Friday, June 03, 2005
boricua rappers drop anti-imperialist album
An interesting music review of Clash of Civilizations, the latest album from the Latino Muslim rap group, Mujahideen Team (or M-team). The review comes from the MIM webpage. If anyone has actually heard the album or heard the group perform, feel free to comment.
Wednesday, June 01, 2005
tradition, progress and reform
I feel like I've been obsessed with this question in different ways so I'm probably repeating myself but I think I finally figured out the most concise way to phrase the issue:
I think that's the fundamental question and that's part the tug-of-war between the folks on the Living Tradition blog (on my blogroll) for example, and the people at the Progressive Muslim Union of North America or the Muslim Wake Up! site (who often still have interesting things to say but sometimes leave one with the nagging suspicion that something isn't quite right)
It's not that Muslims are divided into two camps over this question. It is probably more accurate to think of it as a kind of soft tension, or two tendancies. And I'm sure there are people who sit at every point in the continuum. But still, from time to time the tension is stronger than usual and grows more acrimonious. And I wonder if there are ways of resolving the question which won't lead to "Reform Muslims" and "Orthodox Muslims" and "Conservative Muslims" etc.
When people say "progressive Muslims" do they mean starting with Islam's concern for social justice and going out to reform the larger society? Or do they mean starting with the values of the larger society and "reforming Islam"?
I think that's the fundamental question and that's part the tug-of-war between the folks on the Living Tradition blog (on my blogroll) for example, and the people at the Progressive Muslim Union of North America or the Muslim Wake Up! site (who often still have interesting things to say but sometimes leave one with the nagging suspicion that something isn't quite right)
It's not that Muslims are divided into two camps over this question. It is probably more accurate to think of it as a kind of soft tension, or two tendancies. And I'm sure there are people who sit at every point in the continuum. But still, from time to time the tension is stronger than usual and grows more acrimonious. And I wonder if there are ways of resolving the question which won't lead to "Reform Muslims" and "Orthodox Muslims" and "Conservative Muslims" etc.
get ready for the pro-peace mobilization in washington, dc on september 24
For a while now I've been trying to see what information has been available online in terms of progressive actiivity being carried out by Muslims in the United States. (And I've been trying to share some of that information on this blog) One such prominent activist is Mahdi Bray who has been working through MAS (the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation). Their next big upcoming event...
.....
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, Most Merciful
MAS FREEDOM AND A.N.S.W.E.R. ANNOUNCING MASSIVE PRO-PEACE MOBILIZATION
Groups Join in Press Conference Announcing Event
(Washington, DC, 05/31/05) - On September 24, 2005, the largest anti-war demonstration in more than a year will take place. As the popularity of President George W. Bush’s administration declines, and as the war and occupation in Iraq has proved to be “unwinnable,” the anti-war movement will have a major show of opposition in the streets of Washington, DC, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The press conference will announce new tactics and plans for the anti-war movement, which now represents the majority opinion in the United States.
The press conference will feature former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark, who will address the political and legal ramifications of the war in Iraq, including the rights of those who have been incarcerated by U.S. invasion forces. He will also discuss his call for holding U.S. officials accountable for their criminal acts and violations of international law, including the use of torture and extra-judicial killings.
MAS Freedom Foundation encourages everyone to come out and be a part of this historical press conference.
WHEN: WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1, 2005
TIME: 9:30 a.m.
WHERE: First Amendment Room of the National Press Club, 529 14th St., NW, 13th Floor, Washington, DC.
Speakers at the event will include:
- Ramsey Clark, former U.S. attorney general
- Mahdi Bray, Executive Director, Muslim American Society's Freedom Foundation
- Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, attorney and co-founder of the Partnership for Civil Justice
- Rev. Graylan Hagler, Senior Minister, Plymouth Congregational Church
- Brian Becker, National Coordinator, A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition
- Ben Dupuy, General Secretary, National Popular Party of Haiti (PPN)
- Hussein Agrama, Free Palestine Alliance
- Michael Berg, father of Nicholas Berg (message)
- Vanessa Dixon, DC Healthcare Coalition
- Macrina Cardenas, Mexico Solidarity Network
- Chuck Kaufman, Nicaragua Network
- Student and youth organizers
......
Imam Mahdi Bray is a long time civil and human rights activist. (A past member of Students for a Democratic Society and the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee). He is currently the Executive Director of the Muslim American Society (MAS) Freedom Foundation, and the President of the Coordinating Council of Muslim Organizations (CCMO). He also serves on the Board of Directors of the National Interfaith Committee for Worker Justice and the Interfaith Alliance, America’s largest interfaith organization with over 150,000 members, and also on the advisory board of the Muslim Public Affairs Council. He is a Washington, DC, television and radio talk show host. He has served as a major consultant and a political advisor to Bonner & Associates, Washington’s largest grassroots lobbying firm, the National Center for Housing Management, Alexandria City Redevelopment & Housing Authority, Community Relations Department, The City of Norfolk, Virginia, Department of Community Improvement, and the Independent Voter League. He has also served as Political Advisor and Strategist to several national, state, and local political campaigns. He is also the author of The Masjid Voter’s Guide and The Political Guide for Masjid Activists. Also, Imam Mahdi Bray is one of the main organizers for the “No War on Iraq” movement. He has also served as a liaison between the President’s White House Faith-Based Initiative Program and congressional affairs on behalf of the Muslim Community.
.....
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, Most Merciful
MAS FREEDOM AND A.N.S.W.E.R. ANNOUNCING MASSIVE PRO-PEACE MOBILIZATION
Groups Join in Press Conference Announcing Event
(Washington, DC, 05/31/05) - On September 24, 2005, the largest anti-war demonstration in more than a year will take place. As the popularity of President George W. Bush’s administration declines, and as the war and occupation in Iraq has proved to be “unwinnable,” the anti-war movement will have a major show of opposition in the streets of Washington, DC, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The press conference will announce new tactics and plans for the anti-war movement, which now represents the majority opinion in the United States.
The press conference will feature former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark, who will address the political and legal ramifications of the war in Iraq, including the rights of those who have been incarcerated by U.S. invasion forces. He will also discuss his call for holding U.S. officials accountable for their criminal acts and violations of international law, including the use of torture and extra-judicial killings.
