Terrorism

Terrorist attacks and impact on schools has necessitated a new role for leaders at local and district, as well as at university and policy-making, levels. Terrorism means the use of terror to repress or domineer by means of panic and fear, and bioterrorism is the intentional use of infectious biological agents, or germs, to cause illness. While learning how to deal with terrorism has become central to U.S. foreign policy, transference has only just begun for educational institutions. Principals and superintendents have been called upon to guide action for preventing catastrophe and simultaneously promote the health of school populations.

Governmental agencies claim that schools increasingly constitute soft targets for attracting terrorist attacks, mainly because they draw overwhelming media attention and house society's most innocent citizens. Schools as national icons may be in preeminent danger, not unlike renowned buildings, as demonstrated by the terrorist attacks on America on September 11, 2001. The President of National School Safety and Security Services warns that Al-Qaeda has already threatened America's children and victimized school buses abroad. Moreover, the American Red Cross has alerted citizens to prepare for the unthinkable. “Code Orange” (high security) dictates that school leaders report suspicious activity, review emergency plans, and address children's fears. Specialized curricula address racial issues and powerful feelings, especially involving wrongful attribution as a result of terrorism.

The K–12 school system's mandate is to demonstrate the necessary problem solving for developing emergency response systems consistent with the expectations for homeland security. As one major change, comprehensive partnerships with agencies, communities, and universities must be forged. Systematically integrated schools can effectively exploit the expertise of public health organizations, security agencies, disease and poison control centers, and more. However, legislative mandates involving safety and liability issues for schools have sprung forth marketers in the form of consulting firms that target crisis preparedness training. Such coalescing realities make it difficult to ascertain how much emergency school responsiveness is “rational” and “authentic” apart from corporate America's own motives. Terrorism cannot escape scrutiny, then, as a marketing and media concept that strategically garners material for both profit and headlines.

Although efforts to counter escalated violence can create safer schools, goals of democracy must not be sacrificed in the process. Diversity awareness in the context of terrorism reflects social justice missions to build inclusive communities and eliminate “systemic racism.” Racial profiling denies particular groups the right to equal treatment in all public spheres, including schools. Similarly, as security tightens, rationalized racism escalates in the form of scapegoating, leading some scholars and policy analysts to describe a “dangerous” “security regime” emerging in the United States. Since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the passage of the USA Patriot Act in 2001, the FBI's vigilant activity has reportedly increased at college campuses, in effect suspending the civil rights of those for whom terrorist connections have been alleged.

New scholarship stresses that emergency procedures should not be enforced independent of a school's diversity conduct, an action that may counter the national climate or racist agendas. Racial targeting is seen as inextricably linked to terrorism—one area profoundly affecting the other. The protection of schools through emergency preparation therefore demands vigilance. Personal stories of racially motivated acts have abounded since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. For example, a Middle Eastern university student was handcuffed and detained after registering, as required, by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. He had aroused suspicion, “guilty” only of carrying a part-time course load that semester, even with his advisor's approval. Once triggered, incidents involving racially motivated assaults in the guise of security, protection, and patriotism can produce a domino effect.

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