OPINION & EDITORIAL
Education on Islam possible with proper context
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by Adnan Mirza
Monday, March 3, 2003
Over the course of the last few years, I’ve begun to notice a few rather upsetting trends prevailing in our society. Among them: horrendously mind-numbing television programming, the multiplication of strip malls at exponential rates, the collaboration of some of hip-hop’s greatest MC’s with their less-than-mediocre “bling-bling” counterparts, and the most recent addition to the list — the all-together dubious post 9-11 proliferation of “experts” on the Islamic faith who are so willing to explain to the public what this bizarre religion is all about.
Initially, it was my intention to write this piece on what it means for me to be Muslim in America, but the approaches I was considering seemed a bit contrived; my ideas on it ended up being sort of a “Look, I’m just like you, but Muslim” type thing. I could mention how I hate parking enforcement and wish that Fox had never cancelled The Family Guy to run crap like Joe Millionaire. But is this what makes me an American? I used to not think so. I used to think that many of the principles I adhere to as a result of Islam were also ones that I adhered to because I’m an American (you know, commitment to human rights, democracy, peace and freedom).
Quite suddenly, however, this mental link I made in junior high came crashing down not long after the Twin Towers did. At first I noticed them on Fox News, then CNN, ABC, NBC and, yes, even MTV. It descended from the sky like a strange weather pattern, showering Islam “experts” into the studios of every major media outlet.
Drawing upon their vast and infinite knowledge of Islam, each one (e.g. Daniel Pipes, Mitchell Bard, Thomas Friedman, Samuel Huntington, Bernard Lewis, Steven Emerson) seems to feel more than qualified individually to take the faith of over one billion people and simplify it without hesitation into one all-encompassing monolithic entity. Their attempts to argue “What Went Wrong” (Lewis) or “The Clash of Civilizations” (Huntington) are utterly disgusting and repugnant attempts to make unfounded generalizations about the political, social, cultural and linguistic heritages of Muslims spread out all over the world.
The sweeping and antagonistic views presented by these authors and their “expert” colleagues completely fail to take into account the breadth, scope and diversity of the Muslim population as a whole, thus serving as reaffirmation for the existing misinformation regarding Islam.
One needn’t look far to spot one of these gems; on my last visit to a local Borders book store, the new arrivals were filled with books like “Militant Islam Reaches America,” “American Jihad: The Terrorists Living Among Us,” “Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam” and “Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia” (whew, that’s a lot of Jihad).
The most unfortunate consequence of all this is that it makes truly educating oneself on the multifaceted and complex nature of cultures and religions impossible; while at the same time systematically dehumanizing the adherents of an entire religion, effectively reducing their existence to a series of abstract clichés which serve no other purpose than to further the political agenda of our belligerent administration both here and abroad.
The point I’m attempting to make here, I hope in at least a somewhat intelligible manner, is that as educated Americans, it is our duty to not always swallow what we are spoon-fed. I believe that it is possible for everyone to learn about Islam, but not in the way that so many of today’s pseudo-experts suggest and not without the proper context.
I’d like to suggest a brief list of some of the many worthwhile books one can begin with: “Struggling to Surrender: Some Impressions of an American Convert to Islam” by Jeffery B. Lang, “Message of the Quran” by Muhammad Asad and, a personal favorite, “The Autobiography of Malcolm X.” What I’m suggesting over everything else is that we avoid the trap of thinking and learning in terms of abstract and intangible ideas and begin to approach things humanistically and concretely in order to break up the ideological clouds that so often keep people apart.
Forget about thinking of people in terms of groups, categories and labels, and try to focus on the individual human experiences that shape our beliefs and the way we live our lives. Only then can we reach true understanding. Peace.