MAS Freedom Foundation encourages everyone to come out and be a part of this historical press conference.
WHEN: WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1, 2005
TIME: 9:30 a.m.
WHERE: First Amendment Room of the National Press Club, 529 14th St., NW, 13th Floor, Washington, DC.
Speakers at the event will include:
- Ramsey Clark, former U.S. attorney general
- Mahdi Bray, Executive Director, Muslim American Society's Freedom Foundation
- Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, attorney and co-founder of the Partnership for Civil Justice
- Rev. Graylan Hagler, Senior Minister, Plymouth Congregational Church
- Brian Becker, National Coordinator, A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition
- Ben Dupuy, General Secretary, National Popular Party of Haiti (PPN)
- Hussein Agrama, Free Palestine Alliance
- Michael Berg, father of Nicholas Berg (message)
- Vanessa Dixon, DC Healthcare Coalition
- Macrina Cardenas, Mexico Solidarity Network
- Chuck Kaufman, Nicaragua Network
- Student and youth organizers
......
Imam Mahdi Bray is a long time civil and human rights activist. (A past member of Students for a Democratic Society and the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee). He is currently the Executive Director of the Muslim American Society (MAS) Freedom Foundation, and the President of the Coordinating Council of Muslim Organizations (CCMO). He also serves on the Board of Directors of the National Interfaith Committee for Worker Justice and the Interfaith Alliance, America’s largest interfaith organization with over 150,000 members, and also on the advisory board of the Muslim Public Affairs Council. He is a Washington, DC, television and radio talk show host. He has served as a major consultant and a political advisor to Bonner & Associates, Washington’s largest grassroots lobbying firm, the National Center for Housing Management, Alexandria City Redevelopment & Housing Authority, Community Relations Department, The City of Norfolk, Virginia, Department of Community Improvement, and the Independent Voter League. He has also served as Political Advisor and Strategist to several national, state, and local political campaigns. He is also the author of The Masjid Voter’s Guide and The Political Guide for Masjid Activists. Also, Imam Mahdi Bray is one of the main organizers for the “No War on Iraq” movement. He has also served as a liaison between the President’s White House Faith-Based Initiative Program and congressional affairs on behalf of the Muslim Community.
second interview with lily munir
Here is a second interview with Lily Zakiyah Munir from her Qalandar website. She talks about her background, some of her experience organizing as a Muslim activist in Indonesia, women's rights, and the role of the Wahabi movement.
lily munir on indonesian islamic liberation theology
The following interview is from the Muslim Wake Up website
Q: In recent years, particularly after the events of 11 September, 2001 and the rise of numerous anti-American Islamist groups in Indonesia, there is much talk about ‘liberal Islam’ flourishing in Indonesia. Some institutions seeking to promote ‘liberal Islam’ are now being liberally funded by certain conservative Western organizations, some of which are known for their close links with the American administration. How do you look at the ‘liberal Islam’ project that these groups seek to promote?
A: I share many liberal values myself, and of course I am opposed to extremism and narrow understandings of religion. My answer to your question would be that the liberal Islam project as it is developing in Indonesia today is not a homogenous one. It is characterized by considerable diversity and hence it is difficult to make generalizations about it.
My point is simple. If liberal Islam aims at protecting the rights of the poor and the marginalized then I welcome it. But if, as in the case of some foreign agencies that are now funding certain ‘liberal’ Islamic programmes in Indonesia, the underlying agenda is to create space for liberal free-market economics and the exploitation of our country by multinational corporations and dampen any critique of imperialism and neocolonialism, then I cannot agree with it. If it remains silent on the corruption of local and global elites and, instead, trains its ire only on the Islamist extremists, as is sometimes the case, I think this is a very one-sided approach. We have to be balanced in our critique. You cannot criticize and oppose only the radical Islamists while ignoring the oppression of the elites, Western imperialism and neocolonialism and the global system of capitalist exploitation.
Q: So would you say that the ‘liberal Islam’ project is largely an elitist venture?
A: In some ways, yes. Funding for such projects generally comes from Western agencies, and goes to Indonesian NGOs, which are mostly led by middle-class activists. This is not emerging as a spontaneous movement from among the marginalized. This elitism is also reflected in many of the causes that several ‘liberal Islam’ groups take up and the issues that they ignore. So, they usually focus on countering extremist Islamist groups and also take up issues such as gender, pluralism and democracy. I don’t say these issues are not important. Of course they are, but what is equally significant is that in the process other vital issues are, deliberately or otherwise, often left out, issues such as imperialism, unbridled capitalist exploitation, the World Bank-IMF-led form of ‘development’ that is only further widening inequalities and increasing poverty in Indonesia, and the growing influence of Christian fundamentalism globally and so on. And to add to this we have this terrible cultural in vasion coming in from the West, spreading crass consumerism and hedonism and mindlessly mimicking American pop culture, in the process destroying our rich local cultures. These are equally major challenges as is radical Islamism, but I find few advocates of ‘liberal Islam’ taking up these issues as well.
When they talk of democracy, it is limited generally to procedural or formal democracy—the one person one vote system of bourgeoise democracy—which, as we know, is not sufficient to bring about genuine economic and social democracy and social justice. This sort of formal democracy does not really challenge the established elites and the Western-dominated global system of exploitation. So, we need to talk about substantive democracy, democratic values such as social justice and protection of human rights from violation not only by radical Islamists but also by the state and by the dominant Western countries.
Another issue that I would like to draw your attention to is that some ‘liberal Islam’ groups that get funds from certain Western agencies seem to have bought into an elitist free-market discourse. For instance, the support given by some of them to the recent scrapping of the oil subsidy in Indonesia under World Bank-IMF pressure that has hit the poor the most.
So, this sort of ‘liberal Islamic’ discourse that is today being very vigorously promoted by certain conservative, even right-wing Western agencies in Indonesia, and perhaps elsewhere, too, is carefully tailored to suit the interests of the West and of local elites, because the poor hardly fit into their scheme of things. My own position is that yes, we need to be critical of Islamist extremists but we also need to simultaneously critique and oppose Western imperialism, Christian extremism and so on.
Q: So, what you are saying is that the basic agenda behind many Western agencies who are today sponsoring ‘liberal Islam’ projects in Indonesia is to stave off the challenge of anti-Western Islamist groups, and not to really bring about any structural changes?
