Ban the guns!

Mateen’s hateful and regressive ideology needs as much stamping out as the US government’s inaction on gun possession

It could be about homophobia, a regressive ideology, mental instability or a combination of these. But at another level, the Orlando massacre is indicative of the failure of a government (here, NRA) that hasn’t learnt from experience. It has blood on its hands. The 29-year-old assassin, born to an Afghan father (a Taliban sympathiser) was questioned twice by the FBI in the past but was still able to buy a gun legally before perpetrating the heinous crime. Why is the US avoiding the elephant in the room? How many more senseless mass killings does it want to witness to feel convinced about tightening gun laws? The candles and thoughts with the deceased and their families every time there is a carnage have become laughable and redundant. The US needs draconian legislation. Take away the civilian guns. It shouldn’t be easy for someone to lay his hands on a weapon and indiscriminately open fire in a school, club or place of worship. Too many people are afraid to stand up against the gun lobby. Bogus arguments on the protection of one’s safety keep getting bandied around. We are yet to see the so-called good guys with guns that the NRA talks about. Not one has shown up to protect the victims. Sadly now, a death by firearms seems pre-ordained compared to the good old way of dying naturally in one’s sleep. It’s time to act, not tweet and theorise.

While it is crucial to institute harsh gun laws, it is not just a gun problem. No doubt that when guns are outlawed, only the outlawed will have guns. But Omar Mateen’s gun was merely a means for him to either target innocents whom he believed were morally wrong or a way to release frustration stemming from cultural oppression that comes from a rabidly hate-filled ideology. There are conflicting reports about his sexual orientation and if it played a part in the massacre, we will never be sure, so it is fair to focus on what we factually know.

Mateen’s hateful, warped and regressive ideology needs as much stamping out as the US government’s inaction on gun possession. It is ironic that in a country like the US, the LGBT community was hurt by an ideology whose lifeblood was either a deep hatred of freedom or angst against those who were privileged to have it. This very ideology breeds terrorism. Mateen’s modus operandi to seek revenge was inspired by the Islamic State, compelling the latter to erupt in celebration on the internet and make him its poster boy for lone-wolf attacks. The Orlando incident bore startling similarities to the atrocities in Paris and Brussels. Violent religious extremism the world over has turned into a grave threat, radicalising impressionable minds and compelling them to engage in what is conveniently termed as a ‘sacred war’ or ‘faith-inspired violence’ that will allegedly give them big rewards in the afterlife. Gratifyingly, President Obama did not delve into extremist jihadism and diplomatically called the slaughter an “act of hate” and “act of terror”, evidently to contain the unfortunate menace of Islamophobia faced by US Muslims, who were viewed contemptuously even last December when those belonging to their faith were involved in the San Bernardino incident.

Read this sentence carefully; it captures multiple issues: a mass shooting carried out by a radicalised US-born Muslim youngster who procured a gun legitimately. These issues will be twisted by political parties to their advantage in the volatile presidential election discussions. In the midst of the garbled chatter, a concrete outcome, if there will ever be one, is what anxious Americans are keenly awaiting. Till then, they have no choice but to stand united and live on hope.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 16^th, 2016.

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