Muslim Heretics Conference

US-Muslim relations at stake in US election?

Ghassan Michel Rubeiz
October 20, 2008

Islamic Center in Washington, DC, USA. (Photo: Hisham Ibrahim / Getty Images)

East Meredith, New York - Following a week of devastating economic news, the latest presidential and vice-presidential televised debates have put concerns of foreign affairs back on the campaign agenda – particularly issues of importance to Muslim-US relations. Coupled with earlier campaign spin about Barack Obama’s alleged Muslim roots, Sarah Palin’s reference to “God’s work” in Iraq, John McCain’s repetitive reference to “radical Islam” and other examples of media mania about Islam, one may have the impression that the future of American relations with the Muslim world depends on the outcome of the 2008 elections.

This is not the case.

America will be tied to the Muslim world for centuries to come. There are six million Muslims in America, and many Americans work and live in the 56 Muslim-majority countries. Tens of thousands of Muslim students study in America, and American universities in Muslim societies will continue to play a positive intercultural role.

The connections between the two worlds go beyond the diaspora, expatriate work opportunities and tourism. Washington is an ally of Pakistan in the fight against terrorism; it is allied with Turkey through NATO; it is a major player in the Arab-Israeli conflict; it is active in diplomacy with the people of Cyprus, the Balkans, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Although many of America’s policies with Muslim-majority countries take the form of aid and cooperation, America is also engaged in two active wars in Muslim-majority countries and is confronting Iran aggressively on nuclear defence issues and its relations with Hizbullah and Hamas.

These many links – whether over common interest, immigration or competition – will play a long-term role in Muslim-US relations well beyond the November election.

Of the many leading issues in this presidential race, the three matters that most directly impact America’s relationship with Muslims – both domestically and abroad –- are the future of Iraq, independence from Middle East oil and resolution of the Israel-Palestine question.

Neither candidate has outlined a comprehensive plan to end the war in Iraq. Both disagree on what constitutes success. Obama focuses on the pace of troop withdrawal (16 months after he’s elected), and McCain stresses military “victory”, with troop withdrawal playing a secondary factor. In fact, the Bush administration has already accepted a major troop withdrawal within the next two years, because the Iraqi government now feels more secure and is demanding US forces leave sooner rather than later.

What will really impact American relations with the Muslim world is not the timing of withdrawal as much as the stabilisation of Iraq and its unity. Neither party in this election has a clear plan yet on how to secure Iraq for the long run, how to preserve its unity and how to fit this restructured state into the region. This is where the opportunities lie for enhancing US-Muslims relations.

As to the second issue of special relevance to US-Muslim relations, both candidates are vocal on the need to be independent from Middle East oil. Spontaneous oil autonomy is not realistic. Meanwhile, Arabs are not rushing for disengagement from America and remain a welcome presence in the US market.

A gradual reduction of oil importing from the Middle East, accompanied by and integrated with US support of Arab industrialisation, will not only bring about autonomy for Americans but also stimulate an economic industrial revival in oil-rich countries, providing jobs to millions of young people. Many oil countries operate vulnerable “rent economies”. Oil economies also need independence from oil through diversification.

Palestine and the perceived bias of the United States toward Israel is the third issue that will impact Washington’s relations with Muslims. Unlike McCain, Obama seems to have a strong impulse to support the Middle East peace process. However, with Palestinians divided politically and Hamas in leadership, a US-led breakthrough between Palestinians and Israelis is unlikely in the near future.

But there are still opportunities for US involvement in the Middle East. The United States could work harder on the Syrian-Israeli track of the peace process and start a new chapter of rapprochement with Iran. If there is progress in US-Syrian-Iranian diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli peace process will be automatically accelerated.

The coming elections may affect the future dynamics of the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, the profile of energy saving and the pace of the Arab-Israeli peace process. But regardless of which party is in the White House in January 2009, the United States will need to continue to work with many Muslim majority countries on a host of broad issues, and to consider Muslim Americans important within the mosaic of political constituencies and vital to the American social mix.

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* Dr. Ghassan Michel Rubeiz is an Arab American commentator and former Secretary of the Middle East for the Geneva-based World Council of Churches. This article first appeared in Washington Post/Newsweek’s Post Global and was written for the Common Ground News Service (CGNews).