A: Exactly. They certainly won’t sponsor any projects that might challenge free-market capitalism, multinational corporations that have such a stranglehold over the Indonesian economy or American hegemony! You won’t find them funding projects to critique hedonism and consumerism! Now, since it is unfortunately difficult for most Indonesian NGOs to get local funds, they generally rely on Western agencies that have their own agendas.
I think we really need to be careful that when taking foreign funds we don’t serve an anti-people agenda. It really is up to our own conscience how we use the money. There is always the danger that idealistic youth who really want to change the system and do something concrete for the poor might get co-opted, with access to foreign funds, trips abroad and foreign jaunts organized by NGOs funded by Western agencies. And once that happens it is rare for them to speak out against the structures that generate poverty and exploitation and the domination of loca l and global elites.
Q: In the writings and activities of certain Western-funded ‘liberal Islamic’ groups in Indonesia Islamist radicalism is seen simply as an ideological ‘deviation’ whose genesis is located in ‘deviant’ interpretations of Islam, rather than in concrete social structures. Do you agree?
A: Yes, I agree with you to a large extent. The issue of Islamist radicalism is often seen in a sociological vacuum, as if it comes out of nowhere. The fact, however, is that Islamist radicalism cannot be understood without situating it in the context of the broader political economy, and as resulting from certain local and global social, economic, cultural and political structures and processes of domination and exclusion. There can be no smoke without fire. So, unless these structures and processes are tackled, how can you expect radicalism to disappear?
Focusing only on the phenomenon of radicalism and ignoring its underlying structural causes will only exacerbate the problem and delay and further complicate its solution. Of course, dominant elites, both in Indonesia and in the West, do not want to recognize this as they themselves are deeply implicated in these structures that give rise to the phenomenon of radicalism as a reaction or response, and that is why you will find that many among them would insist that Islamist radicalism is a result simply a deviant understanding of Islam and that it has nothing to do with exploitation, predatory capitalism, western consumerist culture, or imperialism and so on. And then one must also remember that extremism and terrorism are not easily defined, and it all depends on who does the defining and why. So, one must ask, how and why does Saddam Hussain come to be defined as a ‘terrorist’, while America’s brutal invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan (where I just spent six months), which has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent people, does not qualify to be called an act of terror?
Q: Being associated with several socially engaged Muslim groups in Indonesia how do you look at the question of interfaith relations?
A: My own understanding of Islam leads me to believe in the necessity of promoting interfaith dialogue and harmony. Several moderate Islamic groups in the country are actively involved in trying to promote better relations between Muslims and people of other faiths. Often, interfaith dialogue work takes the form of religious leaders meeting with each other and discussing their respective faiths and trying to discover their commonalities. Now, while that is important, I think the interfaith agenda needs to be broadened, so that people of different faiths, inspired by their own religions, can work together for common social goals, such as for social justice for all, or critiquing all forms of religious extremism or struggling together against the exploitation of local and global elites.
Unfortunately, for some Muslims—and the same can be said in the case of other communities as well—religious identity is sought to be constructed in opposition to or even on the basis of hatred for the religious ‘other’. I think this is a very wrong and un-Islamic approach. In this regard I would like to mention the very different position adopted by a leading Indonesian scholar, the late Kiai ‘Abdullah Siddiq, who used to talk of three levels of ‘brotherhood’ or ukhuwwah: ukhuwwah islamiya or Islamic brotherhood, ukhuwwah wataniya, brotherhood based on common nation, and ukhuwwa bashariya or brotherhood based on the fact of being creatures of God, which includes both Muslims as well as all others. So, what he stressed was a consciousness of being fellow creatures of God despite our different religions. This is related to the Qur’anic statement that God has created us into different nations so that we can know each other and that the best among us is he or she who does good and devotes himself or herself to God. And what happens when, as the Qur’an exhorts, we begin to know each other? We begin to shed our hatreds, which then turn into mutual appreciation and love. And if you don’t get to know each other, then you go the Taliban or the Zionist way and begin to hate each other, which is against God’s Will.
This understanding of interfaith relations requires a fundamental transformation in the way in which we understand our own religions. Unfortunately, many of us understand them simply as a bundle of rituals and doctrines and make an unwarranted rigid distinction between the ‘religious’ and the ‘mundane’, as if the two were opposed to each other. While rituals and doctrines are undoubtedly important, equally so is the ethical imperative that the different religions contain of struggling for social justice, and eliminating poverty and suffering. These are important not only in themselves, but also for a proper religious life. If you are materially secure you can be at peace with God and with other human beings. So that is why I think religious activists must also work for satisfying people’s basic needs. This is why Muslims generally pray to God asking Him to bless them in this world as well as in the Hereafter.
Q: In contrast to my own country, India, I find Indonesian Islamic scholars far more willing to relate Islam to modern concerns. I think the Indonesian case has no parallels elsewhere in the Muslim world. What do you feel?
A: Yes, I would agree, albeit with some qualifications. Today, we have a growing number of Islamic intellectuals as well as traditionally-trained ‘ulama who are seriously discussing a range of contemporary issues, from gender justice and religious pluralism to democracy and extremism. You also have some scholars who are talking about ‘social fiqh’, offering new perspectives on a range of social issues, such as education, women’s rights politics and economics that go beyond the understanding of Islam as being limited simply to rituals. However, I must admit that only a few of them have any awareness of political economy, of issues such as global capitalism and imperialism or the politics of culture or consumerism. Also missing is a sufficiently grounded critique of the state and the international system. Many of our scholars continue in the same traditionalist mould. So, for instance, they would answer that the solution to our economic woes is simply by instituting the zakat levy or by banning interest, although obviously that is hardly sufficient to mend the ills of the global economy.
Another problem is that in recent years many ‘ulama, including from the organization with which I am associated, the Nahdlatul ‘Ulama, the largest Islamic organization in the world, have taken to politics. I am not saying that this is bad per se, because with political power you can influence political decisions, but there is always the danger of getting cut off from the concerns of the masses. Instead of caring for the poor or doing serious intellectual work they are looking out for political positions. And, to make matters worse, you have ‘ulama who have been co-opted by the system, who love their big cars and houses, who buy into the logic of consumerist capitalism, and have no critical perspective on it. So all that also severely impacts on the level of contemporary Islamic discourse in Indonesia.
