The word freedom now signals American imperialism in Muslim-majority audiences

Evidence

The U.S. message of freedom was met with suspicion and seen as propaganda by many. “Freedom,” as Kennedy and Lucas assert, has become a signifier of American imperialism—“the empire for liberty.” — Evelyn Alsultany, Arabs and Muslims in the Media, 1348

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines the semiotic slippage whereby a once-positive term becomes a coded marker of imperial intent.
• XREF: connects to: American culture signified freedom and defiance during the Occupation. — Sarah Bakewell, At the Existentialist Café: Freedom,…, 536; Liberal Muslim-American leaders were co-opted into rebranding imperial policy — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of…, 496; Freedom faded from Western discourse after 1960s victories but returned with new threats — Sarah Bakewell, At the Existentialist Café: Freedom,…, 96