extracting information, leads one to question if perhaps the actions were used as a way of exhibiting occidental superiority over the inferior Orientals, which we learned about in the “Orientalism” reading. The dehumanization of detainees served as the “more civilized” U.S.’s exertion of power. These inhumane torture methods and attempted justifications for these cruel actions are immoral and will continue to be immoral in my opinion.

            While it is undeniable that the safety of citizens should always be prioritized, that does not infer that torture is the method for protecting citizens for this inhumane practice does not instill a sense of safety amongst citizens, but rather depletes the basic human rights of tortured beings. Although I was already against the usage of torture, Scarry’s phenomenonological analysis of torture further opened my eyes to the extreme impact of the aversive practice on a tortured person. The magnitude of the violations on human rights and the severity of physical and psychological torture are enough to solidify the immorality of torture, whether its post 9/11 torture implemented in the U.S. or anywhere else.