Defending America

My friend Rusha invited me to an iftar at her friend's apartment this week. Nine women, all about 23-24, all working, two married. They teased the one who's been married for 10 months about her lack of pregnancy - "after a year!" she protested. It was a potluck type meal so everyone brought a dish to pass. I bought some chocolate croissants.

The woman who's apartment it was in lives alone, which is rare in Syria, especially in Midan, one of the more conversative areas of Damascus. After dinner some of the women watched Bab al-Hara, an insanely popular Ramadan series, while others grilled me about America. "There is no religion in America - it is sad. People think that they do not need God but then at some point in their life they feel empty." I explained that actually America is a very religious country. Our congress starts everyday with a prayer. "Really?" I also was asked about Israel and America, and wound up explaining how the first five books of the Bible are the Torah, and how Christianity came from Judaism, and how Jewish law and Sharia' are quite similar, both in form and in derivation of law, as distinct from Christianity which emphasizes orthodoxy over orthopraxy.

But most of the time I tried to explain that not all Americans are afraid of Islam or Arabs. "There are places with much ignorance of Islam, but there are also places with many Muslims and everything is fine" (my Arabic isn't exactly eloquent). In fact, I think it's better for immigrant Muslims in America than in France or Germany. "What about Israel? I hear Americans only get one side of the conflict." Actually, that's true.

But these girls were so sure that they knew exactly how these issues are debated in America, and about American society in general. While there is a lot of ignorance in some areas, there is also quite a lot of tolerance of all religions (except Mormons:) and it's not a godless Sodom and Gomorrah, no matter how much I wish it were.

It was very similar to classes I had earlier this week, in which a discussion of media had turned into why America Hates the Arabs, and a one on Edward Said and Orientalism turned into the America is Colonizing Iraq Hour.

The Australian giving a presentation was making a point about how America in Iraq is different than Britain in Iraq/Palestine/Egypt or France in Syria. "The Americans want to leave." But the teacher and the other classmates did not buy this. "No they want to stay and control the oil. They never wanted Democracy, they just want to control the oil and occupy the land."

Hold up. No fan on the occupation of Iraq myself, I had to make a few distinctions. America is not against Democracy in Iraq. The administration doesn't care that much about the type of government that emerges, as long as Iraq is friendly on foriegn policy and to American business interests. The problem with Saddam wasn't that he was a dictator - we're friends with enough of those, but that he threatened our good dictatorial friends the Saudis. And oil. If he had remained the nice dictator he was in the 80s, shaking hands with oil companies, there would have been no reason to invade. I tried to explain that an idea had developed in the Bush government that if Saddam was removed, Iraq could become another Turkey - friendly democracy that doesn't controvene the US on foreign policy. If it is an unfriendly democracy, well, look at Palestine. Or going back in history, Congo, Iran...

America does not want to occupy Iraq. Bush wants a nice elected government that does fuck all domestically (who cares?) but goes with the US on important international matters, and gives business a whack at the resources. I'm not saying this is admirable, but it is not the French in Syria.

Back in the States, I am not at all reticent about criticizing US foreign policy, especially in the Middle East, or American misperceptions. But here, I often feel compelled to defend America under attack. At least through most of the debate, "American government" or "Bush's goverment" was used instead of the general "America", and I often express skepticism with my own goverment. But when people talk about America as a monolith of ignorance and hatred for Islam and the Middle East - c'mon. I know we have Fox News and a shitload of assholes who were mad that Keith Ellison got elected (first Muslim in Congress) not to mention all the assholes who would be mad if they actually followed the news enough to know that Mr. Ellison had been elected, but we also have a diversity of debate. Half of us were against the war from the start, for example. Half of us voted for Kerry. What, 70% of us finally realize what a horrible fuck up the war in Iraq is. And some of us are Muslim or Arab, and many of us have friends, colleagues, or family who are Muslim or Arab. I don't mean to say America is a happy land of handholding and racial/religious tolerance, but shit, people aren't lighting cars on fire in our banlieues.

At least at dinner we could agree on one thing: "My teacher told me to read 'The World is Flat' by Thomas Friedman, and it was so bad! I hate that man." Amen.