The naming of 'terrorism' and evil 'outlaws': geopolitical place-making after 11 September
Author: Mat Coleman
Source: Geopolitics, Volume 8, Number 3, October 2003 , pp. 87-104(18)
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Abstract:
In the aftermath of 11 September, techniques of spatial surveillance and processes of rebordering indicate a moment of American (re)territorialization. This said, it seems important to move beyond a simple notion of geography-as-territoriality to focus on place and the politics of identity. In the context of events following from the mid-September 2001 'attacks', I suggest that critical geopoliticians focus on the US foreign policy naming of 'terrorism' as an iconographic place-making activity. However, perhaps the more poignant question is one concerning the post-11 September invocation of evil. I suggest here that scrutiny of the placemaking naming of evil makes evident the potentially unjust and inhumane constitution of state responses to 'terrorism', declared as an outlaw to justice and humanity. This is particularly relevant given the US bombing campaign in Afghanistan, the alleged poor treatment of Taliban and Al Qaeda prisoners at Camp X-Ray in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, and the recent detainment of suspected residents in the US. I conclude with a brief thought concerning the need to contextualize the events of 11 September in a larger frame of US global geopolitical relations and histories.Document Type: Research article
DOI: 10.1080/14650040412331307722
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