Yasir Qadhi – In Group Bias – Terrorists vs Freedom Fighters

			The second thing to be aware of is something that psychologists have called in group bias. In group
bias in group bias basically means and again, we're all guilty of this, these are things, there's
nothing wrong with it as human beings do this.
		

			In group bias, as the term implies, implies, approval refers to the fact that you are always biased
towards your own group. And you make excuses for your own group. And you look positively at your own
group, versus those who are outside of it. And again, there's nothing wrong with this. It is human
nature, that what your group does,
		

			if the same thing were to be done by somebody outside, you will problematize it. But when it's done
by your side, your people, your group, in your minds, you find the justification, right? Now, why is
this important? Because we are the other when it comes to the society, and things that our religion
has done, or the Prophet system has done, or has happened in the Sahabas time. This is not in group
bias, we have in group bias, when we look at those things, we find an easy justification from our
paradigm, it makes sense. But realize, if the same things had happened against us, we would have not
found justification for those things. And there's nothing wrong with this is human nature. In group
		

			bias, you do it. And the point is that whoever you identify with, you will always look at in a more
sympathetic light. And whoever you think of as the other, as outside of you, you don't identify it,
you will dismiss you will criticize you will exaggerate. And I think the most obvious example for
this in our times, is the issue of terrorism, and the tactics of terrorism and the counter tactics
of terrorism, this whole debate for the last 15 years, we as the Muslim community have been put in
such an awkward position. Because outsiders don't understand what is going on. In our side of the
world. We don't agree with the tactics of those terrorists, but we understand why what they're
		

			doing, they're doing it, but the people outside, don't even understand that. And when they do even
worse to have harnessed on to Iraq to Syria, they don't see that they're doing anything wrong. This
is called in group bias when they do Guantanamo, when they do invasion when they do if this and that
for them. Oh, but they did 911 Oh, but they everything is justified. This is include bias, you make
a million excuses for your own. Right. And everything that your group does, it just falls into place
naturally. Oh, but that's we couldn't help but it's self defense, those guided missiles, those
drones, I mean, what do you expect us to do? Oh, but if they do a drone on us, or if they do more
		

			than this, Oh, ha, that's terrorism, even though that's the you know, the classic issue of defining
terrorism and I've, I have a whole class I teach I used to teach at Rhodes about terrorism and, and
whatnot, and we go into academic detail. And again, let's forget Muslim terrorism, because it gets
very awkward speaking about that, let's talk about something everyone, everybody else should be
aware of the IRA in the 80s and 90s, versus the United Kingdom, the IRA, the Irish Republican Army,
right? The Irish Republican Army was a group that is deemed terrorists by the British government, in
the 80s, and 90s. In the 70s. Actually, it declared war against the United Kingdom, and their list
		

			of grievances once pages and pages and pages dating back to 15 150. No exaggeration, the Irish and
the British did not get along, if you don't know for a long period of time, colonialism and
plundering and * and pillaging. So there's a long list of grievances that the IRA have. And in
after World War Two, the IRA say enough is enough. We're going to fight for our freedom. And anyone
who's above the age of 35, you guys probably have no clue. There were bombs being set off in London,
year after year, and he timed there was a bomb. Muslims didn't even bat an eyelid. We know we're not
guilty for those bombs. Everybody knew who's doing the bombs in London, who's doing the bombs in
		

			across England, who's doing it, Ira. Now you asked the IRA, and they're like this is justified
because of all that they have done. The irony here in America. The Ra was the legitimate
organization of some of our main congressmen and senators now, were actually members of the IRA, and
they would raise funds for the IRA. And this is well known and they don't even deny it. Because from
their perspective, this is legitimate resistance. And when the IRS was asked about these terrorism
tactics, they would always on you know, blatant, you know, television they will justify say, Hey,
you're doing much worse to us.
		

			There's a war of independence that we are fighting against you guys. And
		

			when I took a class with Tony Blair, if you remember my article that I wrote, I actually brought
this up with Tony Blair directly of the double standards of the IRA, and the quote unquote, you
know, Muslim terrorists or Islamic terrorists out there. The point being,
		

			if we can understand one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter, this simple adage, if we
can understand this, and we see it constantly, we need to understand whether we like it or not, some
of the tactics that we know, in our textbooks, we're looking at it from one side of the aisle, and
the other guys are looking at it from the other side of the aisle, you're not going to be able to
justify or contextualize, it really depends on who do you sympathize with? What side do you consider
yourself to be a part of, if you're Irish, even if you don't agree with the tactics of the IRA,
overall, you're more sympathetic to them, then you are to the other side. Because you know what
		

			they've done to your people, right? And so even if you say, Oh, they shouldn't have put a bomb in
central London, but and then you go on with that, but Right, whereas the other side, they're now
looking at those grievances, and they're like, Oh, these people were killed. And you cannot bring
the British and the Irish to fully agree on those tactics that happened in the 70s 80s and early
90s. Right, it's not gonna happen, if you can to get two people of the same skin color, and the same
Christian religion to understand, do you really think you're gonna get a brown skinned Muslim from
the middle east of Pakistan, and somebody from to really understand the tactics of 1400 years ago,
		

			we have to be pragmatic and realistic, and stop telling ourselves fairy tales, you cannot be taught
a two minute response that will salute solidly refute some of the issues of our Sierra, against
those who criticize it. If you can't even have a Western or understand the IRA, do you think they're
going to understand something 1500 years ago, in a different place, and time and in particular,
different religion and different system altogether. And again, all of this needs to be done because
such as life, this is politics, that's war, just like the NRA has its views and whatnot, and the
other side has its views. That's what happens when you're fighting a battle. And in the end of the
		

			day, like I said, it really does depend on which side you're looking at and where your sympathies
and loyalties lie our own country, the United States of America, it justifies everything that it
does in the name of tactics, it justifies everything is morally correct. And we all feel very
ambivalent about that because we know it's not correct. What do you think most of our people here
feel?
		

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