Open Discussion: President Obama’s Speech in Cairo

President Obama delivered a very moving and powerful speech in Cairo on June 4th, 2009.  The speech focused primarily on improving American and Muslim relations, but also addressed issues such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as well as the situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

I admit that it was heartening and emotional to hear Obama cite so many verses from the Holy Qur’an, as well as referring to the miracle of al-Isra, the Night Journey, in which the Prophet Muhammad journeyed to the seven heavens and met with Jesus, Moses, and Abraham, peace be upon them all.  When Obama said “peace be upon them” after mentioning these Prophets, there was enormous applause from the audience because the attendees, as well as Muslims all around the world, knew exactly what it meant:  Respect.

It was also nice to hear Obama stress on the importance of Islam being part of America.  He acknowledged the contributions of Islamic civilization, particularly in mathematics, science, poetry, architecture, and music.  When he spoke of Israel and Palestine, he emphasized on a two-state solution and recognized the struggles that both Israelis and Palestinians face.  For many Muslims, the Israeli-Palestinian crisis is crucial simply because U.S. foreign policy has been overwhelmingly supportive (politically, militarily, and economically) of Israel while vilifying and ignoring the plights of Palestinians.

Although there were many times during the speech where it seemed like Obama was hesitant to acknowledge certain atrocities, such as Israel’s recent airstrike on Gaza, it was at least refreshing to hear a U.S. president recognize the Palestinian humanitarian crisis.  I really liked when he said “children of Abraham,” because that kind of language speaks to the hearts of inter-faith communities around the world.

While citing the Qur’an and reaching out to Muslim majority countries displays the President’s desire to improve relations, it’s important to stay mindful that actions speak louder than words.  As Tariq Ramadan mentions in his recent article, “Obama’s speech to Muslims will mean little if its symbolism is not followed up by concrete measures to restore trust.”  In no way am I trying to deny Obama’s efforts, but rather I’m simply pointing out that I truly hope he follows up on his words.

What are your thoughts?  If you missed the President’s speech, you can watch it below (it’s divided into 6 parts):

Watch Part 2
Watch Part 3
Watch Part 4
Watch Part 5
Watch Part 6

“War on Terror” Ends Reign As War on Words

As I was scrolling through Yahoo news stories, I was happy to find this little gem which discusses changes Obama’s administration has been putting into effect since his campaign.

During the past seven years, the “War Against Terror” or “War on Terror” came to represent everything the U.S. military was doing in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as the broader effort against extremists elsewhere or those seen as aiding militants aimed at destroying the West.

Ultimately and perhaps inadvertently, however, the phrase “became associated in the minds of many people outside the Unites States and particularly in places where the countries are largely Islamic and Arab, as being anti-Islam and anti-Arab,” said Anthony Cordesman, a national security analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank.

We come to understanding through communication. This means that language in its many forms holds the key to understanding and whether it is fueled by tolerance or intolerance. I hope President Obama continues to lead by example using language that keeps problem-solving in mind as opposed to the last few years of a linguistic reign of fear.

Muslim-Americans Cautiously Optimistic about Obama

Yesterday morning, as I rushed to eat my breakfast and leave for class, my father tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Guess what?”  With little interest I asked “What?” and expected my dad to crack another joke about Obama converting to Islam, but instead he said, “On the first day, Obama suspended all the trials at Guantanamo Bay.  He’s shutting it down.”  I was pleasantly surprised.

As I drove to college, I felt a little more optimistic about Barack Husayn Obama’s Presidency.  “So far, so good,” I said to myself.  “Not bad, not bad.”  As I read the article myself, the skeptic in me surfaced again when I read Guantanamo Bay would be shut down within a year’s time.  In a facility where Muslim detainees, many of whom are suspected “terrorists” and Al-Qaida “links,” are victimized by brutal and unlawful methods of torture, such as being forced to eat pork, drink alcohol, and curse the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), am I the only one who thinks one year is too long?

