Perspectives

Historical perspectives

In his article “You Can’t Go Home Again”, Tariq Ramadan makes a reference to the terrorist attacks on 11th of September, 2001 (also known as 9/11). The September 11 attacks were a series of coordinated attacks attributed to the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda. Four passenger planes were hijacked, with two of them crashing in the North and South towers of the World Trade Center in New York. Another plane crashed into the Pentagon. These terrorist attacks are considered the deadliest ones in human history. The United States responded by launching what was referred to as the “War on Terror” which led to the invasion of Afghanistan.

The September 11 attacks prompted a number of hate crimes against Muslims in both America and Europe. Authorities condemned these attacks, but in many places, Muslims found themselves targets of prejudice and discrimination. Ramadan’s article was written in December 2001, only a few months after the attac...