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Enlightening the Psyche |
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Articles
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Blindfolded
Nation Nancy El-Gindy
The representation of Islam is purposely
sabotaged because without this idea that Islam breeds terrorism, the U.S has no way to justify this war as legitimate. If
the truth comes out, what the public will find out is that these 'Islamic terrorists' are actually fighting a very political,
rational and pragmatic war. If
the Islamists are perceived to be logical, rather than following a religion and doctrine which is inherently irrational, then
the tool employed to confront them must also be rational by the use of diplomacy and negotiation instead of force. Force unfortunately is required to
intervene and create an arena and environment in the Therefore, a ‘blindfolded nation’ must also be formed at home to obstruct a great
enough source of discontent with foreign policy that might challenge it at an influential level. From experience, observations and
discussions, the two main issues that many Americans seem to have a lack of information and knowledge on is the Israeli-Palestinian
crisis and the teachings of Islam. Education is central to this issue.
American high schools teach basically nothing on Middle Eastern history and of course Islam is not only not taught properly
but along with Middle Eastern politics, is totally twisted in the media in order to construct this image that fits into American
foreign policy...and does not contradict it. People have to be incredibly vigilant
and realize that we are in a state of war with an incredible high degree of anti-Americanism not only in the Middle East but
also in This environment will naturally cause distortion
of the enemy argument. Most of the extremists that the U.S is looking for take
action wrongfully in the name of Islam; therefore Islam must be from time to time shown in a negative light. In addition, probably the main foreign
policy that drives such people to commit acts of hate is the unequivocal support to Due to the amount of propaganda that is
fed to the people of the Still, the duty to be patriotic has divided
and blinded a nation. Being patriotic is about being patriotic about your positive aspects. Being patriotic does not however
entail living with serious problems that can be fixed and actually ignoring and denying any flaws. This blindfolded nation must open their
eyes and ears to a world that has experienced the harsh realities of colonialism, military intervention, and economic domination
by top industrial states. They then must realize for once that democracy is not absolute, there are faults and must stand
up and truly be patriotic which demands recognizing these problems and taking action to create an even better system and country.
Mindsets and lack of knowledge are the problem Nancy El-Gindy
"What is needed is a move beyond tradition,"
states well-known British Indian Anglo-Indian author/novelist Salman Rushdie
in a London Times article in early August 2005, "nothing less than a reform movement to bring the core concepts of Islam into
the modern age." Because of terrorist acts perpetrated by
Islamic fundamentalists, demands for revolutionary reform of Islamic traditions, Sharia (Islamic law), new interpretations
of the Quran, and changes to the Muslim way of life in order to bring the Islamic world into the "modern age" have been very
popular with the media and the subject of much public debate in recent years. Why is it that the faith of Islam is always
brought into question when a very small minority of Muslims actually commit these crimes of aggression? Why is it assumed
that Islam itself is actually driving these murderers to such levels of hatred and ignorance? Islamic terrorism has no roots
in the religion itself, rather it grows out of individuals' own interpretation of it, personal intolerance and hate, and in
some cases, perhaps even insanity. Rushdie, one of the most active advocates
of Islamic reform, is the writer of the The Satanic Verses, the publication which made him a heretic in the eyes of the late
Iranian spiritual leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini who put a price on his head. He argues that (the) Muslims in the West
seclude themselves in their own neighborhoods and are isolated from the community at large, to such an extent that this isolation
leads youngsters to embrace terrorism. He also believes that if the Quran was
viewed as a historical document, rather than simply the word of God, then it would be legitimate to reinterpret it to suit
the conditions of the present time. Rushdie has acknowledged that there are
millions of Muslims who are indeed tolerant and "civilized", but adds that there are also many more that have anti-Semitic
views and do not support the concept of freedom of expression. Though this may be accurate, I would hardly
agree that Islam is the driving force behind isolationism, anti-Semitic views and a lack of freedom of expression. If enough people read the teachings of
Islam they would understand that it promotes tolerance, patience, kindness and understanding toward both Muslims and non-Muslims.
The killing of innocents has been and always will be a major sin, as in any other religion or belief system. Some religious
leaders, however, take liberties in interpreting certain verses of the Quran or sayings of the Prophet Mohammad pbuh, taking
them out of context to suit their own political agendas, and sometimes managing to brainwash others with false promises of
paradise in the afterlife. Islam itself does not sponsor or condone the terrorist acts of these Muslims, and thus should not
be held responsible for them. Islam is not uncivilized, outdated, or
intolerant; it is the people that promote radical, unconventional beliefs and practices of Islam and live this way that create
these misconceptions. Reforming Islam itself is not going to solve the problem of terrorism perpetrated by extremists, because
no matter how much theology and doctrine change, people themselves probably will not. Reinterpreting holy texts would fail
firstly because of the widespread and strong opposition it would receive, and secondly because extremists will always manage
to find something in the texts of Islam that they can twist to fit their agendas. Unfortunately, it seems in all societies
there exists a minority of narrow-minded fanatics. For example, Christianity is widely seen as a moderate religion which promotes
peace, and is what it is today because of many periods of reformation, schism, and soul-searching, yet there are still groups
of people all over the world who promote extreme views in its name, for instance, the once powerful Ku Klux Klan, a self-proclaimed
Christian organization. What changed was not the religion, nor interpretations of core religious texts, rather, popular support
for the organization eroded as the hearts and minds of the population at large turned against bigotry and discrimination of
all kinds, thanks in large part to the civil rights movement in the United States. Mindsets are the problem, not what is written
in Islam's holy texts. Altering this state of mind should be the focus of intellectual efforts to end terrorism, not modifying
or reforming Islam. What gives rise then, to this unfortunate
and misplaced perception? Simple lack of knowledge about Islam. There is a vital
need to raise the awareness in the Western countries on some simple facts about Islam. The states of the Middle East and Muslim
world should do much more in terms of public diplomacy. Their current utter lack of the most basic public relations skills
is one of the biggest reasons the teachings of Islam are hardly known, much less properly understood, in the West. Western
journalists and analysts often know no more than their audiences, making it difficult, if not impossible, for them to put
events in the Middle East and acts of terrorism in proper context. Credible intellectual and religious figures
should also make more efforts to reach out to national and local media in the West. Scholars, sheikhs and other religious
figures should swallow their pride and pay special attention to more conservative media outlets such as the Fox News Network,
often criticized for its bias, to reach those sectors of the American population that tend to be unthinkingly anti-Islam.
They will need to have a strong grounding in Western history and politics so they can help define for Western audiences the
difference between Islamic principles, on the one hand, and the actions of a few, on the other, in terms they will understand.
And they should not let Westerners forget that dangerous, extremist movements claiming to draw on religion have existed in
the West as well. There is no need to apologize as many Muslims
have in the UK. Instead, the efforts of Islamic nations should be concentrated on education. Many religious specialists and
leaders around the world have condemned the September 11th and July 7th terrorist attacks, as well as many others, and have
publicly stated that these crimes are not motivated by Islam. But they have failed to actually educate Westerners about Islam
itself to show how little basis there is in Islam for terrorism, and to give specific examples from Islamic history and the
Hadith (sayings of the Prophet), the Prophet's teachings and anecdotes about how he lived his life. Only when Islamic religious leaders and
governments take their role of representatives of Islam seriously will the image of Islam in the West have a chance of changing.
Otherwise, Westerners will, quite naturally, only continue to pay heed to the loudest voices in the Islamic world, the voices
of the terrorists and extremists. |
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