America's Epidemic

President Obama has canceled his trip to the Golden Temple in Amritsar, which was supposed to be one of the stops on his up-coming trip to India. Apparently, the administration canceled this portion of the visit out of domestic political concerns that Americans would see images of President Obama in the traditional Sikh head-covering necessary to enter the temple and interpret this to mean that he is a “secret” Muslim. Aside from the fact that Sikhism and Islam are two completely different religions with completely different histories, cultures, etc., the cancellation and concern of the ignorant reaction of the American people point directly to the ridiculous bigotry of the American public towards Muslims and those perceived to be Muslim.

First of all, this is the Golden Temple. It’s insanely beautiful, and it's an important piece of India. If you are lucky enough to have the opportunity to go there, how could you ever pass it up?!?

Furthermore, there is absolutely nothing wrong with a president, on a state visit to another country, participating in and experiencing important elements of the cultures of that country. It is crucial for building stronger relations and developing understanding between the two countries. India is an extremely diverse country and having the opportunity to learn about the cultures and hopefully educating the American public through exposure, all while continuing to foster stronger positive relations, is amazing – definitely not an opportunity to be squandered. And again, the Golden Temple is beautiful.

That the White House has to be worried that 1) most Americans apparently don’t know what Sikhism is, and 2) the American public is so unreasonably fearful of Islam or things that “look Islamic” are absolutely ridiculous. Today, Juan Williams was fired from National Public Radio for his comments on The O’Reilly Factor, espousing his fear of Muslims (thank you, NPR!). What was even more concerning than his comments were the comments of readers, posted below the story, that felt that he was correct in his statements and that the statements made were not bigoted or hateful. It seems that the best way to combat such pervasive ignorance, fear, and hatred is through exposure to improve cross-cultural understanding. Who better to lead such an initiative than the President of the United States?

The fact that a substantial proportion of Americans believe that Obama is a “secret Muslim” is reminiscent of John F. Kennedy’s comments regarding the freedom of religion in the United States when he was campaigning in 1960. President Kennedy stated that there are far more critical issues facing the country and that “they are not religious issues, for war, hunger, ignorance, and despair know no religious barrier.” Obama has emphatically and publicly stated that he is a Christian, but honestly, it should not matter at all, nor is it any business of the American people. In the words of President Kennedy:

...It has become necessary for me to state once again, not what kind of church I believe in, for that should be important only to me, but what kind of America I believe in. I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute…and where no man is denied political office because his religion differs from the president who might appoint him or the people who might elect him…today I may be the victim, but tomorrow, it may be you, until the whole fabric of our harmonious society is ripped apart...

The American public is infected with an epidemic of fear, arising from ignorance and the lack of interest in at least attempting to understand different cultures and religions. For those Americans who cannot appreciate the freedom of religion and are seemingly incapable of tolerance, what is it about this country that you just don’t get?

HH XIV Dalai Lama at Emory University

His Holiness XIV Dalai Lama, the spiritual and secular leader of Tibet in exile, came to Emory University from October 17 through October 19, 2010. Emory University runs a science initiative with His Holiness in India in order to integrate western science into the traditional monastic education for monks and nuns living in the community-in-exile.

His Holiness has always been known for his cosmopolitanism, and feels that this long term project is crucial for improving understanding of the world from both religious and scientific worldviews. This project is extremely important and proves how scientific and religious worldviews are compatible and able to enhance each other’s understanding of the world around us. The integration of two different disciplines and approaches creates a much more holistic way to understand how human beings function and interact with their surrounding environment.

Below, please watch the press conference with His Holiness and the president of Emory University. In addition to answering questions on the interaction between religion and science, His Holiness addresses the relationship between spirituality and secularism, politics, and the importance of fostering open societies.

Furthermore, His Holiness, humanitarian/actor Richard Gere, and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Alice Walker discuss the interaction between art and spirituality. Although it is a short clip, it raises some interesting points and offers a new approach to art.

