Students Speak Out About Iraq and ISIS
The possibility of another war in Iraq and other international issues were discussed at the Speak Up Speak Out “Back to Iraq?” event held Wednesday at the Charles V. Park Library Auditorium.
Hosted by the Central Michigan University Student Forum, the town hall style discussion served to educate those in attendance about the situation in Iraq and Syria, as well as discuss topics ranging from the Islamic State terrorist organization known as ISIS to what the U.S. involvement in Iraq should be.
After watching short videos sharing the history of ISIS and putting the current conflict in some historical context, a panel made up of three professors of history and political science, along with four CMU students, voiced their opinions on these hot-button issues.
“What we’re seeing in the rise of ISIS is in many ways the playing out of a script that was being concocted in 2003,” said John Robertson, a history faculty member.
The roots of ISIS can be traced back to an al-Qaeda offshoot that rose to power in Iraq following the U.S. invasion of the country. The militant group that was a major part of the Iraqi insurgency went on to become the backbone of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
“I like to think this conflict began in 1914 while Europeans were dismantling the Ottoman Empire,” said Sterling Johnson, a political science and public administration faculty member. “If we put it in that type of historical context, we can see from their perspective the desire to restore something.”
The problems associated with ISIS are not limited to just Iraq and Syria and have larger implications for the whole region.
Sean Martinez, a graduate student in political science, emphasized the impact of refugees fleeing the areas directly effected by the fighting.
“Jordan and Turkey and surrounding Middle Eastern countries are all feeling the weight of ISIS and the civil war in Syria, and that cannot be forgotten,” Martinez said.
Martinez also spoke of how ISIS has gained credibility in the region by providing impoverished people with basic necessities.
Graduate student Christopher Willis highlighted the role of poverty in the growth of ISIS. High unemployment levels in Iraq have influenced some young Iraqis to be more open to ISIS leadership.
ISIS has become effective at recruiting youth from around the world through propaganda and a well developed social media presence.
“They’re not allowing people to have opposing views,” Willis said. “Recruitment is bolstered by the fact that you don’t really have a second option.”
Much of the discussion focused on trying to understand the mindset of those supporting ISIS. Political science faculty member Malek Abdul Jaber challenged those in attendance to put themselves in the shoes of a Muslim living in an area occupied by the United States, asking the audience to envision ISIS tanks driving through Mount Pleasant hoisting the black ISIS flag.
“As Americans, we are not treating the cause of the disease. We are treating the symptoms,” Abdul Jaber said. “ISIS calls itself the Islamic State, but to be recognized internationally, other states have to recognize it. This not going to happen because nobody wants it to happen.”
