the outcry over obama’s muslim miscalculation is missing the point
Be conscious of God and speak always the truth
~ the koran
president obama used this statement in his speech in cairo last week - but then he also said in an interview prior to the speech that america was home to around 8 million muslims, making it one of the countries with the highest muslim populations.
truth: these numbers are hard to pin down. i found an interesting round-up of stats on politifact.com which states:
The Islamic Information Center, a group that educates people in the United States about Islam, says there are upwards of 8 million. And NationMaster.com, a Web site that allows users to compare different countries based on demographics, pegs the number at 6 million. … By the [CIA] World Factbook’s count, Muslims in the United States make up about .6 percent of the population. That’s around 1.8 million.
newsweek mentioned in an unrelated article during last year’s campaign that the country’s muslim population is “estimated at between 7 to 8 million.” but no matter which way you slice it, even if obama’s right on the first count (there are around eight million muslims in the US), according the politifact’s calculations (and other sites have some variations of this number), the US is the 29th most muslim-populated country.
truth: that’s a far cry from being “one of the largest muslim countries in the world.”
so was obama just straight up lying?
i’m sure some people would say he was, and i’m sure no one would be surprised that i disagree with this conclusion. what is to be gained by lying? no one’s going to be fooled, as the correct data can be produced with a simple google search (as we’ve all proven). yes there are some on the fringes who still believe obama is a secret muslim (aka - in their mind - a terrorist), trying to subvert the good ol’ U-S-of-A and lead us toward “one nation under allah.” i’m really not interested in having a conversation with those people - i’ve tried it before and determined it to be an utter waste of energy.
for the rest of us, where does that leave obama and his comments?
was he over-emphasizing to make a point? was he trying to paint a rosier picture of muslims in american in light of his then-upcoming speech? was he kissing up to the muslim world in an attempt to make up for our prejudices (and who could blame him if he was)? did he honestly (*gasp!*) just make a mistake - though admittedly a pretty large one? here’s my suggestion: no matter what the reason was, aren’t we letting something relatively small eclipse what was - at the least - a moving, accurate and honest speech, and - at the best - a turning point between the muslim and western world?
wouldn’t it be wonderful if obama’s unique perspective could be a catalyst that sets a true movement toward peace in motion? and let’s not peg it all on obama - he’s a wonderful orator, but as he points out in the speech, history can be the judge:
“It was Islam … that carried the light of learning through so many centuries, paving the way for Europe’s Renaissance and Enlightenment. It was innovation in Muslim communities that developed the order of algebra; our magnetic compass and tools of navigation; our mastery of pens and printing; our understanding of how disease spreads and how it can be healed … And throughout history, Islam has demonstrated through words and deeds the possibilities of religious tolerance and racial equality.
I also know that Islam has always been a part of America’s story. The first nation to recognize my country was Morocco. In signing the Treaty of Tripoli in 1796, our second President, John Adams, wrote, “The United States has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion or tranquility of Muslims.” And since our founding, American Muslims have enriched the United States.”
i think most of us can agree, on an individual level, it’s ridiculous to attribute the shortcomings and atrocities of a (relative) few people to an entire religion and people group - especially when that religion has been around much longer and survived much more than we as americans have. it would be as ridiculous, and upsetting, as someone blaming me for the japanese being held in internment camps. so - globally - what is the way out of this clusterf*ck? perhaps that is - in a small way - where obama’s speech can lead us.
(this was a long, amazing speech and much, much more could be written on it, but i’ll save that for a rainy day :-).
June 09 2009 06:36 am | politics and religion