RSS Feed MenuWhen Aasiya Hassan suggested to her husband in 2001 that he should start a TV channel dedicated to correcting stereotype views of Americans towards Muslims, she had no idea she would someday be its most newsworthy item.
Her hubby, Muzzammil Hassan, agreed, and founded Bridges TV – a small channel based in Orchard Park, New York.
The pair did what they could to present Muslims in a good light, refuting many of the negative ideas about Muslims. They tried to put into historical and cultural context, characteristics of Sharia law that offend so many non-Muslims: amputating hands for theft, stoning women to death for adultery, the necessity of women covering their flesh so it won’t be visible to male eyes, the dominance of males in Muslim society, lack of education for girls, the practice of “honour killing” of women for a variety of infractions, and a whole package of cultural mores that collide with modern western society’s values.
Born in Pakistan, Hassan came to America 25 years ago. His wife was a graduate of Georgetown University in Washington, her father from Syria, her mother from Jordan.
Hassan is an MBA, and formerly worked in a bank. As CEO of Bridges TV, he felt: “There should be a Muslim media so that Muslim children growing up in America grow up with the self-confidence and high self-esteem about their identity both as Americans and Muslims.”
Since 2004, the Hassans ran their TV channel – and then Aasiya, perhaps more American than traditional Muslim, filed for a divorce.
On Thursday, last week, Muzzammil Hassan, age 44, turned himself into Orchard Park police and declared he’d killed Aasiya, 37 – in fact that he’d decapitated her, cut off her head, presumably because she had dishonoured him by seeking a divorce.
Other aspects involved may emerge later. Hassan remains in jail, charged with second-degree murder.
Considering its background, the story has had remarkably little play – a mention on CNN, a few paragraphs in various newspapers, but nothing in the way of follow-up in the mainstream American (or Canadian) media.
Nor has there been much in the way of comment, perhaps because of over-sensitivity about raising questions of Muslims and/or minorities. This is a form of reverse racism, and foolish in that it ducks what is a valid issue today.
No rational person suggests that what Muzzammil Hassan did is typical of Muslim behaviour, but the case is loaded with irony and significance. Intellectually dedicated as he might have been to correcting false stereotypes about Muslims, it all fell apart for Hassan when it became personal. The same might have been said of his wife, who defied her culture – and became a victim.
Erie County District Attorney Frank Sedita, ever alert to the obvious, called this “the worst form of domestic violence.”
In the U.S., bloggers have adopted this story more than have the media.
“Second degree murder for decapitating your wife? What do you have to do to be charged with murder in the first degree?” asked one blogger.
“Why couldn’t he just shoot his wife, like most Americans,” asked Sarah Trachtenberg. “I mean, decapitation? That really is more associated with Islam.”
“He could claim his being arrested for decapitating his wife is just another instance of Western prejudice against Muslims,” said another. “I’m sure someone is preparing a column . . . with a more subtle variant on the theme.”
Added another; “Now that he has beheaded his wife, I’m afraid this prominent moderate Muslim will only be feeding those negative perceptions.”
And there the matter rests – for the moment. So much for correcting false impressions of stereotypes.
dragonlady // Feb 20, 2009 at 12:06 pm
Sad–this is what PC and multiculturalism bring us. Aggrieved groups retain a special status. People that are victims of of someone who happens to be of a specific race, religion, etc. are left forgotten. Real tolerance, all right.
blatherblah // Feb 20, 2009 at 10:00 pm
I disagree that this is the result of any “special status” accorded to minorities. These type of issues continue to be difficult for Americans and Canadians to deal with openly. In this respect, I agree with AG Holder’s comments about a “nation of cowards”, but would be more sympathetic given the difficult history of relations between races and religions. There may be a legitimate fear that the propagation of certain views may fuel simmering racial/religious tensions. At the same time, I think that hiding these issues resolves nothing – greater dialogue is needed at all levels to bring about genuine tolerance and multiculturalism.
chaosDrew // Feb 21, 2009 at 11:26 am
“this is what PC and multiculturalism bring us.” Knee-jerk, talk radio gobbledygook, dragonlady. How about you explain how your meaningless code words have anything to do with this crime. The perp is being prosecuted, his actions universally condemned, the story reported across the nation. No one’s tolerating a damn thing. Perhaps you can tell us, in an imaginary world free of the scourge of ‘PC’ and ‘Multiculturalism’, how this crime would have been averted?
realconservativ // Feb 21, 2009 at 11:55 am
There aren’t many cases today in which a husband beheads his wife. There are shootings, knifings, strangulations, but a beheading? As one blog suggested “this story had no legs” because of the political correctness of the media. With today’s media, news is only news if they deem it to be. We truly are living in a world of politically correct censorship with a highly partisan press.
