The Silence of the Muslims

Abstract

This article, written in the wake of the kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, questions the failure of Muslims strongly to condemn acts of violence and murder committed by Islamic extremists, and argues that such silence encourages neutral parties to wonder if moderate Muslims may indeed sympathize with "the killers of 'infidels'" - which in turn can lead to fear, bias, and group defamation.

Keywords: Wall Street Journal, Daniel Pearl, Islamic extremists, Muslims, Jews, Palestinians, Israel, First Amendment, kidnapping, murder, terrorism

JEL Classification: K19, N45, O53