| Terrorists Among Us: Jihad in America | |
|---|---|
VHS cover art |
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| Produced by | Steven Emerson |
| Starring | Steven Emerson |
| Running time | 65 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Terrorists Among Us: Jihad in America is a documentary film by counter-terrorism expert Steven Emerson. It first aired in the United States in 1994 on the PBS series Frontline.[1] The film has won numerous awards for journalism, including the George Polk Award. [2][1]
According to Emerson, the impetus for the film came in 1992, when he happened to come across a conference of Arab youths in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. After gaining entrance by pretending to be Muslim, Emerson said that he found tables of pro-terrorism literature from groups such as Hamas and heard speeches calling for death to Americans.[1]
The film features hidden camera footage of men publicly raising money for terrorism in U.S. hotel conference rooms. The men are often speaking in Arabic.[1] Emerson also identifies Sami Al-Arian as the primary supporter of Islamic jihad in the United States.[3] He said that Al-Arian was an Islamic extremist, and headed the Palestine Islamic Jihad (PIJ) in the U.S.[4][5] In 2006, Al-Arian pleaded guilty to aiding the PIJ, a terrorist organization, and was sentenced to 57 months in prison.
After the film's release, American Muslim groups such as the Council on American-Islamic Relations accused Emerson of mischaracterizing speeches and taking innocuous language and activities out of context to make them appear more menacing.[1]
In 1995, U.S. representatives Bill McCollum of Florida and Gary Ackerman of New York distributed the documentary to every member of the House of Representatives, accompanied by a letter urging them to watch the film before the House began debating anti-terrorism legislation that summer. The move was decried by Arab American and Muslim leaders for linking terrorism to Arabs and Muslims.[6]
Attention to Emerson and his work were renewed following the September 11, 2001 attacks by terrorists on the United States; later in 2001, Representative Chris Smith of New Jersey credited Emerson's film with helping to pass a recent anti-terrorism bill in the House.[1] Emerson has also given briefings to both chambers of Congress and to the United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.[1]