US-Muslim relations at stake in US election? - Worldpress.org

`Voice of America’ Needed to Reach Arabs and Muslims, American Diplomat Says

By Kevin Mooney (Bio | Archive)
October 31, 2008 - 05:20 ET

U.S diplomacy has suffered in the Middle East because policymakers dismantled critical instruments of communication in the late 1990s under the mistaken assumption that ideological struggles had ended with the Cold War, a former ambassador to Syria and Israel argues in a new book.

Outlets like the Voice of America (VOA) are critically important to America’s strategic interests and policy aims in the Muslim and Arab world where moderate elements are open to persuasion despite previous diplomatic missteps Ambassador Edward P. Djerejian points out in “Danger and Opportunity: An American Ambassador’s Journey Through the Middle East.”

To keep pace with media outlets like Al Jazerera, the major Arab satellite TV station, it is imperative to have articulate and fluent Foreign Service officers who can explain and defend U.S. policy in an effective way, Djerejian pointed out in an interview.

Although differing interests and objectives will remain evident in some areas, there is enough common ground that presents diplomats with important opportunities, he suggested.

“The Voice of America” is vitally important as it relates to the struggle for ideas in the Muslim world between moderation and extremism,” he said. “The manner and content of the American message is critical. And while 80 percent of the perceptions people have of America throughout the Middle East are shaped by policies, there is another critical 20 percent open for diplomacy to promote widely admired values.”

Extensive surveys show that strong majorities in the Muslim world have great admiration for deeply ingrained American principles like individual liberty, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, equality of opportunity and the rule of law, he explained.

Unfortunately, the U.S. has not helped itself in Arab-Muslim world by virtue of lending support to dictators, even as it promotes the idea of democracy, Djerejian acknowledges. The experiences of the current Bush Administration also demonstrate that democracy promotion must go beyond elections.

“If democracy promotion is focused too much on elections alone, the principle of unintended consequences comes into play,” Djerejian said. “We saw this with the Palestinian election in 2006 where the administration did promote elections and Hamas came out as the winner. This has very real and negative consequences.”

Although there is an appetite for democracy and greater political autonomy, it will look very different from what Americans are accustomed to and must be built from the ground up, he argued.

“It is important to understand that Islam is not a monolith, it is a very differentiated society,” Djerejian said. “You have Sunnis and Shiites and it’s a complex landscape. Understanding the culture is the first key step in any new U.S. administration.”

Radical Islamists seek to brand the U.S. as a secular society that denies God and religion but there is ample room to push back against false impressions with a carefully calibrated communications campaign, he explained.

“First you must distinguish between secularism and secularization,” Djerejian said. “The U.S. is branded as secular society that excludes God and religion but this totally false. We are a very religious country. What we have is a division between church and state and that’s secularization. But freedom of religion is inculcated into our body politic.”

Another main topic explored in the book concerns the relationship between reason and Islamic law. At one time Muslim scholars relied upon what is termed “Ijtihad” to reach legal decisions in those instances where Sharia was silent or unclear. This practice was abandoned sometime in the 10th century.

“This gets back to the struggle of ideas now taking placed between moderates and radicals,” Djerejian said. “A great majority of Muslims are moderates who believe in rationale interpretation. They believe religious doctrine can be modified to fit the requirements of the contemporary period. Ijtihad is another word for hope.”

With regard to Iraq, the ambassador supports a “new diplomatic offensive” that would directly engage neighbors like Syria and Iran. A “strategic dialogue” could yield important dividends in his estimation.

“We should not fear engaging our enemies and our adversaries, unless we are so insecure about our own ability to conduct negotiations,” he said. “We could make surprising headway.”

In the case Syria, “strategic dialogues” have worked in the past, he recalls. Syria was actually a partner during Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and also helped to secure the release of U.S. hostages in Beirut, he pointed out.

There is already a strong reform movement at work in Iran that is putting pressure on the regime, Djerejian said.

Moreover, the real power brokers is the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei not Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the incendiary president, he explained.

“The Iranian leadership has to be aware and sensitive to the political divisions in their own society,” the ambassador said. “There is a huge opportunity here and we can negotiate from a position of strength.”

