Cultural Awareness in an Average American Soldier - Essay Example

Teacher`s Lack of Cultural Awareness in an Average American Soldier as a Detriment during Early Phases of Iraqi War Cultural awareness is crucial to any region of the world as it is the sole identity of the inhabitants owning a particular culture. Culture is defined as “a collaboration of shared meanings or common beliefs among an organization’s members” (Colbert). Thus, culture can be termed as an association among a group of a people, the basis of which relates to the belief system that is shared and followed. The sources of the belief system can be rooted into the shared values which may or may not be associated with the proximity of the area they reside in. However, certain characteristics are associated with a culture, which are very important to be indentified to understand the concept fully. Firstly, culture is not a static entity. Rather, it`s a dynamic and an ever changing concept. Since people are the driving force behind a culture, it keeps evolving and changing according to the change in circumstances. Secondly, culture is not inherited, i.e. it can`t be transferred via genes to the next generation. In fact, it is transmitted through socialization from one generation to another. Culture can also be multi-faceted, which implies that one person might be exposed to various cultures at the same time, which incarnates values and beliefs in an individual which are a blend of various other cultures. Fourthly, there are various means of transmitting a culture, including our family, friends, school, religion, media and any other modes of communication we experience. Thus, acquiring a culture is a continuous process which goes on through our entire lives. Lastly, culture is expressed though various means, which is reflected in the way our beliefs are carved, the way we dress up, talk, eat, our work habits etc (Colbert). Thus, culture is a very important entity which leaves an impact on almost all aspects of the lives of an individual, who is a member of a community or a nation. Since shared cultures and meanings are an important part of an individual`s identity socialized via various modes, it is important to understand the culture of a region to understand the dynamics of that area. For this reason, the lack of cultural awareness in American soldiers acted as a detriment during the Iraqi war. To analyze the situation closely, it is important to study the geography and the history of the military conflict in detail, the weather analysis of the region, and the ASCOPE (areas, structures, capabilities, organizations, people and events) of the region of interest. To understand the culture, however, it is important to discuss the P (people) of the ASCOPE thoroughly to draw conclusions regarding the human terrain analysis in relation to the Iraqi war. Geography & History of the Conflict A brief analysis of the geography indicates that Iraq is located in the Mid Eastern region of the world, where it borders Kuwait and Iran at the Persian Gulf. The total area of the land comprising Iran makes 438,317 sq km, with the area constituting water being 950 sq km. Strategically, the Shatt-al-Arab waterway is a significant location over the Persian Gulf. The borders along Turkey and Iran constitute a mountainous terrain. The area is mostly covered with broad plains while in the South the land is largely flooded with ready marshes all over. The infrastructure encompasses a wide-range communications and transportation network. Communication infrastructure includes telephone line as the main network of use (83 by world rank), with a working mobile/cellular network (39 on world rank), along with a media and an Internet network. There is a rapid increase in the public owned media networks since 2003 in Iraq, while most of the government as well as public owned channels are committed to propagate views regarding ethnicity, politics or religion. The transportation network includes 104 airports, about 21 heliports, various pipelines (gas, LPG, oil and other refined products), railways, roadways, waterways, two merchant marines and, ports and terminals. 1 Iraq has seen various military conflicts and civil wars in the past years, ranging from Iran-Iraq war, war with Kuwait, civil war in Iraq and the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. The most significant military effect has been the US invasion of Iraq since weapons of mass destructions have been used in this war and the US occupation of forces have been deployed in Iraq for years. Analyzing the impacts of the military conflicts, it has left its mark in the form of economic, health and cultural costs for the people of Iraq along with other short term and long term effects on the people. Economic impacts include the destruction of infrastructure, and other direct and indirect losses of economic activities owing to war. The direct impact of the war has resulted in the increased mortality rate (mental trauma, diseases and deaths), increased morbidity rate (injuries, lack of nutrition etc) and an increased disability rate in the population.2 The most immense impact has resulted in intense anti-western sentiments in the population, the promotion of the muslin solidarity struggle against the west and various other Islamic interpretation of the war devastating the image of US amongst the entire Muslim world (Paz). This war has had immense global cultural impacts especially on the Muslim world, portraying the attack as a threat to Muslim solidarity. Weather Analysis Since Iraq is mostly a desert area, thus it has to foresee extreme climatic conditions. Winters range from mild to extreme climatic conditions, while summers are mostly cloudless. In the mountainous regions bordering Iran and Turkey, there is a heavy snowfall in the