Was concern over Ahmed Mohamed wholly unjustified? Some critics aren't so sure.
It鈥檚 been nearly a week since 14-year-old Ahmed Mohamed was arrested for bringing a homemade clock to school, an incident that sparked an outcry on social media. Since then, hundreds of thousands have rallied behind the Texas teenager. Twitter offered Ahmed an internship. Mark Zuckerberg said he鈥檇 like to meet him. President Obama even invited Ahmed to the White House.
Despite the outpour of support, however, some public figures have taken to defending 鈥� or at least not outright condemning 鈥� the actions of school officials and local Irving County police. On the HBO talk show Real Time With Bill Maher, for instance, the outspoken host weighed in on the decisions that led up to Ahmed鈥檚 arrest.
It looked , Maher says.
鈥淟ook, this kid deserves an apology 鈥� no doubt about it,鈥� he continues. 鈥淭hey were wrong. But can we have a little perspective about this? Did the teacher really do a wrong thing?鈥�
Scientist and writer Richard Dawkins also about the overwhelming public support for聽Ahmed鈥檚 and his clock. 鈥淚f the reassembled components did something more than the original clock, that鈥檚 creative. If not, it looks like hoax,鈥� he tweeted, linking to a blog post that debunks the legitimacy of Ahmed鈥檚 creation as a
In addition to doubting Ahmed鈥檚 technical steps in assembling the clock, the writer of the blog post poses the question of whether it was brash and excessive for the school and police to have responded the way they did.
鈥淚f we stop and think 鈥� was it really such a ridiculous reaction from the teacher and the police in the first place?鈥� he writes. 鈥淗ow many school shootings and incidents of violence have we had, where we hear afterwards 鈥榯his could have been prevented, if only we paid more attention to the signs!鈥欌��
Dawkins later elucidated his claim, saying Ahmed鈥檚 arrest was wrongful but the praise he received was excessive. 鈥淚'm not putting down the child. I'm putting down myself & the rest of us for being fooled. And the police for arresting him for nothing,鈥� he tweeted Sunday morning.
Tech reporters Farhad Manjoo and Mike Isaac of The New York Times remind readers that social media can be , as certain quotes or incidents can be conveyed without context.
鈥淭o be clear: What happened to Ahmed was wrong, regardless of context,鈥� Isaac says. 鈥淏ut my greater point is that online mobs are insatiable in their rush to deliver justice, and more often than not, that justice can itself be unjust.鈥�
In Education Week, Jill Berkowicz and Ann Myers penned an opinion blog piece on the in American education. Rather than affirming or denouncing the disciplinary procedure to which Ahmed was subject, they urge for the recalibration of school safety values so preventative measures such as the bomb hoax policy can still maintain an element of trust among the school, police, and individual children like Ahmed, who says he will not be be returning to his high school.聽
Ahmed鈥檚 apprehension by the school and eventually the police is a symptom of our 鈥渃urrent atmosphere of fear,鈥� they write. 鈥淏ut let us not allow that atmosphere pull us as educators away from the role of in loco parentis. It demands we act as the parent of every child, even Ahmed Mohamed. Hurting one child sends a message to all.鈥�
