At Obama’s old school in Jakarta earlier this year, an establishment scurrilously described as a “madrassa” in all the innuendo, a gentle principal showed me the large mosque and small Christian prayer room. He then invoked the words emblazoned on the coat of arms of Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim country: “Unity in diversity.”
That’s what I saw among the kids at the school, 85 percent of whom are Muslim and the rest Christian. That’s also what America’s supposed to be about, not religious slurring and stereotyping.
Yet, because he’s called Barack Hussein Obama, and because his Kenyan grandfather was a Muslim, and because his commitment to Israel has been questioned, and because the U.S. Rorschach test is Muslim-menace mired, he’s had to tread carefully.
As Andrea Elliott of The New York Times chronicled in an important piece, Obama has visited churches and synagogues but no mosque. He had to apologize after two Muslim women wearing head scarves were barred from appearing behind him at a recent Detroit rally.
Obama should visit a mosque. He has repeatedly shown his courage during this campaign; Americans have responded to his intellectual honesty. One of the important things about him is the knowledge his Kenyan and Indonesian experiences have given him of Islam as lived, rather than Islam as turned into monstrous specter.
I seldom agree with this author, but this isn’t a bad piece. It’s true that 85% or 90% of Muslims around the world are not extremists. It’s the 10%-15% who intimidate the others and support the idea of violent jihad; but that’s 100-150 million people.
Just a couple of small corrections. Obama’s father was officially Muslim, not just his grandfather. A person born to a Muslim father is Muslim in the eyes of Islamic law, which is observed by “moderates” as well as extremists. Second, the term “madrassa” is an Arabic word misused in English news reports. It means “school.” Any school in the Middle East is a madrassa, from an Islamic one to the schools for expatriate children.
If Obama visits a mosque, because of the sad fact that many American mosques are Saudi-funded, he will have to investigate very carefully to be sure it has no Islamist extremist ties. Otherwise it could fan the flames of the rumors.
For many years in Indonesia Muslim gangs have been systematically burning Christian villages while the government looks the other or aids the vandals. This can be verified by checking out the website of Voice of the Martyrs.
Look up the word “Dhimmi.” The Muslim majority allows the Christian minority to exist (mostly). However, they are little better than serfs and are not protected by law. In many Muslim countries, Christians are forbidden by law even to pray in their own homes, and if caught can be executed.
Is this the future such folks as Roger Cohen would like to see for us here in the US? If Mr Cohen does turn out to ethnically Jewish as seems probable according to his name, then he also would find himself on the wrong end of sharia.
The ignorance of the actual facts of how things are in the world that so many leftists exhibit — takes my breath away.
And as a response to Katherine, let me just say that jihad is not the only problem with Islam. Persecution of those who do not share their faith within their own countries is very well documented.
One more example: in Egypt churches have been systmatically knocked down and building permits to replace them have been refused. In one town a few years ago Christians waited many many years for a permit to build an orphanage. A few weeks before it was ready to open, the building was bulldozed. Because they are Christians, they then had to start the process of applying for permits all over again.
Don’t be fooled. Most of the Islamic world still has a long way to go before it learns to live with others who are different from themselves with any like real tolerance.
Lumen Christie, as I am living in Egypt at the moment, I am well aware of all that you say. There are certainly problems, especially but not entirely limited to outlying villages. In Cairo churches have crosses on top and ring bells for services. All Christian churches of any denomination are provided with a heavy police guard to prevent trouble.
Cohen is seldom this balanced, which is why the article surprised me.
#1: Two thoughts: First, “madrassa” may mean “school” in Arabic, but in American English usage it is a word used to refer to a fundamentalist Islamic center of indoctrination with a bent toward extremism. Clarity being important in such matters, it is more accurate to refer to Obama’s childhood school as a “school” when speaking and writing in English. Second, “madrassa” may mean “school” in Arabic, but Sen. Obama attended a school in Indonesia. It’s hardly likely that the Indonesians would call their schools “madrassas” when I’m sure they have a perfectly good word for “school” in their own language.
Ladytenor, I agree. The English language is famous for taking words from every language it encounters. Fine; but in this case, since it confuses the issue, the English words should be used.