A professor at the Iowa State University is facing backlash after he asked his students to write an account of the September 11 attacks from the perspective of Al-Qaeda member, an assignment that has angered many online. The professor, James Strohman, told his class, “Don’t worry about the fact you don’t agree with the terrorists, the point of the exercise is to consider completely different perspectives.”
Strohman, who has taught at Iowa State for more than a decade, acknowledged the attack was “heinous,” but advised his international relations students to consider “how the terrorist network or a non-Western historian may have interpreted the events.”
Via The College Fix:
“Write a paper that gives a historical account of 911 from the perspective of the terrorist network. In other words, how might Al-Qaeda or a non-Western historian describe what happened.”
“Don’t worry about the fact you don’t agree with the terrorists, the point of the exercise is to consider completely different perspectives,” the assignment adds.
Strohman’s students were asked to use their imaginations and make their papers as interesting as possible while following a 500-word minimum.
Who Is Professor James Strohman?
James Strohman is an international studies professor at Iowa State University who is facing backlash for a 9/11 assignment he gave to his students.
