What, then, if you cut through all the uproar, is the precise objection to Emerson and his project? One woman explained to me that she was offended by his use of the term "Islamic terrorist" because it stigmatized an entire people. Never mind that the term is concretely accurate--there are terrorists who claim to act in the name of Islam. Another argued that the use of Arabic chanting in the documentary demonized the Arabic language. The chants in question were in fact calls to violence, naturally spoken in the language that these militants speak. Another man argued that Emerson propagates generalizations damaging to the Muslim community. I can only assume that this critic wasn't listening when during the film, the lecture and his interrogation by hostile audience members, Emerson differentiated between the radical fringe and mainstream Islam at least half a dozen times.

Another more chilling explanation for the opposition to Emerson presented itself in the remarks of two other attendees. They attacked him for "not properly contextualizing" the fundamentalist activity he was chronicling--as if an exploration of the Middle Eastern political quagmire might somehow justify the slaughter of innocent civilians. Emerson responded by pointing out what should have been obvious: Terrorism of any brand, born of any motivation, is abhorrent. Within the constraints of a one-hour broadcast there was no reason to seek excuses for murderers.

It is easy to see how peaceful Muslims might fear the dissemination of unflattering stereotypes. And, they have every right to guard against the development of a paranoia that might lead to an infringement on their civil liberties. However, Emerson is no bigot, nor is he a firebrand seeking to incite a panic. He is a talented journalist working to shed light on a threat all too well understood by women living under the Talisban regime in Afghanistan, by Israeli shopkeepers, schoolchildren and commuters, and--increasingly in the aftermath of the World Trade Center and African embassy bombings--by average American citizens.

The problem of extremism is one that should concern everyone on this campus regardless of faith, ethnicity or political agenda. It is a shame that those students who devoted themselves to executing the hatchet job on Steven Emerson could not find a more productive outlet for their energies.

Noah D. Oppenheim '00 is a social studies concentrator in Adams House. His column appears on alternate Fridays.