Hate Where Everyone Can See It

Recently, a billboard in Grand Junction, Colorado, became noticed by a larger audience. The billboard features offensive caricatures of Barack Obama and encourages its viewer to vote “DemocRAT.” David Williams of Real Aspen describes the billboard:

…The billboard depicts “President Barack Obama as a terrorist, a gangster, a Mexican bandit and a gay man. The four ‘Obamas’ [are] sitting around a table with playing cards showing only sixes bunched in groups of three.

“Also on the table is a copy of the Declaration of Independence, a liberty bell, a toy soldier and a statue of Justice holding a balance.

“Beneath the Obama caricatures are numerous rats, some of which are labeled as the IRS, trial lawyers, the EPA and the Fed. Sitting above all that is a line, ‘Vote DemocRAT. Join the game,’ which is positioned between two vultures, one of which is labeled the U.N. and the other with the name Soros, a reference to George Soros, a major national Democratic financial supporter.”

It is clear from the illustrated scene that the billboard is a racist and homophobic commentary on Barack Obama, personally, and his administration’s leadership. While I am not questioning the rights of the artist or the unnamed group that paid him to display these hateful images, but rather the dangerous attitude that allows for this type of representation and bigotry towards many different groups. While criticizing a leader is perfectly acceptable, the criticism should be directed towards things other than the leader’s race, religion, or sexual orientation. Criticism of policies is very different than a racist and hateful caricature and the latter should not be accepted as a legitimate piece of discussion about the first.

Why Building the Mosque is Important

"Try to learn instead of burn, hear what I say." ~Jimi Hendrix

The "war on terror" has been compared to the Cold War, and while I think historical comparisons can obscure important nuances, the comparison makes sense in at least two ways. First, invading a country and imposing a government on it is going to be seen as imperialist, even if it's well-intentioned. And second, both wars are fundamentally wars of ideas.

Al-Qaeda's idea is obvious: Western liberal democracy is incompatible with Islam and must be fought. Looking at our history, our idea is also obvious: Islam and liberal democracy are compatible.

There are those who would cede the first point to al-Qaeda, who believe that our idea should be, 'Yes, democracy and Islam are incompatible, but it is Islam that must be fought.' But a war of ideas can not be won by force; it can only be won by persuasion. And the more we act like we are at war with Islam, the more Muslims will be at war with us.

A war on Islam is not a war that we can win, nor should it be a war that we want to fight. No, we win the war on terror by encouraging moderate Muslims to say and say it loudly, "Al-Qaeda, you are wrong. We do not need to fight democracy but to foster it. We reject your ideas, and you are not the true face of Islam." But if we continue to lump in our moderate friends with our extremist enemies, we undermine our allies and we lose the war.

The Troy Davis Saga

Nineteen years ago, Troy Davis was convicted of murdering an off-duty cop and sentenced to death. Last week, after Davis' latest appeal, a federal judge ruled that "the evidence presented by Davis' attorneys at a June hearing wasn't nearly strong enough to prove he's innocent." As reported before, the case is especially egregious because:

There was no physical evidence; the weapon was never recovered. The case rested entirely on eyewitness accounts. All but two of the witnesses have since recanted their testimony, some of whom say they were coerced by police. And one of the two witnesses who have not changed their story is the best alternate suspect.

Whether or not Troy Davis is innocent, there are at least serious doubts of his guilt. And the fact that the state of Georgia could be executing an innocent man is more than enough of a reason to severely restrict the application of the death penalty, if not abolish it altogether.

Ground Zero Mosque

Recently, there has been a lot of controversy surrounding the construction of the so-called "Ground Zero Mosque," actually an Islamic community center located not on Ground Zero itself, but two blocks away. Newsweek magazine summarizes the background of the project in its August 8th, 2010 feature article by Lisa Miller, with an excerpt below:

Locally, the fight over the mosque has been more than ugly. Its founders—a well-known interfaith activist and spiritual leader named Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf; his wife, Daisy Khan; and a downtown Manhattan real-estate developer named Sharif El-Gamal—originally called their project Cordoba House, after the medieval town in Spain where a Muslim caliphate fostered one of the most vibrant periods of interfaith flourishing in history. But critics seized on the name as a signal that Rauf and the others had Islamic hegemony in mind, and the founders changed the name to the generic Park51 (based on the site’s street address)...