Q: Some Indonesian scholars have also made interesting contributions to the ongoing debates on the status of Muslim women. What are your views on this?
A: Yes, a number of our ‘ulama have taken up this issue and have made some interesting developments in the direction of gender justice, although many remain wedded to the patriarchal notions. My own position, as an advocate of gender justice, is that what we should be seeking is substantive, as opposed to simply formal, equality. So, let men lead the prayers in the mosques, but let women’s role in shaping the family be recognized. I am not concerned with the form of family leadership but its substance. So, today, we have a number of families whose principal bread-earner is the woman, and so, some argue that logically she should be regarded as the head or at least the co-head of the family, because, they say, male leadership is conditional on providing for the family and is not categorical. I support this stance, and this demand was put forward to the Ministry of Religious Affairs, which, however, struck it down.
While we are today witnessing the emergence of new and more progressive understandings of Islam on the gender question we still have to contend with the challenge of patriarchal notions that are sought to be given an ‘Islamic’ guise in the name of revival of tradition, as exemplified, for instance, in the agenda of the radical Islamist groups. For them, the hijab becomes a symbol of Islam, not men’s beards, so they demand that women don the hijab while they remain silent on men wearing jeans and T-shirts, not seeing this as threatening Islam. I myself wear the hijab, but I resent the way in which some Muslim groups reduce it simply into a meaningless symbol. For instance, there was this government official who issued an ordinance that women in his town had to wear hijab and later organized a ‘Muslimah Fashion Show’, with hijab-clad women parading on the ramp. Or, for instance, this other government official who imposed hijab on all Muslim women in his area, and whose wife, who usually wore fancy Western clothes when traveling outside, went around distributing hijabs to poor women. This man was later arrested for massive corruption! And you also have the development of a fashion industry centred on the hijab that caters to the elites, with fancy and exorbitantly priced hijabs on sale in special boutiques, which really robs the hijab of its essence as a social leveler. I think this tendency to reduce shari’ah to the hijab is really pathetic. This obsession with the form, as distinct from the spirit, of the shari’ah often ends up missing out on basic issues of economic and social justice.
A contemporary understanding of the Qur’an and the shari’ah would entail focusing on their underlying spirit rather than simply going by their letter alone. Using this approach one could argue for changes in certain laws related to what is called the mu’amilat or social transactions, though, of course, there can be no change in religious rituals (‘ibadat). So, for instance, some Indonesian feminist Islamic scholars believe that women and men should have equal inheritance rights. They recognize that the Qur’an prescribes for daughters half the share of sons, but they argue that this law has to be seen in the context of seventh century Arabia, when not many women engaged in economic activities outside the home and when men were the principal bread-earners.
A contemporary understanding of the Qur’an and the shari’ah would entail focusing on their underlying spirit rather than simply going by their letter alone. Using this approach one could argue for changes in certain laws related to what is called the mu’amilat or social transactions, though, of course, there can be no change in religious rituals (‘ibadat). So, for instance, some Indonesian feminist Islamic scholars believe that women and men should have equal inheritance rights. They recognize that the Qur’an prescribes for daughters half the share of sons, but they argue that this law has to be seen in the context of seventh century Arabia, when not many women engaged in economic activities outside the home and when men were the principal bread-earners. By giving them a share of the inheritance the Qur’an sought to provide women with justice. That means the underlying intention of the inheritance rules must be justice, and today, if we are to do justice to women they should get the same share as men, because many women now work outside the home and contribute to the household expenses. This means that by sticking to the letter of the Qur’an and ignoring its underlying spirit we may not be able to fulfill the intention of the Qur’an, which is justice.
Another startling difference between Indonesia and many other Muslim countries is that here you will find women working in almost every sector of the economy, including even hijab –clad women. The majority of the Indonesian ‘ulama allow for this, even in cases where unrelated women and men work together, provided they maintain their modesty. This is not a problem at all for most of them, unlike in some other Muslim countries.
Q: How do you see the demand being made by radical Islamist groups in Indonesia today that Indonesia should be declared a formal Islamic state and be ruled according to the shari’ah?
A: It really depends on what one means by the shari’ah. Many people think of shari’ah as cutting off the hands of thieves or forcing women to veil and men to grow their beards. Now, that is a mechanical, literalist and textual approach to shari’ah, which does not take into account local context. How can you cut off the hands of people who steal because of poverty when you have not fulfilled the Islamic mandate of eradicating poverty and establishing social justice? This sort of approach will only alienate people from Islam. I have seen this in Afghanistan, from where I have just returned, where the Taliban, in their misplaced zeal, banned girls from school, killed scores of Shi’as, outlawed chess and kite-flying, all because of their rigid approach to traditional fiqh, with little or no appreciation for the underlying spirit of the Qur’an, which teaches love, compassion and social justice. By focusing only on the external symbols of the shari’ah, the extremists miss out on its spirit, including one of its basic concerns, social justice.
I think when many people say they want shari’ah rule what they mean is that they want an alternative to the present corrupt and sternly hierarchical and iniquitous order. They may not necessarily also support all the laws that are associated with the historical shari’ah. This is why I think we need to make a distinction between shari’ah, as divine path, and the historical shari’ah or fiqh, including laws developed by the ‘ulama over time, many of which are human products and amenable to change according to changing contexts. For this we really need a contextual understanding of the Qur’an, so that we can develop more appropriate ways of implementing its underlying value system, which may depart in some significant respects from traditional notions, such as on women’s rights or inter-community relations.
That said, I must also say that I understand some of the reasons that lead some people to radicalism, although that does not mean I condone it. They rightly see growing social inequalities, unemployment, Western cultural invasion and so on as menacing threats, but they resort to violent means to end these, while I believe these should be countered through generating mass awareness, through demonstrations or through the media. It is, however, important not to exaggerate the strength of radical Islamist groups in Indonesia, as some Western reporters do. In actual fact, as the election results show, they do not command the support of more than a very small minority of Indonesians.
Q: The literalist and traditionalist understandings of fiqh that you talk about were developed in the Middle East, in a very different cultural context. Do you think it is possible to develop new ways of understanding fiqh suited to the Indonesian cultural context?
