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Orlando Shooting: Terrorism or Hate Crime?

时间:2016-06-22 23:01:52

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AS IT IS 2016-06-15 Orlando Shooting: Terrorism or Hate Crime?

As Orlando continues to mourn the 49 victims of Sunday’s mass shooting, new information about the shooter has led to new questions about his possible motives2.

Addressing Americans after the massacre3 at Pulse, a popular gay nightclub, U.S. President Barack Obama called the tragedy “an act of terror and an act of hate.”

The FBI confirmed the shooting is being investigated as an act of terror. It said it had investigated the gunman, Omar Mateen, in 2013 and 2014 for having suspected ties to terrorist groups.

FBI investigators4 said he told co-workers he had family connections to Al Qaeda. He also claimed membership in the Shi’ite militant5 group Hezbollah.

During the Orlando attack, the FBI said Mateen pledged allegiance to Islamic State during calls to police. He also mentioned the Boston Marathon bombers6 and a man who carried out a suicide attack in Syria.

“It's not entirely7 clear at this point just what terrorist group he aspired8 to support,” FBI Director James Comey said.

A different motive1

President Obama called the attack an apparent example of “homegrown extremism.” But he also said it was “relevant” that the shooter targeted a club used by the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community

The Orlando attack came during June, which is dedicated10 as U.S. Pride Month in the LGBT community. During the month, LGBT people hold major festivals and celebrations across the U.S.

On Monday, Obama said extremists with a “perverted11” view of Islam have consistently targeted the gay and lesbian community, “because they believe they do not abide12 by their attitudes towards sexuality,” Obama said.

He added that even though groups like Islamic State condemn13 homosexuality, they think it is fine to take women captive, enslave them and rape14 them.

“There clearly are connections between the attitudes of an organization like this and their attitudes towards tolerance15 and pluralism,” Obama said. “And a belief that all people are treated equally, regardless of sexual orientation16 - that is something threatening to them.”

Some news reports have quoted investigators as saying they are looking into whether Mateen visited Pulse nightclub prior to the night he launched the attack.

An official with knowledge of the investigation17 told the Associated Press that people reported seeing Mateen and his wife at the nightclub on a prior occasion. The unnamed official said investigators had talked to the wife and will also use data from Mateen’s phone to try to verify whether he had visited before.

The Los Angeles Times quoted multiple witnesses as saying the gunman had attended the nightclub before and had used a gay dating app. One of the witnesses who said he chatted with Mateen on the gay app told the newspaper he saw him near the nightclub about one hour before the shooting.

Mateen's father, Seddique Mateen, spoke18 to reporters Tuesday about the latest reports. He said his son was not gay. He added that he never saw any homophobic behavior in his son, except for one time in Miami when Mateen expressed disgust at the sight of two men kissing.

Mateen’s ex-wife told CNN on Tuesday that she is not sure if her former husband had any homosexual tendencies. Sitora Yusufiy said Mateen “did feel very strongly about homosexuality.”

Presidential candidates express support for gay community

During a speech Monday, Republican presumptive presidential nominee19 Donald Trump20 mentioned the LGBT community when commenting on the Orlando attack.

“Our nation stands together in solidarity21 with the members of Orlando's LGBT community,” Trump said, after observing a moment of silence for the victims. “This is a very dark moment in America’s history. A radical22 Islamic terrorist targeted the nightclub not only because he wanted to kill Americans, but in order to execute gay and lesbian citizens because of their sexual orientation.”

Trump’s Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, spoke directly to the community in a message after the massacre.

“To the LGBT community: please know that you have millions of allies across our country. I am one of them. We will keep fighting for your right to live freely, openly and without fear. Hate has absolutely no place in America,” Clinton said.

The Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) was quick to condemn the Orlando attack. The group’s executive director, Nihad Awad, called the act “a hate crime, plain and simple.” He said his organization has “no tolerance for extremism of any kind.”

“For many years, members of the LGBT community have stood shoulder-to-shoulder, with the Muslim community, against any acts of hate crimes, Islamophobia, marginalization, and discrimination. Today we stand with them, shoulder-to-shoulder,” Awad said.

Terrorism expert and author Mia Bloom spoke to Public Radio International on the difficulty of understanding the motives for extremist violence.

“I don’t know if part of the homophobia is an extreme interpretation23 of his own sexual repressedness,” said Bloom, a professor at Georgia State University.

“This is not someone who grew in Pakistan or Saudi Arabia. This is someone who grew up in the United States, watching TV, being exposed to things like Will and Grace. This is not someone who’s never seen two gay people kiss before, especially if he’s hanging out at clubs with people who are cross-dressing.”

Bloom added: “I think that [Obama] was very on point as far as saying that it doesn’t have to be one thing at the exclusion24 of others. It was definitely a hate crime, and it was an act of terrorism.”