Serge // Feb 21, 2009 at 12:53 pm
Seems to me the story has indeed been covered albeit not as much or with as much passion as we might wish. Todays story is the DOW and our new President. The real problem, however, may be our general lack of public outcry. This may be attributed to a general lack of knowledge on the public’s part of Islam and the Quran, our present successes in fighting terror or our obsessional focus on the economy. This is indeed is a horrific act and one which shed’s a dark shadow on Islam in general, fairly or unfairly, but bringing up comparisons to Daniel Pearl and most recently the Polish man beheaded in Afghanistan.
chaosDrew // Feb 21, 2009 at 12:53 pm
What else would you have the “media” do, real? The story was reported upon, the commentators commentated upon it, you have the opportunity read about it and say whatever it is you want to say about it. The government hasn’t restricted anybody’s ability to do anything, so what’s really your complaint? That people aren’t taking to streets in protest? That newspapers aren’t splashing daily front-page headlines? (DAY 10!! WHEN WILL THE INEVITABLE WAVE OF FUTURE BEHEADINGS BEGIN?!!) That CNN isn’t camped out on Muzzammil Hassan’s lawn? What else do you want?
sinz54 // Feb 21, 2009 at 12:55 pm
Sarah Trachtenberg has the right idea. If Mr. Hassan wanted to present himself as a real American, he should have just run her over with his pickup truck. (If he didn’t own a truck, he could rent one for this purpose.) That’s how we real American men deal with women who cheat on us.
sinz54 // Feb 21, 2009 at 1:02 pm
chaosDrew: What I think Mr. Worthington is complaining about, is that few commentators have dared to suggest that the beheading might have stemmed from traditional Muslim culture. Foreign newspapers, in Toronto and India, raised that issue. But not American newspapers. In fact, the New York Times headline was “Buffalo Killing Puts Spotlight on Domestic Abuse”–as if it’s common for American men to behead their wives. (Domestic abuse is common among *Muslim* couples, however.) What we want, is for some newspapers to start reporting how Islamist culture is spreading in America–and what about that culture is inconsistent with our Constitution. For example, Muslim support for Hezbollah, a terrorist group, is strong in the Holy City of Dearborn Michigan.
chaosDrew // Feb 21, 2009 at 1:53 pm
sinz54, I appreciate your reply. Referring to the NYTimes story, one need only read the beyond the headline to understand the entire story is about domestic abuse as it relates to the Muslim community. It includes members of the Muslim community coming to terms with the crime, condemnations from leaders, efforts to organize public action to combat future crimes, etc. The article is explicitly about how the crime relates to the Muslim community. Another example I found is from the undeniably liberal NPR, titled Domestic Violence in Muslim America. These are just two examples but I see plenty of evidence “the media” is covering the story in a more or less complete sense. IMHO, what I believe is people are disappointed the public is not reacting with the correct amount of fear or anger and can only blame “the media” for not scaring them enough.
sinz54 // Feb 22, 2009 at 8:14 am
chaosDrew: You still don’t seem to get it. Beheading one’s wife just because she wanted a divorce, is just not something a non-Muslim American would ever think of doing. I’ve never heard of a similar case involving a non-Muslim. It is something that only a Muslim who had been steeped in Sharia law would ever think of doing. Some crimes do have a cultural and even religious basis. When abortion clinics have been threatened by anti-abortion militants, I have seen a zillion stories in the newspapers deconstructing “religious extremism”–even if the perpetrator didn’t himself cite Christianity as his reason for committing the act. Yet I don’t see anybody in the American press willing to consider the possibility that this Muslim who beheaded his wife was motivated by “religious extremism” as well. Even The Toronto Star was willing to consider that possibliity; what are the American newspapers afraid of?
blatherblah // Feb 22, 2009 at 8:56 am
I agree with sinz, it’s better to put the possibility into print. If newspapers ignore it, the implication of religious extremism may in fact be strengthened rather than weakened. Journalists should confront the possibility and give it the proper context. e.g. while beheading is within certain articulations of sharia law (aside: another common misconception is that there is one sharia law while there are in fact many versions, just as there are many different legal systems), it is doubtful that the accused here was relying on that (and backed up by comments from friends, family and the Muslim community). This addresses the stereotypes held by the public and doesn’t leave hanging the obvious stereotypical connection.
sinz54 // Feb 22, 2009 at 3:54 pm
The news media should try to find out what Mr. Hassan’s cultural and religious upbringing was. Was he steeped in that part of Muslim culture that believes in beheading as a punishment, and honor killings for women who allegedly “dishonor” their families? Even a few *Muslims* are saying that this could be a possibility, due to the way Sharia is taking hold among Muslims these days.
http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/590896
Muslims themselves know the score. They know that sharia represents a growing danger to the individual freedom of Muslim citizens. But Western newspapers are afraid to touch that with a ten foot pole.