`Voice of America’ Needed to Reach Arabs and Muslims, American Diplomat Says | NewsBusters.org

Arab Americans have substantial presence in Tuesday’s elections

October 31, 2008 07:31 PM

Despite the challenges of an American system that discourages their involvement, Arab Americans are involved in the political elections this week on all levels, as candidates, as voters and as controversies.

 

Different  sources estimate that there are between 3.5 and 4.5 million Arabs in America, with Christians a slight majority over Muslims. There are 7.5 million Muslims in America, but only about 22 percent are Arab and the largest segment are African American and Asian.

Arab Americans are represented in both parties, but the majorities tend to swing back and forth depending on the candidate and the issues in the Middle East. In 2000, for example, Arab Americans overwhelmingly voted Republican to support George W. Bush.

In the election contest between Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama, there seems to be a split with a majority of Christian Arabs supporting McCain and a majority of Muslims supporting Obama.

Arab American voters share the same concerns as other Americans, from education to jobs to improving the economy. But they also have a special interest in American foreign policy towards the Middle East, and on that criteria, they share an overwhelming disappointment. They often base their choices in national elections, such as for president, on the which candidate is “the lesser of two evils.”

Yet, when Americans across the country flock to the polls on Tuesday, Nov. 4, Arab Americans will be standing with them side-by-side in line to vote.

Here is a look at Arab American political success, their challenges and even a few of the controversies that continue to play significant roles in this year’s presidential election:

In office

After a more than 150-year presence in this country, Arab Americans continue to seek and hold public elective office.

There is little diversity in terms of their national Arab origins. The vast majority of Arab American officeholders are of Lebanese heritage. There are many reasons for this. The Lebanese were among the first to settle in the U.S. in large numbers. They are almost all Christian, allowing them to assimilate more easily into American society. Although there is a theoretical separation of church and state in America, oftentimes the fastest way to elective office is through church-supported political organizations.

But other Arab nationalities are slowly winning office as more and more seek office. The common denominator seems to be that those succeeding in elections are trading-off ties to their home countries of origin with more local activism and community involvement.

Some of the better known officeholders include U.S. Senator John Sununu (Palestinian origins and Lebanese heritage), and Congressmen Darrell Issa (California) and Ray LaHood (Illinois), all Republican.

There are more than 13 other Arab Americans who held office including four former U.S. Senators (all Lebanese), and nine congressmen including two women, Mary Rose Oakar, now national president of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), in Ohio’s 20^th district, and Pat Danner of the 6^th District in Missouri.

The Arab American Leadership Council maintains an updated and detailed roster that also includes members of state legislatures, governors, and local office holders from state to suburban office.

Seeking office

One of the highest profile Arab American candidate in the Nov. 4^th election is Ralph Nader who is running for president on a third party. His candidacy is on the ballots in 45 of the country’s 50 states.

Sam Rasoul, candidate for congress in Virginia’s 6^th district, raised more than $100,000 towards his campaign through online contributions alone. Although Rasoul is running in a longtime Republican district, he and other Democrats hope that Obama’s coattails will give them enough momentum to reverse voting trends.

In Peoria, Illinois where his father is congressman, Darin LaHood, who built his own reputation as a U.S. Federal prosecutor who targeted the mob, is running for county state’s attorney as a Republican.

Bob Abboud, the son of the former Chairman of the First National Bank of Chicago and now mayor of an affluent Northwest Chicago suburb, is the Democratic candidate in the 16^th Congressional district.

More than 100 Arab Americans are expected to file their nominating petitions later this year in the February 24 and April 7, 2009 for local elective offices across the country.

In controversy

Not all of the Arab Americans involved in political elections are candidates for office. Several of the most “famous” in this presidential contest between Obama and McCain come from Illinois.

Anton “Tony” Rezko, once one of the most powerful and influential political fundraisers in the country, was convicted of corruption and faces sentencing after the presidential election.

A close friend of Obama’s, Rezko was involved in several of Obama’s controversial real estate deals. He was convicted of bribery in an unrelated scheme raising funds for beleaguered Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. Rezko is Syrian American.

Not all did anything wrong and were targeted for their race and their religion.

