The Sexual Politics of Abu Ghraib - Essay Example

?MLA, AMCS 2 The news of torture, abusive treatment and murder of detainees at Abu Ghraib prison by US military shocked the whole world. This is a prison in Iraq. The stories, which became public in May 2004, were accompanied by sensational photographs showing prisoners who were naked and some were engaging in simulated sexual acts. The US elites have used these evidences of these photographs to construct a discourse about prisoner abuse. Some of them were seeking to brush off the significance of the photographs by stating that these actions were nothing more than horseplay by military who were attempting to ease tension by blowing off steam. Such elites claim that these actions were therefore no worse than fraternity hazing (Tetreault 33). Tetreault does not agree with such US elites. She believes that the photographs reveal something that is more sinister. In this article, she argues strongly that the photographs is an indication of a complex reactions by the US to the September 11, 2001 attacks. This is not all; Tetreault also claims that the actions are an indication of a need to punish those who are viewed by America as an inferior oriental enemy so as to assert U.S. global dominance. Tetreault gives a convincing reasons and evidences for her views of this matter. She begins by stating that images of dead people, dead Iraqis, convey a message of relief and victory. The message that says ‘my enemy is dead and I am alive.’ By looking at Tetreault’s next explanation, one can be convinced beyond doubt to declare that truly, Iraq is America’s enemy and the photos were a sign that US soldiers were showing their victory over the Iraqis. Tetreault states that the photographs taken resembled those taken by soldiers in times of war when they were taking photographs of their enemies. She also makes it clear that the photos are not just any other veteran publications because most of the photographs of Abu Ghraib belong to a genre that is rarely published by veterans (Tetreault 34). These photos are therefore a mock to Iraq that even in her own land, she had fallen to the hands of the US. One is likely to ask, why such kind of enemity? As Tetreault puts it, they are a reaction to the September 11, 2001 attacks. With such a view, the photographs cannot be interpreted better than as a sign of successful revenge. One is likely to sound somehow strange and unjustified to interpret such photographs are a sign that Iraq is one of the inferior oriental enemies of the US. However, Tetreault is strongly convinced of this. She states that if they are analyzed in the context of orientalism in the chain of command of the US, it portrays a situation in which those who are vulnerable are subjected to direct and indirect violence. They are also comparable to rituals of violence orchestrated by elites (Tetreault 34). Rituals of violence here denote repeated acts of violence. they remind members of the points of agreement or core values they share. Furthermore, Tetreault is convinced that the pornographic photos are a strategy of domination by the US. They reveal rituals of violence that evidence power relations between the US and Iraq, occupier and occupied. This is signified by the photos showing naked and lewdly posed Iraqi men, as the subjects, and American women who were clothed and playing dominatrix roles. From creation, the complex cultural norms that define sexuality are feminine subjecting to masculine power. One will therefore not miss out on the point that such photos are a reverse of it all and thus, they are a testimony of the production and reproduction of global dominance by the US. To this point, one will not be biased against the US to say that Tetreault’s claims have some elements of truth and thus, justified. The strongest point of the article is that its arguments are mainly based on critical analysis if the photographs presented and other justifiable truths. This makes the arguments presented highly convincing. However, this article alone cannot be used to make a strong formal accusation against the US for global dominance and its revenge actions that are extremely inhuman due to its limitations. It is common knowledge that the September 11 attacks were perpetrated by Al Qaeda under the authority of the late Osama bin Laden, a Saudi Arabian nationalist. No substantial evidence has been found linking Iraq and Sadam Hussein with these attacks. This article has therefore failed to give justifiable reasons why the US would revenge against Iraq over the same. From an examination of events of this article and the arguments of those who hold to views similar to those of Tetreault, it is expected that Iraq and the US should by now be operating under open enemity. However, the relationship between the US and Iraq is not as bad as such. Despite this, the wound and the damage to their relationship are evident. Iraq has been reducing the number of US troops it can allow in its country and finally this October this year, Iraq leaders declared that come 2012, they wanted all US troops out of their borders. They said that beyond this time, none of them shall be offered immunity against Iraqi law. However, they agreed to retain American military trainers. The US is greatly opposed to this. Conclusion From analysis of the Abu Ghraib terror against humanity, Tetreault is justified to raise an outcry against the US and its military. Being a global leader, the US should deal with all moral confusions done in its name and confront all problems in its leadership and policy. In this way, the US will not have to use inhuman forms of suppression to remain at the top. War may be used to gain superiority and dominance over other nations. The US should however understand that maintaining such a superiority depends on moral conduct and economic power and never the inflicting power of war. No person or nation is therefore justified to step or trample on others just to remain at the top. Works Cited Tetreault Mary. “The Sexual Politics of Abu Ghraib: Hegemony, Spectacle, and the Global War on Terror.” NWSA Journal. (3) pp 33-50. 2006. Read More