The truth is I struggled, and continue to struggle, with my support for Obama.  During election time, I proudly supported him.  I put his lawn signs up and even convinced others to vote for him. Muslim-Americans, including friends of mine, campaigned for him and encouraged fellow Muslims to show their support.

As someone who has experienced Islamophobia first-hand, foreign policy and racial profiling were probably the most important issues to me in this election. Hate crimes and discriminatory acts towards Muslims increased on an annual basis, and I did not hear President Bush voice any concern about it. In addition to how the media kept vilifying Islam and isolating the Muslim voice, I felt like an outsider. But when I saw Obama run for president and talk about so many things, like engaging in diplomacy with Muslim countries, ending racial profiling, closing Guantanamo Bay, and even going as far to state that the U.S. is not just a Christian nation, but a Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, Atheist nation as well, I felt like the positive image of America could be restored again and that I wouldn’t just be viewed as an “immigrant-American” anymore.  For once, I felt like I could look at our flag and connect with it in a way that I never did before.  But those moments were very brief and they went away quickly.

During the presidential debates, he spoke with so much hostility towards Pakistan. He came off sounding very ignorant and misinformed about the situation. Then Gaza was a wake up call. With over 1,300 people dead, I can’t help but wonder why Obama would condemn the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, but not have the courage to condemn Israel’s terrorist attacks on Gaza.   During the crisis, I re-watched his speech at AIPAC several times and felt my hopes in him crumbling away.

After one of the Gaza rallies in Philadelphia, a friend of mine said, “everyone at that rally voted for Obama. Is he going to show us any appreciation in return?” I voted for Obama because I am sick of feeling like an outsider.  I voted for Obama because I’m sick of seeing only one side of the story, while Muslims are vilified in the mainstream media.  I voted for Obama because I don’t want my heart to feel any more pain whenever I’m praying for fellow human beings who are being killed overseas.

And then, just last night, things started to shift again for me.  After Isha prayer at my local Mosque, my fellow Muslim brothers and I were talking about Obama’s order to shut down Guantanamo bay.  I expressed my disappointment over Obama not saying anything to condemn Israel’s attacks on Gaza, but then a fellow Muslim brother told me that the expectation level for Obama is so high that if he makes one little mistake, we get very critical of him.  This needs to change, he encouraged.  We shouldn’t be too quick to judge.  As our discussion carried on, I decided to make my own list of “Pros” and “Cons” about Obama’s Presidency in respect to issues that concern many Muslim-Americans.

Pros:

1.  His name is Barack Husayn Obama.  Whether people like it or not, he has a Muslim background.  Though there are conflicting reports, it looks like his grandmother, Sarah Husayn Obama, is a Muslim.  It is also clear that he has Muslim relatives.  I personally believe this is a very positive sign because it will most likely make him more sympathetic to the Muslim world (as well as the struggles of Muslim-Americans).  This would give him more credibility and respect in the Muslim world than any other American president.

2.  According to the official website for the White House, the Obama administration promises to end racial profiling.  As the agenda states:  “President Obama and Vice President Biden will ban racial profiling by federal law enforcement agencies and provide federal incentives to state and local police departments to prohibit the practice.”

3.  President Obama has already signed the executive orders to shut down Guantanamo Bay within a year.  It is truly comforting that the new President has acted so swiftly to prohibit unlawful methods of prisoner abuse and torture.  Muslims-Americans, as well as Muslims around the world, are still outraged by how the Bush administration stood by silently while interrogators desecrated Qur’ans and flushed them down toilets in order to intimidate detainees.

4.  Diplomacy with Iran.  This was one of the many issues that made Muslim-Americans distance themselves from John McCain.  Although the Obama administration claims to perceive Iran as a “threat,” it promises to engage in direct diplomacy with  its leadership.  I would like to think that Obama already acknowledges the fact that Iran has a Jewish population of over 25,000 and even has Jewish representation in the Iranian parliament.  One would hope that the Obama administration noticed the Iranian Jews who took to the streets of Iran and protested against Israel’s attacks in Gaza.

