About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

10 Va. J. Soc. Pol'y & L. 345 (2002-2003)
Terrorism, Panic, and Pedophilia

handle is hein.journals/vajsplw10 and id is 355 raw text is: TERRORISM, PANIC, AND PEDOPHILIA Daniel M. Filler* When Southern Baptist leader Reverend Jerry Vines recently declared that Mohammed was a demon-possessed pedophile, and that Allah leads Muslims to terrorism, his comments received national attention.' Yet many people, particularly outside the South, may have dismissed the speech as reactionary nonsense2 from the group that, four years earlier, pronounced that a wife should submit herself graciously to her husband's leadership.3 This article argues that Vines' speech drew links between Islam, terrorism, and pedophilia in ways far more significant than dismissive readers might have anticipated. While Vines' statement was among the most explicit efforts tying Islam and terrorism to pedophilia, close scrutiny of rhetoric following September 1 1th suggests that this link is becoming increasingly common and natural. Why should this seemingly tenuous metaphor be consequential to legal scholars? Because this rhetorical connection may help create the Associate Professor, University of Alabama School of Law. J.D., New York University School of Law; A.B. Brown University. I am indebted to David A. Hoffman for his complete dedication to this project, Alfred L. Brophy, Alan Durham, John Dzienkowski, Heather Elliott, Alisa Hoffman, Wythe Holt, Saul Levmore, and Ellen Poldgor for their thoughtful comments, and Curry Woods for research assistance. Thanks are also due to Dean Kenneth Randall, the Edward Brett Randolph Fund, and the University of Alabama Law School Foundation for financial support. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 2002 Southeastern Association of Law Schools conference. 1 See, e.g., Susan Sachs, Baptist Pastor Attacks Islam, Inciting Cries of Intolerance, N.Y. Times, June 15, 2002, at A10; Berta Delgado, Another Convention, Another Controversy, Dallas Morn. News, June 13, 2002, at A3 1; Baptists Acknowledge Sexual Abuses, L.A. Times, June 13, 2002, at A32; Jim Jones, Baptist Calls Islam Founder 'Pedophile,' Pitt. Post-Gazette, June 13, 2002, at A5; Southern Baptist's Talk Riles Muslims, Chi. Trib., June 12, 2002, at 12. 2 See, e.g., Bill Wineke, Church Leaders Set a Bad Example, Wis. St. J., June 22, 2002, at Fl (saying that Southern Baptists did elect a crackpot like Vines as its president); Greg Jonsson, Comments on Islam Displeased Many U.S. Baptists, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 16, 2002 (noting that Southern Baptist Convention once had more diverse membership but now conservatives have consolidated their power - 'like Invasion of the Body Snatchers). 3 See Gustav Niebuhr, Southern Baptists Declare Wife Should 'Submit' to Her Husband, N.Y. Times, June 10, 1998, at Al.

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most