Another Arab American in the political headlines is professor Rashid Khalidi, a Palestinian author and close friend of Obama. Khalidi, who holds the Edward Said Chair at Columbia University in New York, has been the target of a hatemongering campaign by pro-Israel extremists adopted by McCain supporters who are using the false charges to embarrass Obama.

Just over one week after being named Muslim Outreach liaison for Obama, noted Chicago attorney Mazen Asbahi was forced to resigned when he was targeted in a hate profile published by the right-wing Wall Street Journal, once a respected national newspaper gutted by its extremist conservative owner, Rupert Murdoch.

(Ray Hanania is an award winning syndicated columnist and Chicago radio talk Show host. He can be reached at www.RadioChicagoland.com or by email at rayhanania@comcast.net.)

Arabisto.com

Going Deeper

Marginalisation of Muslims in US presidential election

Kazi Anwarul Masud

LEPERS, untouchable, politically radioactive, is how Muslims in the US presently describe themselves before the presidential election to be held on November 4. The McCain camp reportedly tried to portray Barack Obama as a Muslim to scare away his supporters.
It is sad that in a multi-religious, multi-cultural nation of immigrants, about 6 million Muslims have to prove their loyalty to a country where many of whom were born and bred.
According to the American Muslim Council (AMC) there are three categories of Muslims: immigrants, American converts/reverts to Islam, and those born to the first two groups as Muslims. California has about 20% of the Muslim population while New York 16% of the total Muslim population.
Sensible Americans are furious because of the causal relationship that is being painted between the Muslims and the terrorists. Colin Powell, President George W. Bush’s first term secretary of state expressed his fury on NBC’s Meet the Press by asking: “Is there something wrong being a Muslim in this country? The answer is no, that’s not America.”
Powell said that he felt very strongly on this issue when he saw the picture of a mother of a Muslim soldier embracing her son’s grave in the Arlington Cemetery. Powell’s statement generated strong support among Muslims.
One Muslim said: “Muslims feel jaded by 2008 election precisely because they see the smearing of their identity. Muslim or Arab is seen as a scarlet letter, political leprosy, Kryptonite. There is that taint there. We are the lowest of the low.”
The desolation resounding the words spoken reminds one of the riots that took place in Europe after the unsavoury characterisations of Prophet Mohammed (SM) in the cartoons published by a Danish newspaper and reproduced by several European newspapers.
It is generally accepted that freedom of expression is circumscribed by its adverse fallout on the dignity of the individual (libel) or the majesty of the divinity (blasphemy). Society by definition being a conglomeration of diverse individuals, societal responsibility demands that rights of the members of the society not be intruded upon.
The first amendment to the US constitution insisting that “Congress shall make no laws respecting an establishment of religion” was a declaration that was powerfully pursued by the US Supreme Court to ensure separation of church from state.
Sociologists and political scientists would have to delve into the intricacies to find out the reasons of this “conflict” between two great religions of the world — Islam and Christianity.
Dethronement of atheism has, perhaps, resulted in people’s greater devotion to established religions. Though it is believed that an inverse relationship exists between wealth and religiosity yet the description of the US, the largest economy in the world, as “a poster child for supernatural belief” is a puzzle.
Supernatural belief, according to anthropologist Edward Taylor, is the “minimum definition of religion.” Just about any American, blessed with the material advantages of technological age, believe in God in the biblical sense along with miracles, angels, devils and the afterlife.
This belief in the supernatural is not confined to Christian conservatives, once described by the Washington Post as “largely poor, the uneducated,” but, for example, embraces about half of the scientific community of the US.
It is often forgotten that the terrorist attacks of 9/11 were carried out by a handful of renegades in the name of Islam and condemned by the whole Islamic world (along with the rest of the international community.) But nonetheless the prejudice of the majority community has reduced the Muslims, particularly the Muslim diaspora living in the West, to negotiating the parameters of minority citizenship.
The death by accidental electrocution of two Arab Muslim youths fleeing from the French police led to riots. But the core reason for the riots was basically caused by decades long socio-economic exclusion of Muslim immigrants brought into France from North Africa and into Germany from Turkey to shore up the post-war sagging Franco-German economies.
One must, however, acknowledge the “failure” of the immigrants to fully integrate themselves with the mainstream life that resulted in gaining political territory by anti-immigration political parties who play on the unfounded fear of the host country voters about the immigrants.
This fear of the “unknown” was furthered by academics of impeccable credentials like Bernard Lewis, among others, of Islam being an intolerant religion. “Islam was never prepared,” writes Lewis “either in theory or in practice, to accord full equality to those who held other beliefs and practiced other forms of worship.”
Besides, adds Bernard Lewis, there exists millennial rivalry between Islam and Christianity “a competing world religion, a distinctive civilization inspired by that religion … the struggle between these rival systems has now lasted for some fourteen centuries … and has continued virtually to the present day.”
The other school of thought less severe on Islam observes: “The West won the world not by supremacy of ideas or values or religion but rather by superiority in applying organised violence. Westerners often forget this fact, non-Westerners never do.”
The arrogant display of an “inerrant” interpretation of divinity was not accepted by all, particularly the Muslim immigrants. In defense, wrote Irish anthropologist Vincent Tucker: “For a society to claim universal desirability while turning its back on others from whom it is convinced it has nothing to learn, is not only cultural elitism, but cultural racism.”
Some political analysts are not unduly worried that America seems deeply divided over moral and political values. Party polarisation may have been caused by mainstream political parties having been taken over by polarised political activists. Though more than one-third of Americans live in the so-called “lop-sided counties” (defined as those counties which vote for one party or the other by a lop-sided margin) such voting pattern reflects the historical range for presidential elections since 1840.
During the last presidential election, many analysts found the loyalty of American voters almost perfectly divided between the Democrats and the Republicans — Red America and Blue America — Red America is godly, moralistic, patriotic, predominantly white, masculine, less educated, heavily rural and suburban; Blue America is secular, relativistic, internationalist, multi-cultural, feminine, college educated, heavily urban and cosmopolitan.”
People like Professor James Hunter and political scientist John White see culture divide among Americans — one culture being “orthodox” and the other being “progressive.” But according to sociologist Alan Wolfe, Americans are moderate, reluctant to pass judgment, and “tolerant to a fault.”
Equally, others find both conservative and progressive Americans sharing shocking level of agreement on many issues. Both red and blue state residents agree that religion is an important part of their life. Many agree that the problem lies not with the voters but with the political parties and politicians.
Yesterday’s political parties, which used to be loose coalition of interests and regions, have now become ideological clubs. On top of this if Samuel Huntington’s “clash of civilizations” becomes an essential part of the American narrative and religious intolerance finds its way into the domestic and international interaction of the only superpower of the world, then the victor will be neither Barack Obama or John McCain but Osama bin Laden and his band of terrorists.