A: Certainly. Islam is a universal religion and is not an Arab religion, and hence its appeal transcends a particular culture. Unfortunately, some ‘ulama tend to conflate Islam with Arab culture, which is wrong. We need to distinguish Islam, as a religion of surrender to God and social justice with a universal appeal and message, from Arab culture. To be a Muslim one does not have to blindly adopt every aspect of Arab culture. I see no harm in adopting or adapting to local cultures provided they do not go against any Islamic beliefs. And this is precisely what the first Sufis who came to Indonesia sought to do.
I think it is important for progressive Muslims to enter the shari’ah debate and not allow extremists to monopolise it. We need to expand our understanding of the shari’ah from mere symbol to substance, from the letter of the law to its underlying aims or what is called in Arabic the maqasid-i shari’ah, which include such fundamental issues as equality and social justice and struggling against oppression and injustice. We need to think of ways of incorporating the question of social and economic justice into contemporary shari’ah-based discourses. This draws inspiration from the central notion of Islam of tauhid or the oneness of God, which suggests that only Allah is the Master, and that no one else can be your master. This calls for a tauhidi society, a society where there is social and economic equality. Islamic equality is meant not just in the mosque, but in the economic, social and political realms as well, which means a burning concern for the rights of all of God’s creatures, men and women, Muslims and non-Muslims. This understanding of Islam then helps lead you on to immerse yourself in the struggle for social justice, and you begin to question the ritualistic understandings of Islam that many of us have. You now begin to ask how is it that Indonesia, which is the largest Muslim country in the world, is also among the most corrupt, when corruption is definitely un-Islamic? Or, then, you begin to ask, how is it that economic inequalities in Indonesia are one of the most extreme in the world, when Islam preaches social equality? In other words, what we need today is an Islamic theology of liberation that is sensitive to the context of contemporary Indonesia.
Lily Zakiyah Munir is a leading Indonesian Muslim human rights activist. She is the director of the Jakarta-based Centre for Pesantren and Democracy Studies that works with the ‘ulama and students of Indonesian Islamic boarding schools or pesantrens. In this interview speaks to Yoginder Sikand about her work and her vision of an Indonesian Islamic liberation theology.
Q: In recent years, particularly after the events of 11 September, 2001 and the rise of numerous anti-American Islamist groups in Indonesia, there is much talk about ‘liberal Islam’ flourishing in Indonesia. Some institutions seeking to promote ‘liberal Islam’ are now being liberally funded by certain conservative Western organizations, some of which are known for their close links with the American administration. How do you look at the ‘liberal Islam’ project that these groups seek to promote?
A: I share many liberal values myself, and of course I am opposed to extremism and narrow understandings of religion. My answer to your question would be that the liberal Islam project as it is developing in Indonesia today is not a homogenous one. It is characterized by considerable diversity and hence it is difficult to make generalizations about it.
My point is simple. If liberal Islam aims at protecting the rights of the poor and the marginalized then I welcome it. But if, as in the case of some foreign agencies that are now funding certain ‘liberal’ Islamic programmes in Indonesia, the underlying agenda is to create space for liberal free-market economics and the exploitation of our country by multinational corporations and dampen any critique of imperialism and neocolonialism, then I cannot agree with it. If it remains silent on the corruption of local and global elites and, instead, trains its ire only on the Islamist extremists, as is sometimes the case, I think this is a very one-sided approach. We have to be balanced in our critique. You cannot criticize and oppose only the radical Islamists while ignoring the oppression of the elites, Western imperialism and neocolonialism and the global system of capitalist exploitation.
Q: So would you say that the ‘liberal Islam’ project is largely an elitist venture?
A: In some ways, yes. Funding for such projects generally comes from Western agencies, and goes to Indonesian NGOs, which are mostly led by middle-class activists. This is not emerging as a spontaneous movement from among the marginalized. This elitism is also reflected in many of the causes that several ‘liberal Islam’ groups take up and the issues that they ignore. So, they usually focus on countering extremist Islamist groups and also take up issues such as gender, pluralism and democracy. I don’t say these issues are not important. Of course they are, but what is equally significant is that in the process other vital issues are, deliberately or otherwise, often left out, issues such as imperialism, unbridled capitalist exploitation, the World Bank-IMF-led form of ‘development’ that is only further widening inequalities and increasing poverty in Indonesia, and the growing influence of Christian fundamentalism globally and so on. And to add to this we have this terrible cultural in vasion coming in from the West, spreading crass consumerism and hedonism and mindlessly mimicking American pop culture, in the process destroying our rich local cultures. These are equally major challenges as is radical Islamism, but I find few advocates of ‘liberal Islam’ taking up these issues as well.
When they talk of democracy, it is limited generally to procedural or formal democracy—the one person one vote system of bourgeoise democracy—which, as we know, is not sufficient to bring about genuine economic and social democracy and social justice. This sort of formal democracy does not really challenge the established elites and the Western-dominated global system of exploitation. So, we need to talk about substantive democracy, democratic values such as social justice and protection of human rights from violation not only by radical Islamists but also by the state and by the dominant Western countries.
Another issue that I would like to draw your attention to is that some ‘liberal Islam’ groups that get funds from certain Western agencies seem to have bought into an elitist free-market discourse. For instance, the support given by some of them to the recent scrapping of the oil subsidy in Indonesia under World Bank-IMF pressure that has hit the poor the most.
So, this sort of ‘liberal Islamic’ discourse that is today being very vigorously promoted by certain conservative, even right-wing Western agencies in Indonesia, and perhaps elsewhere, too, is carefully tailored to suit the interests of the West and of local elites, because the poor hardly fit into their scheme of things. My own position is that yes, we need to be critical of Islamist extremists but we also need to simultaneously critique and oppose Western imperialism, Christian extremism and so on.
Q: So, what you are saying is that the basic agenda behind many Western agencies who are today sponsoring ‘liberal Islam’ projects in Indonesia is to stave off the challenge of anti-Western Islamist groups, and not to really bring about any structural changes?
A: Exactly. They certainly won’t sponsor any projects that might challenge free-market capitalism, multinational corporations that have such a stranglehold over the Indonesian economy or American hegemony! You won’t find them funding projects to critique hedonism and consumerism! Now, since it is unfortunately difficult for most Indonesian NGOs to get local funds, they generally rely on Western agencies that have their own agendas.
