Terrorist

Brody Ford
1. Freddy Krueger. ISIS. Taliban. The United States? In a world where history is
decided by the victor, and good and evil are subjective terms, the word terror conjures
different images for different people. Since the term terrorist was first coined, it has been
used to refer to a variety of groups and individuals, most with highly varying ideologies.
So, why is it that when we hear the word, we tend to think of someone violent and
bearded, guided by Islamic principles? The United States has spent the last decade in a
multi-national conflict against the abstract idea of terror: a word commonly understood
only through our governments concept of evil.
2. First appearing in the early fifteenth century French vernacular, terror was
defined as a feeling of intense fear, dread, or alarm. By the revolution of 1794, the word
terrorism was coined to refer to government intimidation, or the systematic use of terror
as a policy. As time went on, terrorism evolved to mean the use of violence and
intimidation in pursuit of political aims, regardless of the motives driving the action.
Towards the end of the 20th century, the term terrorism and terrorist were politicized,
becoming heavily associated with groups like Hamas, the IRA, and other paramilitary
organizations with no national backing and, often, malicious intent. By definition, all acts
of war are terrorism, but through this shift of common association in the West, terrorism
became commonly understood to mean acts of war that werent officially sanctioned by
governments. This colloquial use strengthened the institutional power of governments,
and de-legitimized any groups opposing the ideologies of those in power. The publics
fear of such groups was solidified, ensuring minimal political resistance if military action
against them was determined necessary.
3. Since 9/11, the idea of a looming terrorist attack has had a constant foothold in
our countrys political arena, and we can see that reflected in the language we as a people
use. The use of the word terrorism has tripled, and the label terrorist has almost as
much power now as communist did during the Red Scare, when public fear of the idea
and implementation of communism drove the United States into multiple armed conflicts
and incited national paranoia. Americans fear of terrorism has been propagandized and
manipulated into the buzzword of terrorist to demonize any foreign militants with which
the government disagrees. The widespread use of this language instills the American
public with a superficial understanding of international issues while perpetuating an Us
vs. Them mentality and justifying military actions worldwide. In the United States, the

most common use of the term terrorist is propaganda, and detracts from the truth that all
war is terrorism. The line between invader and liberator is one of interpretation that
should be determined by the collective values of a society, not the definition forced upon
them by their government. Who are the real terrorists?