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October 1, 2004/Tishri 6 5765, Vol. 57, No. 5
Islamic culture 'misunderstood'
MICHAEL MIKLOFSKY
Staff Writer
The words "Muslim" and "Islam" are misunderstood terms in contemporary American culture, said Dr. M. Zuhdi Jasser, chairman of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy and a practicing physician in the Valley.
Jasser detailed his knowledge of Islamic culture Sept. 21 for those who attended an Arizona Interfaith Movement lecture on Islam.
The organization holds a public lecture once a month, where a member of the community is asked to come and speak about their religion.
The Muslim-born Jasser said, "There is vitriol and polemic coming out of people like Franklin Graham and Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson who have the ear of millions of Americans that are rewriting Islamic theology that is just absolutely wrong."
Those religious fanatics are a part of the great misunderstanding of his culture, he said, which has silenced Muslims and kept them out of politics.
"Regnery Press has produced many books - some of them are by a guy called Craig Winn, others by Robert Spencer. That one's called 'The Profit of Doom' that's sold millions of copies and another is 'Onward Looking Soldiers,' (which) is a terrible text - but these are all things that Muslims need to deal with in academic fashion, but it's unfortunate that so many non-Muslims are writing about Islam," Jasser said.
One thing that Muslims can do to better establish a positive image for themselves is to recognize the State of Israel, he said. "There's a lot of anti-Semitism in the Muslim world that needs to be reformed."
But the reason that Muslims do not have a voice in American politics is that most Muslims are first-generation Muslims and that language limitations make it difficult for their voices to be heard by the American media.
Muslims lack an understanding of American government agencies, so few Muslims commit themselves to public life.
"There's also a cultural barrier," he said. "There's this description we're going through a clash of civilizations.
"I think that's a very irresponsible term because, you know, Rome was a great civilization, but it had no culture, it had a lot of industry, but there was really no art, no culture.
"The U.N. has developed a report that came out four years ago that Tom Friedman wrote about wonderfully - and Friedman has written some excellent pieces really - that talk about the fact that the problem is not only civilization, it's culture."
And cultures that have misogyny and many tribal, or traditional values, have affected the understanding of "Islam," he said.
The Arizona Interfaith Movement will host a Sikh monthly forum Tuesday, Oct. 19, and a Protestant monthly forum Tuesday, Nov. 16, both 7-8:30 p.m., at 1710 E. Indian School Road, Suite 209, Phoenix. Call 602-277-2484.
Contact the writer here
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