President Obama’s address to the Muslim World on June 4th from Cairo was
truly transformative in intent and effect. It was not a policy speech and
did not seek to outline policy initiatives. It was a philosophical attempt
to diffuse the mutual distrust and animus that undergirds US relations with
the Muslim World.
Even though it was billed as a speech to Muslims,
it was readily apparent that it addressed both the Islamic World and the
Western World. President Obama not only invited Muslims to rise above
prejudice and take a second look at America, but also demonstrated to
Americans and the rest of the world how to abandon jaundiced eyes and see
Islam and Muslims as they really are and not how they are projected in
popular discourses.
Never has an American President spoken with such
eloquence, compassion, understanding and empathy to the Muslim World. There
is no doubt that Obama gets the Muslim World. It is also obvious from the
responses from around the world that except for some Israelis, supporters of
Israel and Al Qaeda, President Obama’s words resonated profoundly with
Muslim and non-Muslim audiences everywhere.
Al Qaeda is
understandably disturbed that Obama’s charm offensive may put an end to them
more expeditiously than any military assault. Some Israelis currently in
power do not like the fact that an American President is so willing to
acknowledge that Palestinians are suffering and have as much right to a
state of their own as do Israelis. Fortunately both are tiny minorities.
President Obama’s speech was comprehensive and brutally honest except
when he spoke about America’s support for democracy. Even now America is
aligned with dictators and monarchs and opposes elected governments and
groups in Iran, Gaza and Lebanon. He spoke about the dangers of extremist
violence, about Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Arab-Israeli
conflict, about religious tolerance and religious freedoms, about gender
equality and development.
President Obama’s intellectual posture was
very sophisticated and subtle. He went far beyond any American President in
making concessions to Muslims without ever abandoning traditional American
foreign policy values. For example he recognized that the “situation of the
Palestinian people was intolerable” and made an unprecedented promise that
“America will not turn our backs on the legitimate Palestinian aspiration
for dignity, opportunity, and a state of their own.” But he also firmly
reiterated that America’s bond with Israel was “unbreakable” and that
aspirations for a Jewish homeland were “undeniable”.
President Obama
has found the language to transcend the hitherto zero sum conundrum of
Israeli-Palestinian issue. If he can translate this into policy, then
perhaps we can finally witness the emergence of an independent Palestinian
nation thriving side by side with a secure Israel.
One element of the
discourse was Obama’s portrayal of himself as a man comfortable with faith.
He quoted from the Quran, the Torah and the Bible, and this will go far in
undoing the widely held Muslim perception of America as a God-less
materialist society.
The speech acknowledges America’s mistakes but
promised change and hope. President Obama took the two themes of change and
we can from his campaign to Cairo. But as he himself and his press secretary
have acknowledged, a speech alone cannot transform a relationship suffering
from decades of abuse. Words alone from now on will rapidly lose their
meaning and value unless accompanied by action that vindicates their
promise.
Three key issues will serve as hurdles to President Obama’s
determination to mend US relations with Muslims, reduce anti-Americanism and
the threat of terrorism. They are basically the three occupations – Iraq,
Afghanistan and Palestine.
US military presence in Iraq is a constant
reminder to Muslims of America’s vindictive invasion of an Arab state that
we now euphemistically call as “war of choice”. American operations in
Afghanistan continue to cause innocent civilian casualties underscoring the
Muslim belief that the West has no regard for Muslim security and Muslim
lives. Finally, the continued misery of over three million Palestinians
under Israeli military occupation of West Bank and blockade of Gaza makes it
impossible for Muslims to reconcile their anger towards the US who they see
as the primary and sole sponsor of Israel.
From now on how President
Obama deals with these three conflicts will shape Muslim perceptions of the
US and not how he talks about them.
Clearly there are many reasons
why many Muslims are miserable. They include economic underdevelopment,
absence of democracy, systematic human rights abuses by Muslim regimes,
Muslim on Muslim violence and intolerance. Their leaders, who lack vision,
integrity and purpose, have long abandoned Muslims. President Obama through
this speech may not have conquered Muslim hearts and minds, but he certainly
has ignited hope of a peaceful and dignified future.
As an American
Muslim, as I listened to President Obama today, I truly felt that he was my
Amir (leader). Indeed, no leader has inspired so much confidence in the
future, and so much pride in America as has Barrack Hussein Obama.
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Muqtedar Khan is a Fellow at the Institute for Social Policy and
Understanding (ISPU) and Director of Islamic Studies at the University of
Delaware.
The preceding article also appeared on the Washington Post.
http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/guestvoices/2009/06/obamas_charisma_ignites_hope_in_muslim_hearts.html
