As chaos ensued at the U.S. Capitol Hill building on Wednesday, the media was inspired to compare the riot to what one might expect to see happening in the streets of the Middle East.
One such ill-thought remark came from American commentator Van Jones who compared the scenes to be reminiscent of Syria, where, if one must be reminded, thousands of innocents were killed with chemical bombs…
Other media outlets and politicians compared the sights to what they think could only be expected in “third world countries” like Baghdad, Kabul, and Benghazi… instead of just accepting that it’s America.
Additionally, on a previous occasion, American media compared earlier U.S. riots to Beirut, where peaceful Lebanese are participating in a revolution to bring down a corrupt government.
No, yesterday DC was not like a third world country. In a third world country like #Lebanon we hear the threatening sounds of enemy aircraft violating our airspace every day and it’s become so “normal” UN officials don’t condemn it publicly.
— Halim Shebaya (حليم شبيعة) (@halimshebaya) January 7, 2021
This continued comparison sparked a backlash from the online community, including foreign reporters based in the Middle East as well as reporters based in the West, who deemed the rhetoric highly offensive, orientalist, and ignorant.