winters and the weather is extreme. This snow usually melts in early spring which causes heavy floods in the central and the Southern Iraq making living conditions worse. Thus, the population either has to migrate or has to endure the extreme conditions.3 In an extreme weather situation, agriculture, smuggling and other activities cease, which make living very difficult. During wars, this weather often becomes a problem for the soldiers as most of the areas are blocked and mobility becomes difficult. ASCOPE Analysis of Iraq (areas, structures, capabilities, organizations, people and events): As mentioned above, Iraq is a desert area with lots of marshes, flooded areas and mountainous terrain. A lot of Arab population has been displaced from the marshal area, and living conditions become extreme during snowfall, thus population living in these areas has to migrate. It also causes various health hazards in the form of contagious diseases in the people residing in these areas. Iraq constitutes a parliamentary democracy, with 18 governments allocated to administer all the governorates and to empower all ethnic groups in their respective regions. The government is made up of a chief of state, head of government and a running cabinet with offices chosen by way of elections. Other institutions apparent in Iraq are religion, fatalism, tribal as well as family influence, their heritage and history. The people here are very staunch on their religious beliefs and family values. The people here are divided mostly on the basis of religion with the majority of population being Shias while others being Sunnis, Kurds and other minority groups, all engaged in a power struggle. Iraq is made up of three provinces, i.e. Mosul with Kurds residing in the North, Baghdad being the Sunni majority region in the center and Basra in South being dominated by the Shias. Hajj and Ashura are two of the most significance events for the people of Iraq which are highly important for the religious aspect (Wunderle; Paz). Capabilities of the pollution can be traced in terms of their competition for access to resources for their respective ethnic communities. However, generally they are fatalistic people believing more in prescribed status rather than the ascribed one. People of Iraq Commenting on the people of Iraq, it becomes crucial to analyze their social structure, cultures, language, power and interests. Since Iraqis are people from Arab decadency, they still procure the Arab values and the culture. The major languages spoken in the region include Arabic (also being the official language), Kurdish, Turkoman and Armenian. Islam and tribalism are the two factors shaping the social structure of Iraq, also being the determinants of the Iraqi culture. When the Sunni elites had the power structure in their control, they tried to impose Iraqi nationalism and pan-Arabism in Iraq. However, this concept radicalized the Shias and the Kurds elements of the area that comprise a vast majority of the region. This is the main reason why Iraq saw tensions between these religious groups and the government in the past. However, in the recent times the influence of Bathe party in Iraq is quite apparent. Saddam Husain aimed at introducing reforms in the country to eradicate illiteracy, empower woman and improve infrastructure but he imposed strict authoritarianism in the region. With the recent occupation of Iraq by the US forces, the sentiments of the common man in Iraq constitute hatred against the US and the Western world (Wunderle). Social norms and values are very important in Iraq as they shape the society to a great extent. In Iraq, he social acts have to be approved by the societal norms rather than by law. Shame is the yardstick used to measure the acceptance level of the acts, which is the reason why the US army men were later assisted by anthropologists to understand the behavioral patterns of the natives of the region, as these people weren’t willing the accept indicators effecting international law if they were incongruent with their cultural and religious values. The power structure has been dominated by the Sunnis predominantly, along with Shias in the past. However, with international efforts and dire struggle of Kurdish population they have managed to acquire a considerable amount of power in the governance. Thus, conclusively Iraqis are a highly divided nation with religion and culture being the driving force behind their cognitions and actions. This is why, the lack of cultural awareness in the American soldiers led to the denial in the population for accepting that the soldiers are working for the welfare of the people. In order to penetrate in the hearts and minds of these people, it is important to understand their psyche and their culture. For this reason, US had to incorporate the human terrain as an important part of the tactical strategy to win the war in Iraq. Works Cited Colbert, Paul J. "Developing a Culturally Responsive Classroom Collaborative of Faculty, Students, and Institution." Journal of College Teaching & Learning. 7.11 (2010): 15-24. Print "The World Factbook: Iraq Profile." Central Intelligence Agency. USA Gov, 21 Feb. 2012. Web. 11 Apr. 2012. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/iz.html Wunderle, William D. Through the Lens of Cultural Awareness: A Primer for US Armed Forces Deploying to Arab and Middle Eastern Countries. Fort Leavenworth, KS: Combat Studies Institute Press, 2006. Print “Enduring Effects of War: Health in Iraq." UN report. London: Medact, 2004. Print. McFate, Montgomery. "Does Culture Matter?" n.d. Print. Paz, Reuven. The Impact of the War in Iraq on Islamist Groups and the Culture. Conference Proceeding, Israel: The International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT), 2004. Print. Read More