The Curious Case of the Withdrawal from the Joint Commission Plan of Action (JCPOA): Islamophobia, Racism, and Foreign Policy

Abstract

The United States' relationship with Iran has been more negative than positive over the last forty years. That relationship seemed to change when the 45th President of the United States, President Barack Obama, and five key nations decided to renegotiate its relationship with Iran by creating the Joint Commission Plan of Action (JCPOA). This foreign policy ensured that the Iranian government would use nuclear energy peacefully, with maximum oversight. And the country would not be able not to create a nuclear weapon, as feared by the United States and its regional allies. In turn, Iran would get sanctions relief for its struggling economy. However, some vocal opposition to the plan from critical partners, such as Israel and 46th President Donald Trump. Trump's suggestive language towards Iran and the JCPOA suggested that his opposition may have been beyond politics. I looked at interviews and speeches throughout Trump's tenure as US President through a comprehensive analysis. I used the system of content analysis, analyzing the news transcripts involving Trump's discussions about Iran using Nexus Uni's tools to gather the data and the agency “Atlas.it” to organize each of the transcripts while creating four different categories that I hypothesized Trump used: “Subtle Racism,” “Racism,” “Islamophobia,” and “Orientalism.” I analyzed each news transcript and evaluated whether Trump used one or more of the four categories when talking about Iran. I researched the transcripts and graphed my results, I observed that he used both Subtle Racism and Orientalism when describing policies with Iran and his vocal opposition to the JCPOA. But he did not use Islamophobia directly in speeches. I discovered that his Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, subtly discussed Iran. I named it “subtle Islamophobia.” I argue that this use of “Islamophobia by proxy” (Mike Pompeo is a representative of his cabinet) ties in with “Old Fashioned Racism” and partially supports my hypothesis that Trump was motivated by all four factors. Finally, I conclude from my observations that the withdrawal from the JCOPA was indeed based on Trump’s Subtle Racism and Orientalism. I suggest possible solutions that the United States diplomatic community, alongside the executive branch, can check if their words and policies are based on internal biases such as Subtle Racism or Orientalism.