I think we really need to be careful that when taking foreign funds we don’t serve an anti-people agenda. It really is up to our own conscience how we use the money. There is always the danger that idealistic youth who really want to change the system and do something concrete for the poor might get co-opted, with access to foreign funds, trips abroad and foreign jaunts organized by NGOs funded by Western agencies. And once that happens it is rare for them to speak out against the structures that generate poverty and exploitation and the domination of loca l and global elites.
Q: In the writings and activities of certain Western-funded ‘liberal Islamic’ groups in Indonesia Islamist radicalism is seen simply as an ideological ‘deviation’ whose genesis is located in ‘deviant’ interpretations of Islam, rather than in concrete social structures. Do you agree?
A: Yes, I agree with you to a large extent. The issue of Islamist radicalism is often seen in a sociological vacuum, as if it comes out of nowhere. The fact, however, is that Islamist radicalism cannot be understood without situating it in the context of the broader political economy, and as resulting from certain local and global social, economic, cultural and political structures and processes of domination and exclusion. There can be no smoke without fire. So, unless these structures and processes are tackled, how can you expect radicalism to disappear?
Focusing only on the phenomenon of radicalism and ignoring its underlying structural causes will only exacerbate the problem and delay and further complicate its solution. Of course, dominant elites, both in Indonesia and in the West, do not want to recognize this as they themselves are deeply implicated in these structures that give rise to the phenomenon of radicalism as a reaction or response, and that is why you will find that many among them would insist that Islamist radicalism is a result simply a deviant understanding of Islam and that it has nothing to do with exploitation, predatory capitalism, western consumerist culture, or imperialism and so on. And then one must also remember that extremism and terrorism are not easily defined, and it all depends on who does the defining and why. So, one must ask, how and why does Saddam Hussain come to be defined as a ‘terrorist’, while America’s brutal invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan (where I just spent six months), which has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent people, does not qualify to be called an act of terror?
Q: Being associated with several socially engaged Muslim groups in Indonesia how do you look at the question of interfaith relations?
A: My own understanding of Islam leads me to believe in the necessity of promoting interfaith dialogue and harmony. Several moderate Islamic groups in the country are actively involved in trying to promote better relations between Muslims and people of other faiths. Often, interfaith dialogue work takes the form of religious leaders meeting with each other and discussing their respective faiths and trying to discover their commonalities. Now, while that is important, I think the interfaith agenda needs to be broadened, so that people of different faiths, inspired by their own religions, can work together for common social goals, such as for social justice for all, or critiquing all forms of religious extremism or struggling together against the exploitation of local and global elites.
Unfortunately, for some Muslims—and the same can be said in the case of other communities as well—religious identity is sought to be constructed in opposition to or even on the basis of hatred for the religious ‘other’. I think this is a very wrong and un-Islamic approach. In this regard I would like to mention the very different position adopted by a leading Indonesian scholar, the late Kiai ‘Abdullah Siddiq, who used to talk of three levels of ‘brotherhood’ or ukhuwwah: ukhuwwah islamiya or Islamic brotherhood, ukhuwwah wataniya, brotherhood based on common nation, and ukhuwwa bashariya or brotherhood based on the fact of being creatures of God, which includes both Muslims as well as all others. So, what he stressed was a consciousness of being fellow creatures of God despite our different religions. This is related to the Qur’anic statement that God has created us into different nations so that we can know each other and that the best among us is he or she who does good and devotes himself or herself to God. And what happens when, as the Qur’an exhorts, we begin to know each other? We begin to shed our hatreds, which then turn into mutual appreciation and love. And if you don’t get to know each other, then you go the Taliban or the Zionist way and begin to hate each other, which is against God’s Will.
This understanding of interfaith relations requires a fundamental transformation in the way in which we understand our own religions. Unfortunately, many of us understand them simply as a bundle of rituals and doctrines and make an unwarranted rigid distinction between the ‘religious’ and the ‘mundane’, as if the two were opposed to each other. While rituals and doctrines are undoubtedly important, equally so is the ethical imperative that the different religions contain of struggling for social justice, and eliminating poverty and suffering. These are important not only in themselves, but also for a proper religious life. If you are materially secure you can be at peace with God and with other human beings. So that is why I think religious activists must also work for satisfying people’s basic needs. This is why Muslims generally pray to God asking Him to bless them in this world as well as in the Hereafter.
Q: In contrast to my own country, India, I find Indonesian Islamic scholars far more willing to relate Islam to modern concerns. I think the Indonesian case has no parallels elsewhere in the Muslim world. What do you feel?
A: Yes, I would agree, albeit with some qualifications. Today, we have a growing number of Islamic intellectuals as well as traditionally-trained ‘ulama who are seriously discussing a range of contemporary issues, from gender justice and religious pluralism to democracy and extremism. You also have some scholars who are talking about ‘social fiqh’, offering new perspectives on a range of social issues, such as education, women’s rights politics and economics that go beyond the understanding of Islam as being limited simply to rituals. However, I must admit that only a few of them have any awareness of political economy, of issues such as global capitalism and imperialism or the politics of culture or consumerism. Also missing is a sufficiently grounded critique of the state and the international system. Many of our scholars continue in the same traditionalist mould. So, for instance, they would answer that the solution to our economic woes is simply by instituting the zakat levy or by banning interest, although obviously that is hardly sufficient to mend the ills of the global economy.
Another problem is that in recent years many ‘ulama, including from the organization with which I am associated, the Nahdlatul ‘Ulama, the largest Islamic organization in the world, have taken to politics. I am not saying that this is bad per se, because with political power you can influence political decisions, but there is always the danger of getting cut off from the concerns of the masses. Instead of caring for the poor or doing serious intellectual work they are looking out for political positions. And, to make matters worse, you have ‘ulama who have been co-opted by the system, who love their big cars and houses, who buy into the logic of consumerist capitalism, and have no critical perspective on it. So all that also severely impacts on the level of contemporary Islamic discourse in Indonesia.
Q: Some Indonesian scholars have also made interesting contributions to the ongoing debates on the status of Muslim women. What are your views on this?