:The Daily Star: Internet Edition

By  Aisha Qidwae, Mukhtar A. Khan, IOL Correspondents

“And so next Tuesday, is the moment of truth for a lot of people, where we get to make a choice,” Rehab told the Muslim congregation.

ILLINOIS/MICHIGAN — Many mosques across the US devoted the last Friday sermon before the historic 2008 presidential election to encourage their community to actively participate in their country’s political process by voting on Election Day to choose the next president.

“And so next Tuesday, is the moment of truth for a lot of people, where we get to make a choice,” Ahmed Rehab told the congregation at the Muslim Educational Center in Morton Grove, Illinois.

“You pay taxes, you live here, you raise your children here, you have a right like anyone else to make that choice and to affect and influence the outcome of that choice.”

Listen to Illinois Khutbah
Listen to Chicago Khutbah

Rehab, the executive director of the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, did not mention or recommend any candidate.

Election was also the main focus of the sermon delivered by Dawud Walid, Assistant Imam of Masjid Wali Muhammad.

“One of the biggest good value in the USA is that it has given freedom of speech and right of assembly to all its people irrespective of their race or religion,” he told worshippers.

“Muslims should utilize these constitutional rights and should increase their civil engagements.”

He challenged claims propagated by some that Muslims should not be voting in a non-Muslim country.

“This is a wrong notion…If Muslims continue the habit of living at distance from the mainstream community, it will largely hamper their civic engaments in the society.”

Like Rehab, imam Walid did not ask Muslims to vote for a particular candidate.