Park51 was born several years ago, the vision of Rauf, Khan, and El-Gamal. In 1997 Rauf and Khan founded the American Society for Muslim Advancement, an organization devoted to interfaith work and promoting the cause of moderate Islam. In addition, Rauf had been the imam, or pastor, of a mosque in Tribeca, just 10 blocks north of the new, controversial site, for nearly 30 years. El-Gamal had his office nearby and prayed there frequently. The mosque, which still exists today, is a tiny storefront wedged between a bar and a French bistro. On Friday afternoons—which for Muslims is like Sunday morning—congregants overflow onto the sidewalk.

Frustrated by the cramped quarters, El-Gamal, an American born to a Polish mother and an Egyptian father, was inspired to improve facilities for Muslims downtown—and, after 9/11, to show his friends and neighbors “a new face of Islam, the voice that is not heard.” He bought the building at 45–51 Park Place two years ago for $5 million, and together with Khan and Feisal sketched out a plan. They would demolish the existing building and put in its place a deluxe, multipurpose center big enough to house a swimming pool, a gym, exhibition space, conference rooms, day care, a senior center, and a 500-seat auditorium. It would accommodate all the downtown workers—lawyers and laborers—who wanted to pray on Fridays; it would have an interfaith board and interfaith programming; and it would present to the world a moderate, peace-loving, diverse, ordinary Islam. As of last week, El-Gamal says, they had gotten all the necessary city approvals to begin construction on Park51, though lawsuits are still pending. The budget for the proposed construction is $100 million, which Khan says they hope to raise mostly through a bond offering.

The site is huge, nearly 100,000 square feet. Standing in front of the building, you cannot see Ground Zero; tall buildings entirely block the view. Khan says they chose it because it was big enough and it had the right zoning. Moreover, it was symbolically advantageous. “We want to provide a counter momentum against extremism,” says Khan, who spoke to me in her office. (Her husband was out of town.) “We want peace, and we want it where it matters most. This is where it matters most.”

However, responses to the project have been severe. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert weigh in on some of these reactions below:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, 16 August 2010:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Mosque-Erade
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

The Colbert Report, 16 August 2010:

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Growing Intelligence Community - Richard Clarke
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes 2010 Election Fox News

Finally, President Barack Obama stepped up and directly addressed the issue, stating his emphatic support of religious freedom and tolerance for all beliefs.


To borrow a phrase from Stephen Colbert, Obama nailed it. If there is anything that the United States should have learned in the past decade, it is that straying from the fundamental principles outlined in the Bill of Rights and the subsequent abuse of these principles has caused more harm than good to American interests. If the United States really wants to improve relations in the Muslim world, demonstrating tolerance of Islam and all religious beliefs has to start at home. Furthermore, the problems in any faith lie at the extremes. It would behoove the American public to recognize this and work to support and encourage moderates who are interested in interfaith work in order to diminish the influence that these extremists can have on a population.

Tolerating this (and other) Islamic Center(s) is not something "extra" that Americans have to do - it is part of what comes with living in a country that draws strength from its diversity, even if the American people need occasional reminders of this. In the words of the late American author Kurt Vonnegut Jr., "The purpose of human life, no matter who is controlling it, is to love whoever is around to be loved," (Sirens of Titan).

France's Burka Ban

A few days ago, in a Europe fearful of "Islamization," the lower house of the French Parliament voted to ban burkas and most other face-coverings. The ban is plainly about protecting French identity from the apparently un-French burka. A few might say it is to protect women from oppression -- and indeed, any man found to have forced a woman to cover her face will himself face up to a year in jail and a 30,000-euro fine -- but even women who freely choose the burka will be fined.

No, the ban is about French unease with the Islamic covering. I expect most Americans would agree with me; the libertarian argument that people should be allowed to wear what they want would hopefully carry the day. And yet the French debate on the burka reminds me of the American debate on gay marriage. Both are portrayed as threatening, but the bans have less to do with real threats to French society or heterosexual marriage than they do with French or heterosexual insecurity. And they should deal with their insecurity in a way that does not oppress a minority.