A: Yes, a number of our ‘ulama have taken up this issue and have made some interesting developments in the direction of gender justice, although many remain wedded to the patriarchal notions. My own position, as an advocate of gender justice, is that what we should be seeking is substantive, as opposed to simply formal, equality. So, let men lead the prayers in the mosques, but let women’s role in shaping the family be recognized. I am not concerned with the form of family leadership but its substance. So, today, we have a number of families whose principal bread-earner is the woman, and so, some argue that logically she should be regarded as the head or at least the co-head of the family, because, they say, male leadership is conditional on providing for the family and is not categorical. I support this stance, and this demand was put forward to the Ministry of Religious Affairs, which, however, struck it down.
While we are today witnessing the emergence of new and more progressive understandings of Islam on the gender question we still have to contend with the challenge of patriarchal notions that are sought to be given an ‘Islamic’ guise in the name of revival of tradition, as exemplified, for instance, in the agenda of the radical Islamist groups. For them, the hijab becomes a symbol of Islam, not men’s beards, so they demand that women don the hijab while they remain silent on men wearing jeans and T-shirts, not seeing this as threatening Islam. I myself wear the hijab, but I resent the way in which some Muslim groups reduce it simply into a meaningless symbol. For instance, there was this government official who issued an ordinance that women in his town had to wear hijab and later organized a ‘Muslimah Fashion Show’, with hijab-clad women parading on the ramp. Or, for instance, this other government official who imposed hijab on all Muslim women in his area, and whose wife, who usually wore fancy Western clothes when traveling outside, went around distributing hijabs to poor women. This man was later arrested for massive corruption! And you also have the development of a fashion industry centred on the hijab that caters to the elites, with fancy and exorbitantly priced hijabs on sale in special boutiques, which really robs the hijab of its essence as a social leveler. I think this tendency to reduce shari’ah to the hijab is really pathetic. This obsession with the form, as distinct from the spirit, of the shari’ah often ends up missing out on basic issues of economic and social justice.
A contemporary understanding of the Qur’an and the shari’ah would entail focusing on their underlying spirit rather than simply going by their letter alone. Using this approach one could argue for changes in certain laws related to what is called the mu’amilat or social transactions, though, of course, there can be no change in religious rituals (‘ibadat). So, for instance, some Indonesian feminist Islamic scholars believe that women and men should have equal inheritance rights. They recognize that the Qur’an prescribes for daughters half the share of sons, but they argue that this law has to be seen in the context of seventh century Arabia, when not many women engaged in economic activities outside the home and when men were the principal bread-earners.
A contemporary understanding of the Qur’an and the shari’ah would entail focusing on their underlying spirit rather than simply going by their letter alone. Using this approach one could argue for changes in certain laws related to what is called the mu’amilat or social transactions, though, of course, there can be no change in religious rituals (‘ibadat). So, for instance, some Indonesian feminist Islamic scholars believe that women and men should have equal inheritance rights. They recognize that the Qur’an prescribes for daughters half the share of sons, but they argue that this law has to be seen in the context of seventh century Arabia, when not many women engaged in economic activities outside the home and when men were the principal bread-earners. By giving them a share of the inheritance the Qur’an sought to provide women with justice. That means the underlying intention of the inheritance rules must be justice, and today, if we are to do justice to women they should get the same share as men, because many women now work outside the home and contribute to the household expenses. This means that by sticking to the letter of the Qur’an and ignoring its underlying spirit we may not be able to fulfill the intention of the Qur’an, which is justice.
Another startling difference between Indonesia and many other Muslim countries is that here you will find women working in almost every sector of the economy, including even hijab –clad women. The majority of the Indonesian ‘ulama allow for this, even in cases where unrelated women and men work together, provided they maintain their modesty. This is not a problem at all for most of them, unlike in some other Muslim countries.
Q: How do you see the demand being made by radical Islamist groups in Indonesia today that Indonesia should be declared a formal Islamic state and be ruled according to the shari’ah?
A: It really depends on what one means by the shari’ah. Many people think of shari’ah as cutting off the hands of thieves or forcing women to veil and men to grow their beards. Now, that is a mechanical, literalist and textual approach to shari’ah, which does not take into account local context. How can you cut off the hands of people who steal because of poverty when you have not fulfilled the Islamic mandate of eradicating poverty and establishing social justice? This sort of approach will only alienate people from Islam. I have seen this in Afghanistan, from where I have just returned, where the Taliban, in their misplaced zeal, banned girls from school, killed scores of Shi’as, outlawed chess and kite-flying, all because of their rigid approach to traditional fiqh, with little or no appreciation for the underlying spirit of the Qur’an, which teaches love, compassion and social justice. By focusing only on the external symbols of the shari’ah, the extremists miss out on its spirit, including one of its basic concerns, social justice.
I think when many people say they want shari’ah rule what they mean is that they want an alternative to the present corrupt and sternly hierarchical and iniquitous order. They may not necessarily also support all the laws that are associated with the historical shari’ah. This is why I think we need to make a distinction between shari’ah, as divine path, and the historical shari’ah or fiqh, including laws developed by the ‘ulama over time, many of which are human products and amenable to change according to changing contexts. For this we really need a contextual understanding of the Qur’an, so that we can develop more appropriate ways of implementing its underlying value system, which may depart in some significant respects from traditional notions, such as on women’s rights or inter-community relations.
That said, I must also say that I understand some of the reasons that lead some people to radicalism, although that does not mean I condone it. They rightly see growing social inequalities, unemployment, Western cultural invasion and so on as menacing threats, but they resort to violent means to end these, while I believe these should be countered through generating mass awareness, through demonstrations or through the media. It is, however, important not to exaggerate the strength of radical Islamist groups in Indonesia, as some Western reporters do. In actual fact, as the election results show, they do not command the support of more than a very small minority of Indonesians.
Q: The literalist and traditionalist understandings of fiqh that you talk about were developed in the Middle East, in a very different cultural context. Do you think it is possible to develop new ways of understanding fiqh suited to the Indonesian cultural context?
A: Certainly. Islam is a universal religion and is not an Arab religion, and hence its appeal transcends a particular culture. Unfortunately, some ‘ulama tend to conflate Islam with Arab culture, which is wrong. We need to distinguish Islam, as a religion of surrender to God and social justice with a universal appeal and message, from Arab culture. To be a Muslim one does not have to blindly adopt every aspect of Arab culture. I see no harm in adopting or adapting to local cultures provided they do not go against any Islamic beliefs. And this is precisely what the first Sufis who came to Indonesia sought to do.
