EXPLORING COVERAGE of DR. SUNERA THOBANI's OCTOBER Lst, 2001 SPEECH
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CANADIAN PUBLIC SPACE, RACIALIZED MINORITIES AND THE MEDIA: EXPLORING COVERAGE OF DR. SUNERA THOBANI'S OCTOBER lST,2001 SPEECH. Sarah Hornstein Bachelor of Arts, Hendrix College, 2001 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS In the Department of Sociology and Anthropology O Sarah Hornstein 2003 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY July 2003 All rights reserved. This work may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without permission of the author. APPROVAL Name: Sarah Hornstein Degree: Master of Arts Title of Thesis: Canadian Public Space, Racialized Minorities, and the Media: Exploring Coverage of Dr. Sunera Thobani's October I"', 2001 Speech Examining Committee: Chair: Dr. Barbara Mitchell . - Dr. Ann Travers Senior Supervisor Assistant Professor of Sociology Simon Fraser University - Dr. Parin Dossa Member Associate Professor of Anthropology Simon Fraser University Associate Professor of Criminology Simon Fraser University Date Approved: 30 July 2003 PARTIAL COPYRIGHT LICENCE I hereby grant to Simon Fraser University the right to lend my thesis, project or extended essay (the title of which is shown below) to users of the Simon Fraser University Library, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. I fhther agree that permission for multiple copying of this work for scholarly purposes may be granted by me or the Dean of Graduate Studies. It is understood that copying or publication of this work for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Title of Thesis/Project/Extended Essay Canadian Public Space, Racialized Minorities and the Media: Exploring Coverage of Dr. Sunera Thobani's October lst, 2001 Speech Author: - (signahre) Sarah Hornstein (name) 30 July 2003 (date) ABSTRACT Current literature conceptualizes public space in a static way. Processes of contraction and expansion, however, operate within public space simultaneously. "Contraction" refers to fewer accessible avenues of discourse and dissent within and around mainstream public space. In other words, contraction focuses on the ways in which public space becomes exclusionary. "Expansion" refers to the resistance to such exclusion and the efforts that are made to increase the inclusivity of public space. In particular, this thesis focuses on the media as a public space, paying particular attention to print media coverage of University of British Columbia Professor Sunera Thobani's October I", 2001 speech at the Women's Resistance Conference in Ottawa, Ontario. A discourse analysis was performed on articles published in The Globe and Mail, The Vancouver Sun, The Province, and two alternative media sources, Rabb1e.c~and The Independent Media Center, between September 1lth, 2001 and October lSh,2001. Articles that were published between September 1 lth,2001 and October I", 2001 are used to contextualize the coverage of Thobani's speech. The analysis revealed several factors within mainstream print media that contribute to the contraction of public space. The most significant finding is the way in which immigrant people of colour are socially constructed within newsprint coverage. Specifically, this social construction leads to problematic conceptualizations of common concern, citizenship, and the perpetuation of the racialization of minority groups. The expansion of public space is subtler and is observed in supportive letters to the editor and editorial pieces within both mainstream and alternative media sources. Literature pertaining to theories of public space as well as post-colonialist theory is used to situate this work. DEDICATION To Dr. Ann Travers. Thanking you is not enough. It was because of you that I made the decision to enter this Masters program, and it is because of you that I was able to successfully complete it. You have been an incredible senior supervisor and a good hend. I will miss you. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thank you so much to Dr. Parin Dossa for all of your support and guidance. This thesis would have been impossible without you. Thank you also to Dr. Wendy Chan, Dr. Barbara Mitchell, Dr. Jane Pulkingham, and Dr. Sunera Thobani. Thank you, Mickey Naisby, for always being there to make sure everything was going as it should, and for all of your countless words of encouragement. Thank you to Dr. Ellen Gee, who helped me not only to make this thesis topic manageable, but to have confidence in myself as a student and as a researcher as well. I wish you were here, Ellen. Thank you to my parents, Dr. Henry and Catherine Hornstein, for being so patient in putting up with my panicky, stressed out phone calls and for constantly supporting and encouraging me throughout this process. I love you. Thank you to Dr. Stella Capek and Dr. James Bruce. It is because of the two of you that I chose Sociology as my field. Stella, you inspire me. Last, but not least, thank you to all of my fnends (you know who you are) not only for your support when it came to my work (amongst other things), but for being there to help me forget about that work for a little while. Without you all, I would have lost my sanity. TABLE OF CONTENTS .. APPROVAL ......................................................................................................................11 ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................111 DEDICATION ...............................................................................................................iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS................................................................................................. v TABLE OF CONTENTS.................................................................................................... vi INTRODUCTION ...............................................................................................................1 Methods ...............................................................................................................................4 CHAPTER ONE MORE THAN JUST A PARK: THEORIES OF PUBLIC SPACE ................................11 Habermas' Public and its Critique ................................................................................12 Subaltern Counterpublics ..............................................................................................17 "Strong" Publics. "Weak" Publics. and People of Colour ..............................................21 CHAPTER TWO ASSIGNING BLAME: EXPLORING THE MEDIA'S POST-911 1 COVERAGE............................................................................................................. 30 The War on Terrorism ................................................................................................. 31 Who Did This and Why? The Terrorists ........................................................................ 35 Homeland Security: Immigration. Legislation. and Civil Liberties ................................ 40 Love Thy Neighbour? Retaliation against Muslim Canadians ........................................ 45 The Thobani Moment ....................................................................................................48 CHAPTER THREE PEELING THE ONION: ANALYSING THE MEDIA'S POST-911 1 COVERAGE ..................................................................................................................... -66 Public Space: Inclusion. Exclusion and Issues of Common Concern .............................. 67 The Social Construction of People of Colour in Canada ................................................ 72 Counterpublics ......................................................................................................82 The Expansion and Contraction of Public Space ............................................................ 87 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................. 93 APPENDIX ONE: SUNERA THOBANI'S SPEECH..................................................... 102 APPENDIX TWO: SUNERA THOBANI'S RESPONSE ........................................ 1 11 On American Foreign Policy ....................................................................................... 1 12 Invoking the American Nation .................................................................................... 1 16 The Politics of Liberating Women ................................................................................... 118 Closing Words .......................................................................................................... 120 BIBLIOGRAPHY ..........................................,...................................... -122 INTRODUCTION Canadian public space is incredibly complex. The aim of this thesis is to flesh out the issues surrounding public space in order to more adequately conceptualize the operation of such spaces. Public space is defined, for the purposes of this thesis, as an "abstract space in which citizens discuss and debate public issues" (Oliver, 1999: 38). It is my contention that public space both contracts and expands and that these processes occur simultaneously. The contraction of public space refers to fewer accessible avenues of discourse and dissent within and around mainstream public space. Contraction, in other words, focuses on the ways in which public spaces become exclusionary.