Here is a prompt we were given in my social problems class. I wanted to share with you my response because I thought this was a very intriguing and engaging prompt to be answered that could definitely be up for debate.
“Using the symbolic interactionist perspective, are terrorists viewed as criminals or patriots? Why or why not? What is the United States’ position in negotiating with terrorists?”
My Response:
“When using the symbolic interactionist perspective, I believe that terrorists can be seen as both patriots and criminals through different peoples’s eyes, depending on whose perception you are trying to understand. Symbolic interactionists only put meanings to words, and then choose how they will associate those words in their own terms. By using this theory, terrorist take action against words they believe put them in danger or deserve to be challenged, which can be described as a broad form of patriotism, but they also commit crimes and actions that are the key words behind criminals and acts of terrorism, such as death and destruction. The United States does not negotiate with terrorists, therefore there is no policy when it comes to negotiation.”
How would you answer this question, and do you agree with my response? What someone may find heroic seem catastrophic and evil to others through the symbolic interactionist perspective?