Symbols and Ownership
Fabricating Authenticity - Jason W.M. Ellsworth
Yasmine Flodin-Ali [+]
University of Pittsburgh
Yasmine Flodin-Ali is Assistant Professor of Modern Islam and Race at the University of Pittsburgh’s Department of Religious Studies. Her current book project maps the landscape of early twentieth century Muslim movements in the United States.
Description
Building on Sheedy’s argument, Flodin-Ali outlines how media responses to acts of violence, strategically employ rhetoric of the “individual” to downplay and isolate white men as mentally ill lone-wolves disconnected from the larger group, while people of color are often represented as collective entities that threaten white America. Flodin-Ali demonstrates that from the standpoint of those with power, the creation of more equitable playing fields can feel like a loss of power and argues that the use of victimization narratives works to authorize the group’s socio-political agenda.