“Though we may not find a perfect candidate to vote but we should support the one who is more prone towards good in the society. We should vote on the basis of issues.”

Leading American Muslim organizations are stepping up their efforts to mobilize the votes of their sizable community to make their voice heard on Election Day.

Many of them will be making phone calls on November 4 to remind fellow Muslims of casting their votes on time.

Some will be providing free ride to people who don’t have their conveyance to reach the polling stations.

Change 

“Unless we are engaged in the political process and exercise our right to vote, we cannot dispel the negative impression regarding Muslims and Islam,” says imam Walid.

In Illinois, Rehab spoke of the challenging facing American Muslims.

“There are some great things we have in this country but there are also things that need to change, things that need to change for the better,” he said.

“And it is our moral duty as human beings, as Muslims, to stand up and challenge that which is unjust.”

He cited the financial crisis, civil rights challenges and the Iraq war “that never should have been and implemented rather ungracefully.”

Rehab also cited a 2006 poll by Washington Post and ABC News that found 46 percent of Americans had an unfavorable opinion of Islam.

“And so now, the challenge is for us to change that perception and to change those policies that are unjust, by participating in the process and doing what we can to make those changes happen.”

Imam Walid, and Executive Director of CAIR-Michigan Chapter, agrees.

“Unless we are engaged in the political process and exercise our right to vote, we cannot dispel the negative impression regarding Muslims and Islam.”

He urged Muslims to believe in their ability to contribute to changing things in their country.

“Muslims should not think pessimistically like they cannot bring any change or end the injustice and oppression from the society only because they are weak.

“Muslims should not adopt a pessimistic approach saying ‘one vote will make no difference’. In this country we have access to political engagements and also have the freedom of speech.”

Inspired

Most Muslims are expected to vote for Obama.

Nasrullah Jamal, 24, student from Somalia, doesn’t agree that exercising the right to vote will help emancipate the Muslim world from the unjust policies of the US government.

He argues Muslims should instead look into their own problems and their solutions rather than exhausting themselves for or against a presidential candidate.

Jamal says for Muslims, both Senator Obama and Senator McCain are the same.

“None is better than the other.”

Mushtaq Ahmad, a shop-keeper of Bangladeshi origin, think political engagements in society are beneficial only for the rich.

He says poor people like himself get nothing from elections whether here in the US or in his home country.

Still, Ahmed will be casting his vote on Election Day to fulfill his religious and moral obligation.

Sulaiman, a 42-year-old African American, says Imam Walid has cleared his confusion about his duties and obligations in this multi-cultural, non-Muslim society.

Moussa, a 46-year-old taxi driver of Kuwaiti origin, has never exercised his right of voting here in the US.

But says this time he will because he now believes that if Muslims remain politically disengaged their voice will remain unheard.

Moussa is offering free rides to at least 10 Muslim voters to the polling stations to show that Muslims are socially a responsible community.

In Morton Grove, Illinois, Adeeb Ansari, 24, liked the weekly sermon because Rehab encouraged Muslims to take action and get involved in the government.

“I was already prepared to vote but it was good to hear a Khutbah about this sort of stuff, because usually they don’t talk about the importance of taking action and voting so it was good to hear.”

Ansari plans to vote for Obama.

“I just feel like his message is more clearer than McCain’s. I agree with more of his stances on health care, the military and the tax code and stuff like that.”

Muslim community leaders interviewed separately by IOL predict that the majority of Muslims, estimated at nearly seven millions, will be voting for Obama, aspiring to become America’s first ever black president.

Obama leads McCain 51 percent to 43 percent in a Gallup daily tracking poll of those deemed likely to cast ballots based on past voting behavior and current intentions.

A Fox poll of likely voters found 47 percent would vote for Obama and 44 percent for McCain if the election were held today.

The CBS/New York Times poll showed 52 percent of likely voters favored Obama while 41 percent supported McCain.

The words of change and hope in the sermon were not lost on Balqis Naseer, 26, who didn’t expect to hear anything about the election in the Friday sermon.

“I’m going for Obama…Picking Obama will be better than McCain. McCain is following Bush’s steps.”

Elections in America’s Friday Sermons - IslamOnline.net - News