The day after Sept. 11 littered Manhattan streets with remnants of the twin towers, U.S. citizens could only speculate as to what could have instigated such hatred for America.
Last night, the department of Asian and Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures sponsored a presentation by the creators of a documentary entitled "Why U.S.?," which attempted to shed light on international resentment for America and prompt discussion of U.S. foreign policy.
On Sept. 12, Daniel Lindsay, a 24-year-old University of Missouri graduate, and Cody Shearer, a Washington, D.C.-based veteran journalist, embarked on a search for answers. Together, the two planned to drive from Los Angeles, CA, to New York City, capturing on film reactions to the attacks from the people they met along the way.
Lindsay, an aspiring director who teamed up with Shearer after the two met at a Kinkos in Santa Monica, CA, directed the 75-minute film.
"About a week into it, we realized no one in the mainstream media was discussing the main issue -- why?" Lindsay said.
During their journey across the country, Lindsay and Shearer conducted interviews at town meetings, university teach-ins, blood banks, gun shops, army recruiting stations and churches.
"In some ways, we've created a lot of the anger that is directed towards us," Lindsay said. "It seemed like there wasn't a dialogue happening in our country."
Funded by Shearer's Institute for International Mediation and Conflict Resolution, the film was designed to provide an unbiased, in-depth look at both American sentiments following the terrorist attacks as well as those from other countries, namely Arab nations.
Lindsay said the two opted against a narrator in order to ensure the film was objective in its portrayals.
After amassing 140 hours of footage in 16 months of travelling and interviewing, the film was edited and completed in August 2002. Since then, Shearer and Lindsay have taken the film to college campuses across the nation for viewing.
"One of the reasons we made this film was to make a discussion in the great spirit of democracy," Shearer said.
The film includes a mixture of academics, international and U.S. citizens, journalists, relatives of Sept. 11 victims and former government officials, each attempting to offer their own rationalization as to why America is largely unpopular in the Arab world.
"In my eyes, Osama bin Laden is a hero," said Abu Aziz in the film, a spokesman for al-Muhajiroun, a radical Islamic group centered in London. "Americans are the terrorists -- my advice to the American people is to disassociate yourselves from your government."
Shearer informed audience members that Aziz, who was trained by the Taliban in Afghanistan, has since been arrested.
At the other end of the spectrum, some U.S. supporters were similarly vocal in their convictions.
"We did nothing, it's totally, completely irrational," said Robert Baer, a former CIA operative interviewed in the film. "The people in the Middle East are going to pay the price -- once we isolate them, they're going to be much worse off than they are today."
The film was peppered with various black and white film clips ranging from coverage of Nazi rallies to 1950s-era commercials urging Americans to support Israel.
Following the documentary, Lindsay and Shearer moderated a discussion with the audience, sparked by Shearer when he asked who was willing to serve if the draft were re-instated.
"The notion that you won't think this will happen in your lifetime -- think again," he said.
Many students expressed their appreciation for the film, some questioning America's role in world affairs.
"I think it would work if more people could come to see this video," University graduate student Srikrishna Kanneganti said.
Though he said he disagrees with current foreign policy, Lindsay said he is not pessimistic about America's future.
"This is an opportunity for us to sell ourselves to the world," he said. "I think we can regain that trust."
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