Cons:

1.  Afghanistan and Pakistan.  According to the official White House website, the Obama administration promises to “refocus American resources on the greatest threat to our security — the resurgence of al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan. They will increase our troop levels in Afghanistan, press our allies in NATO to do the same, and dedicate more resources to revitalize Afghanistan’s economic development. Obama and Biden will demand the Afghan government do more, including cracking down on corruption and the illicit opium trade” (emphasis added).  Reading this statement makes one ask:  “Weren’t we voting for an anti-war President?”  In regards to Pakistan, “Obama and Biden will increase nonmilitary aid to Pakistan and hold them accountable for security in the border region with Afghanistan.”  It doesn’t make sense to me why the Obama administration would increase troop levels in Afghanistan and yet not send military aid to Pakistan.  As I mentioned in another post of mine, Pakistan has suffered (and continues to suffer) a great deal when it comes to combating the Taliban.  It’s rather unsettling how Obama doesn’t seem to recognize this.

2.  Hilary Clinton, Joe Biden, and Rahm Emanuel are all in Obama’s cabinet.  Hilary Clinton once stated she would “obliterate Iran,” Joe Biden is a self-proclaimed Zionist, and Rahm Emanuel served in the Israeli military and is very pro-Israel.  I know Obama has the final say on things, but one cannot help but worry about his cabinet’s potential influences.

3.  Israel.  Will we finally see a president who takes a strong stance against Israel’s military occupation of the Palestinian people?  Will we finally see a president who will sincerely help the Israelis and Palestinians come to a resolution without vilifying the Palestinians?  Or are we going to see the same failed policies of the Bush administration?  It should be obvious to people by now that AIPAC has an immense influence on U.S. politics.  It’s hard to imagine someone getting elected president of the United States without supporting AIPAC and the state of Israel.

4.  Obama may fail to understand the Muslim world in the same way Bush failed to.  During Obama’s speech on inauguration day, he said:  “To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict or blame their society’s ills on the West, know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy…”  He’s clearly addressing the Muslim world here and what’s so frustrating is that this statement paints the same image that Bush presented, i.e. the Muslim world is “destroying” and killing people without any reason. Of course there is violence taking place in the Muslim world, but what triggered that violence? You look at Iraq, and you’ll see that violence erupted in the form of resistance against U.S. invasion and occupation. You look at Palestine, and you see violent resistance against the brutal Israeli military occupation.  Obama continued and said:  “The world will judge you on what you build, not what you destroy…” Well if Iraq, Palestine, and Afghanistan get a chance to build instead of getting bombed, then I’m sure things would be much different.  And wasn’t Israel recently bombing innocent people and destroying places like schools, Mosques, and hospitals?

Anyway, these are just a few “Pros” and “Cons” that I thought of the other night.  I’m sure others have more to add.  I want to believe Obama can bring a positive change.  I can’t imagine how a man like him can sit down and speak to the late Palestinian academic, Edward Said, and then (many years later) kiss up to Israel and AIPAC.  I can’t imagine how a man like him could speak to Rashid Khalidi and not see the oppression taking place against the Palestinians.  I sincerely hope that my worries about him are wrong.  I’d rather be cautiously optimistic and suprised than be overly enthusiastic and end up feeling disappointed and fooled.

What’s in a Name?

Husayn is a Beautiful Name

As human beings, we should be outraged and disgusted by the kind of racist and xenophobic behavior we’re seeing from McCain supporters. First, we heard GOP chair of Lehigh County, William Platt, emphasis on Barack Obama’s middle name, “Husayn” (my spelling), which caused an uproar of angry boos. Next, we heard supporters shout “kill him!” and “traitor!” Now, we see an old lady call Obama an “Arab” while several others shout “he’s a Muslim” and “he’s a terrorist!” as if (1) being a Muslim is a bad thing, and (2) being a Muslim means you’re a terrorist.

