“Being Called a Muslim Is Not a Smear”
What a strange header for an article by the well known Canadian writer Naomi Klein!
The Nation: Obama, Being Called a Muslim Is Not a Smear, by Naomi Klein
Hillary Clinton denied leaking the photo of Barack Obama wearing a turban, but her campaign manager says that even if she had, it would be no big deal. “Hillary Clinton has worn the traditional clothing of countries she has visited and had those photos published widely.”
Sure she did. And George W. Bush put on a fetching Chamato poncho in Santiago, while Paul Wolfowitz burned up YouTube with his antimalarial African dance routines when he was World Bank prez. The obvious difference is this: when white politicians go ethnic, they just look funny. When a black presidential contender does it, he looks foreign. ..
So far, Obama’s campaign has responded with aggressive corrections that tout his Christian faith, attack the attackers and channel a cooperative witness before the House Un-American Activities Committee. “Barack has never been a Muslim or practiced any other faith besides Christianity,” states one fact sheet. “I’m not and never have been of the Muslim faith,” Obama told a Christian News reporter.
Of course Obama must correct the record, but he doesn’t have to stop there. What is disturbing about the campaign’s response is that it leaves unchallenged the disgraceful and racist premise behind the entire “Muslim smear”: that being Muslim is de facto a source of shame. Obama’s supporters often say they are being “Swiftboated,” casually accepting the idea that being accused of Muslimhood is tantamount to being accused of treason…
How bad things can get?
The second largest religion in the world with 1,2 billion believers worldwide is being brandmarked as a terrorist religion in a campaign where the other party is black. Political correctness does not allow attacking him on grounds of his skin color or other minority related matters like his Kenyan grandmother.
What is more convenient than look for something what is politically correct? Smearing Islam and Muslims is very popular lately. Unfortunately Muslims are unable to defend themselves partly because they are not familiar with western thinking and politics, and partly because they do not care. What some extremist Muslims do must not necessarily be Islamic.
Terror has always been a way to reach goals all over the world. Besides the Islamic terror we have f.e. in Spainthe Eta terror and Northern Ireland ethnic terror etc. After decades of colonialism in the Middle East andCold War when the Islamic world got divided between superpowers they were mere chess figures in their political game. Today we are reaping the fruits of it.
But slowly they are emerging from the dark and there are signs that moderate progressive forces within the Islamic world are finding their voice. Thank God.
No, it is not a smear being called a Muslim!
“There is no compulsion in religion. Truth stands out clearly from falsehood; whoever rejects evil and believes in God has grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold that never breaks and God is All-Hearing and All-Knowing.” (Qur’an 2:256)