Words in This Story

massacre – n. the violent killing25 of many people

homegrown – adj. belonging to one’s own locality or country

relevant – adj. current, having to do with the matter at hand

perverted – adj. correct and suited for a specific purpose

pluralism – n. a system in society where minority groups main their cultural traditions

app – n. a computer application mostly used on a mobile device

homophobic – adj. having a dislike or prejudice against homosexuals

solidarity – n. unity9 in feeling or actions

marginalization – adj. to be kept powerless or not important

repressed – adj. stopped from being expressed or remembered

exclusion – n. the state of being kept out of


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 motive GFzxz     
n.动机,目的;adv.发动的,运动的
参考例句:
  • The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
  • He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。
2 motives 6c25d038886898b20441190abe240957     
n.动机,目的( motive的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • to impeach sb's motives 怀疑某人的动机
  • His motives are unclear. 他的用意不明。
3 massacre i71zk     
n.残杀,大屠杀;v.残杀,集体屠杀
参考例句:
  • There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中,这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
  • If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀,大屠杀就有可能再次发生!
4 investigators e970f9140785518a87fc81641b7c89f7     
n.调查者,审查者( investigator的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
  • The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》
5 militant 8DZxh     
adj.激进的,好斗的;n.激进分子,斗士
参考例句:
  • Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
  • He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。
6 bombers 38202cf84a1722d1f7273ea32117f60d     
n.轰炸机( bomber的名词复数 );投弹手;安非他明胶囊;大麻叶香烟
参考例句:
  • Enemy bombers carried out a blitz on the city. 敌军轰炸机对这座城市进行了突袭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The Royal Airforce sill remained dangerously short of bombers. 英国皇家空军仍未脱离极为缺乏轰炸机的危境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
7 entirely entirely     
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
  • His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。
8 aspired 379d690dd1367e3bafe9aa80ae270d77     
v.渴望,追求( aspire的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She aspired to a scientific career. 她有志于科学事业。
  • Britain,France,the United States and Japan all aspired to hegemony after the end of World War I. 第一次世界大战后,英、法、美、日都想争夺霸权。 来自《简明英汉词典》
9 unity 4kQwT     
n.团结,联合,统一;和睦,协调
参考例句:
  • When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结,并非一团和气。
  • We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前,我们必须加强团结。
10 dedicated duHzy2     
adj.一心一意的;献身的;热诚的
参考例句:
  • He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
  • His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。
11 perverted baa3ff388a70c110935f711a8f95f768     
adj.不正当的v.滥用( pervert的过去式和过去分词 );腐蚀;败坏;使堕落
参考例句:
  • Some scientific discoveries have been perverted to create weapons of destruction. 某些科学发明被滥用来生产毁灭性武器。
  • sexual acts, normal and perverted 正常的和变态的性行为
12 abide UfVyk     
vi.遵守;坚持;vt.忍受
参考例句:
  • You must abide by the results of your mistakes.你必须承担你的错误所造成的后果。
  • If you join the club,you have to abide by its rules.如果你参加俱乐部,你就得遵守它的规章。
13 condemn zpxzp     
vt.谴责,指责;宣判(罪犯),判刑
参考例句:
  • Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他,而有些人谴责他。
  • We mustn't condemn him on mere suppositions.我们不可全凭臆测来指责他。
14 rape PAQzh     
n.抢夺,掠夺,强奸;vt.掠夺,抢夺,强奸
参考例句:
  • The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
  • He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。
15 tolerance Lnswz     
n.宽容;容忍,忍受;耐药力;公差
参考例句:
  • Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
  • Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。
16 orientation IJ4xo     
n.方向,目标;熟悉,适应,情况介绍
参考例句:
  • Children need some orientation when they go to school.小孩子上学时需要适应。
  • The traveller found his orientation with the aid of a good map.旅行者借助一幅好地图得知自己的方向。
17 investigation MRKzq     
n.调查,调查研究
参考例句:
  • In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
  • He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。
18 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
19 nominee FHLxv     
n.被提名者;被任命者;被推荐者
参考例句:
  • His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
  • Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。
20 trump LU1zK     
n.王牌,法宝;v.打出王牌,吹喇叭
参考例句:
  • He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
  • The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手,作为他的王牌。
21 solidarity ww9wa     
n.团结;休戚相关
参考例句:
  • They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
  • The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。
22 radical hA8zu     
n.激进份子,原子团,根号;adj.根本的,激进的,彻底的
参考例句:
  • The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
  • She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。
23 interpretation P5jxQ     
n.解释,说明,描述;艺术处理
参考例句:
  • His statement admits of one interpretation only.他的话只有一种解释。
  • Analysis and interpretation is a very personal thing.分析与说明是个很主观的事情。
24 exclusion 1hCzz     
n.拒绝,排除,排斥,远足,远途旅行
参考例句:
  • Don't revise a few topics to the exclusion of all others.不要修改少数论题以致排除所有其他的。
  • He plays golf to the exclusion of all other sports.他专打高尔夫球,其他运动一概不参加。
25 killing kpBziQ     
n.巨额利润;突然赚大钱,发大财
参考例句:
  • Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
  • Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

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