How Jamal Khashoggi’s Death Impacts Arabs in America

posted on: Oct 24, 2018

By: Udochi Esomonu/Arab America Contributing Writer      The barbaric and heinous murder and dismemberment of Saudi native, Jamal Khashoggi, has shocked the world. As a champion of the values of free press, free speech, and government accountability, Khashoggi’s death has sparked a larger conversation regarding the strict suppression of voices in critique of the government and its choices by governing systems themselves. Alongside the discussion of free speech, his death has also touched on the larger issue of the portrayal of Arabs in the media. Arabs have been long associated with a barbarian, oppressive, and inhumane nature of life, and Khashoggi’s death and the details surrounding his death have only resurfaced a unique opportunity for non-Arabs to engage in the persistence of such stereotypes. Has such a murder of such a prominent outspoken journalist exacerbated this barbaric stereotype of Arabs and the Arab world in general or has it no influence on one’s perspective at all?

On October 2, 2018, Jamal Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi Arabian journalist and Washington Post columnist, entered the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, and never exited. For days, he was neither seen nor heard from. It wasn’t until 17 days later, that Khashoggi’s death was admitted and was verbally addressed. It is widely believed that his murder and dismemberment occured on the same day he entered the Saudi consulate in Turkey.

In 2017, he began writing for The Washington Post. In The Post, he openly criticized the domestic and regional political actions made by the Saudi government. His critiquing of the government led to great tensions between him and the government. For Khashoggi, having worked extensive years within Saudi authority, he was well aware of the need for reform and took the liberty to engage in such ideals through journalism. The more Khashoggi chose to write, the more of a threat he grew to become. As a journalist, Khashoggi exercised what he believed to be essential to freedom: a free voice. As he pushed the envelope and advocated for democratic ideals, he quickly became a symbol of the more liberal Western idea of freedom and individual political agency, that was not conducive with the structure of Saudi governance.

Jamal Khashoggi was an example–one of many–of an Arab who worked tirelessly to free himself and others from the strict binds of governance. Will people around the world begin to see and be shown the efforts made by many to alleviate such conditions or will the world continue to be fed an array of negative stereotypes that have justified long term marginalization and derailment in society? Will the actions performed by the Saudi government to suppress and curtail the voices of its people be seen as a separate and unique incident? Or will this be seen as a greater characteristic of Arab governance?

“Unfortunately, I do not think that this incident will challenge the negative image of Arabs in the U.S….Studies have shown that terrorist attacks committed by Muslims receive 357% more media coverage than those by non-Muslims. This is not unique to the United States but common in the UK as well. A focus on the story of an Arab journalist killed by an Arab government fits within this larger framework. The Saudi government’s brutal murder overshadows a story about a brave journalist. The existing framing of Arabs and Muslims as security threats and as incompatible with liberal democracies is so strong and powerful that the few stories that challenge this framing does little to change it, says Evelyn Alsultany, Associate Professor at the University of Michigan, and expert on the representation of Arabs and Muslims and the anti-Arab and anti-Muslim rhetoric in the U.S.

As Evelyn alluded to, Khashoggi’s death is more than just a murder of a human being, it is a murder that has sent a message to further silence those in the world, who have been and are fighting for the integrity and strength of their individual voices, opinions, and ideals. Unfortunately, Jamal Khashoggi became an example of what it looks like for suppressive governance to successfully halt the efforts of its own people to reach personal liberation.

For years, many Arab natives have been fighting to alleviate the suppressive nature of their political society. This is a fight that will not stop until victory is won. In societies where there is no tolerance from criticism, let alone journalistic freedom and expression which allows opportunities for a form of agency that self-driven, it is the challengers of authority who provide the hope for the voiceless. Khashoggi’s bravery and persistence, which unfortunately resulted in his brutal murder, will continue to pave the road for the fight that will continue to be fought.

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