Effects of tragedy at Fort Hood

At least 545 Fort Hood soldiers have died in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Now 13 more soldiers are dead and 30 more are injured, all at the hands of one of their own, Major Nidal Malik Hasan. 

It is unfair to judge the entire Muslim community on the murderous actions of one man, but there is no doubt that it will be increasingly difficult for some Americans to trust their Muslim American neighbors in the wake of the Fort Hood Massacre.

As he opened gun fire on his fellow troops, Hasan, a Muslim-American, is said to have yelled “Allah hu Akbar,” which means “God is great,” in Arabic. 

The Fort Hood massacre has left us all in shock. 

Why would this man commit such a crime? 

Was this mass shooting just another case of a psychotic individual who finally snapped, or was it a terrorist plot hidden before our very eyes?

Preliminary investigation into Hasan’s past has indicated that while he was growing up in Virginia he was not a devout Muslim, but he became more so as he moved up the Army chain of command. 

If it is proven to be that true that this was indeed a terrorist act, an even more important question might be whether Fort Hood was just an aberration or a sign of things to come. 

Our troops have fought so valiantly to keep the war on terror outside of our borders, but the tragedy at Fort Hood could mean that it has already infiltrated our land.

Ironically, the American values of freedom for all and acceptance of diversity, which make our country so great, have also made us vulnerable to attacks from within.

It is terrifying that Hasan was born and raised in America, and even worse, was serving as a psychiatrist in the U.S. Army. 

In an interview with Time Magazine, Bruce Hoffman, a terrorism expert at Georgetown University, said that he used to describe terrorism as “part of some identifiable, organized conspiracy.” 

Hoffman now says that “the new strategy of al-Qaeda is to empower and motivate individuals to commit acts of violence completely outside any terrorist chain of command.” 

If the new face of terrorism in America is individuals like Hasan, who have no relation to a terrorist chain of command and act on influence of the al-Qaeda, then the war on terror has taken a deadly turn for the worse.

Among American Muslims, those most affected by this tragedy are those serving in the military.  They fear that their relationship with their fellow soldiers of other religious persuasions will grow even more strained. 

The Army actively recruits Muslim Americans because of their language skills and cultural knowledge of the Middle East. 

It might be impossible to know if there are others who feel the same as Hasan and will act out, but there are certainly Muslim American soldiers that deserve our honor and appreciation and that sometimes are overlooked. 

Army reservist Captain Eric Rahman shared in a recent New York Times article the story of Navy Seal Lieutenant Michael A. Monsoor, a Muslim American who was awarded the Medal of Honor after he died saving a team member’s life during a firefight in Iraq. 

Unfortunately, because of this act of violence, Muslim American soldiers will undeservingly receive more scrutiny from authorities and, worse, possible backlash from a citizenry that is angry and apprehensive of its personal security. 

Fort Hood is a grim reminder that if such atrocity can happen in a secure environment, it can very well happen anywhere.