To his credit, Senator McCain condemned this kind of behavior and encouraged his supporters to be respectful, but this still doesn’t change his supporters’ perception of certain words like “Muslim” and “Arab,” or names like “Husayn.”

As a Muslim, what’s frustrating and upsetting to me is how racist and prejudice these attitudes are. As Eve Tahmincioglu of the Huffington Post writes, “So What If Obama Were a Muslim?” Has the word “Muslim” become an insult? If Obama was a Muslim, would that mean he’s incompatible with American values? If Obama was a Muslim, would that mean he’s incompatible with Judeo-Christian values? Absolutely not.

The common misconception is that Islam is completely foreign and alien from Christianity and Judaism, but in actuality, it is not. Islam, like Christianity and Judaism, is an Abrahamic religion that began in the Middle-East. By Abrahamic religion, I mean Muslims, Christians, and Jews all descend from Abraham, peace be upon him. Prophet Muhammad is a descendant of Ishmael through his second son, Kedar — Ishmael being the first son of Abraham, of course (peace be upon them all). If one opens the Qur’an, he/she will find familiar names like Noah, Moses, Isaac, Joseph, Jonah, Solomon, David, Jesus, Mary, etc. In fact, the Qur’an mentions Moses and Jesus by name more than Muhammad. To a Christian or Jew, does this sound like a completely “foreign” religion to you?

Instead of focusing on what we share, certain McCain supporters and media outlets reinforce the faulty idea that Islam is “foreign” and “incompatible” with the West. If we listened to this kind of logic, then shouldn’t we say the same thing about Jesus, a Middle-Eastern man who spoke a Middle-Eastern language (Aramaic), wore Middle-Eastern clothes, and ate Middle-Eastern food? Of course not.

Another thing that is upsetting to me is that individuals who may not have had any exposure to Islam or Muslim cultures may not be aware of how beautiful the name Husayn is. Instead the name is vilified and associated with dictators and terrorists. Obama is not a Muslim — he’s a devout Christian — but his heritage includes Islam as his father and grandfather were Muslims, which explains why his middle name is Husayn.

“Husayn” means “good” and “handsome or beautiful one” in Arabic. Husayn is also the name of Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, who died courageously fighting against an oppressive and greedy regime. He is one of the most respected and Loved figures in the Islamic tradition. As I wrote in my poem about Husayn, he “stood boldly in the face of a thousand spears and swords, unyielding to the inhumanity of a cruel and vicious tyrant.” May God’s Love and Blessings be upon him.

With this in mind, it is offensive to Muslims when the name Husayn or the words “Muslim” or “Arab” are used to smear Obama and portray him in a negative light. It is offensive to Muslims when people equate “Muslim” or “Islam” with “terrorist” or “terrorism.” It is offensive to Muslims when it is preached that Islam doesn’t have a place in American politics. As I have written before, the fact that 20% of the African slaves forcefully brought to America were Muslim, not to mention the Muslim achievements in mathematics, medicine, and astronomy over the centuries, can we really say that Islam has no place in America?

One final note about those who shout “kill him!” “traitor!” and “terrorist” at McCain rallies whenever Obama’s name is mentioned: As many analysts and reporters have pointed out, Barack Husayn Obama deserves better than that. He has worked hard in America, he has worked hard in helping people in their communities, and he has taken that extra effort to reach out to people of all races, cultures, religions, and political parties.

Whether you agree with him or not, he deserves to be respected, and anyone who shouts “kill him” or calls him a “traitor” has serious personal issues that they need to sort out. It is not Obama’s middle name that is ugly, it is this attitude of inciting hatred and racism that is ugly.

Salaam, Shalom, Shlama, Peace

~ Jehanzeb