I think it is important for progressive Muslims to enter the shari’ah debate and not allow extremists to monopolise it. We need to expand our understanding of the shari’ah from mere symbol to substance, from the letter of the law to its underlying aims or what is called in Arabic the maqasid-i shari’ah, which include such fundamental issues as equality and social justice and struggling against oppression and injustice. We need to think of ways of incorporating the question of social and economic justice into contemporary shari’ah-based discourses. This draws inspiration from the central notion of Islam of tauhid or the oneness of God, which suggests that only Allah is the Master, and that no one else can be your master. This calls for a tauhidi society, a society where there is social and economic equality. Islamic equality is meant not just in the mosque, but in the economic, social and political realms as well, which means a burning concern for the rights of all of God’s creatures, men and women, Muslims and non-Muslims. This understanding of Islam then helps lead you on to immerse yourself in the struggle for social justice, and you begin to question the ritualistic understandings of Islam that many of us have. You now begin to ask how is it that Indonesia, which is the largest Muslim country in the world, is also among the most corrupt, when corruption is definitely un-Islamic? Or, then, you begin to ask, how is it that economic inequalities in Indonesia are one of the most extreme in the world, when Islam preaches social equality? In other words, what we need today is an Islamic theology of liberation that is sensitive to the context of contemporary Indonesia.
Yoginder Singh Sikand is a Reader in the Department of Islamic Studies at Hamdard University, New Delhi and editor of Qalandar, an online magazine devoted to a discussion of issues related to Islam and Inter-Faith Relations in South Asia. He received a Ph.D. in history from the University of London and has published numerous books and authored over 250 articles on Islamic studies-related topics.
Lily Munir can be contacted on cepdes@hotmail.com
Tuesday, May 31, 2005
more blogs
I recently decided to join the Progressive Blog Alliance which seems to be a pretty comprehensive collection of center-to-left blogs. I had a few reservations due to some baggage which comes with the term "progressive Muslim" but after reading their mission statement I felt more comfortable about the idea of joining (although I wouldn't say that I endorse every blog on the roll)
Monday, May 30, 2005
blogs blogs blogs
i haven't yet found the *perfect* set of blogrolls for the various issues invoked on Planet Grenada. But some really good collections (which can be reached from my own blogroll) are:
elenamary - de aqui y de alla: which i recently learned about on latino pundit and generously lists other latino blogs.
negrophile: a good blog in and of itself but which also has the single longest blogroll of black blogs i've seen.
As far as Muslim blogs go, I'm not sure which is the most comprehensive in terms of blogrolling. But one which is pretty generous when it comes to blogrolling is sunni sister and another page which i included as some muslim blogs is decent as well.
elenamary - de aqui y de alla: which i recently learned about on latino pundit and generously lists other latino blogs.
negrophile: a good blog in and of itself but which also has the single longest blogroll of black blogs i've seen.
As far as Muslim blogs go, I'm not sure which is the most comprehensive in terms of blogrolling. But one which is pretty generous when it comes to blogrolling is sunni sister and another page which i included as some muslim blogs is decent as well.
christ the lord: out of egypt
So in the post-Passion, post-Left Behind, post-DaVinci Code world, it seems like religion is more marketable than its been in a while. And best selling author Anne Rice (more famous for her Vampire chronicles) has decided to ride the wave with Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt an upcoming book on the so-called "lost years" of Jesus(as), the period of time in Christ's life after his childhood but before the start of his ministry.
If her book, Memnoch the Devil is any indication, then fundamentalists should have started making picket signs several weeks ago. In her earlier book, Rice has the vampire Lestat meet Satan (who prefers to go by the name of Memnoch) as a vehicle for spelling out the metaphysics and theology which undergirds her fictional universe; topics range from the creation of the world, the origin of vampires, ghosts and zombies, the fall of Satan, and the secrets of the afterlife. Some of the more shocking revelations: Letting human souls into heaven was Satan's idea. Before he made the suggestion, God allowed the souls of the dead to suffer in some kind of metaphysical warehouse. Satan also accused God of not being sympathetic to human beings so indirectly the incarnation of Jesus is also Satan's idea in Rice's world.
I wonder how much ink will be spilled when the new book actually comes out.
If her book, Memnoch the Devil is any indication, then fundamentalists should have started making picket signs several weeks ago. In her earlier book, Rice has the vampire Lestat meet Satan (who prefers to go by the name of Memnoch) as a vehicle for spelling out the metaphysics and theology which undergirds her fictional universe; topics range from the creation of the world, the origin of vampires, ghosts and zombies, the fall of Satan, and the secrets of the afterlife. Some of the more shocking revelations: Letting human souls into heaven was Satan's idea. Before he made the suggestion, God allowed the souls of the dead to suffer in some kind of metaphysical warehouse. Satan also accused God of not being sympathetic to human beings so indirectly the incarnation of Jesus is also Satan's idea in Rice's world.
I wonder how much ink will be spilled when the new book actually comes out.
cuba and its music: from the first drums to the mambo
Cuba and Its Music: From the First Drums to the Mambo By Ned SubletteChicago Review Press
In his introduction to Cuba and Its Music, Qbadisc label founder Ned Sublette asks the reader to imagine the impossibility of explaining American music to someone who knows nothing about American history. So he starts his magisterial Cuban music history in prehistoric Africa and ancient Spain, the better to understand the roots of this small but potent powerhouse of Latin rhythms. Over 700 dense but absorbing pages later, he arrives at the mambo, the 1952 coup of Fulgencio Batista, and the end of this first installment in a projected two-volume set. Along the way, he follows more fascinating detours than a Neal Cassady bus trip. Who would've thought that the "Spanish tinge" famously identified by Jelly Roll Morton has its roots in the Moorish conquest of Spain? The sections on Afro-Cuban religions like Santeria are more enlightening than most books on the subject, the cutthroat dandies of the 19th century Havana underworld stalk the colonnades in vivid detail, and Sublette finally gives the world a simple explanation of the "clave," the rhythmic key that defines Cuban music. Further on, the releases of various pivotal records ("Bruca Manigua", "Mambo No. 5") crackle with the same excitement as "Rock Around the Clock" or "Anarchy in the UK". Don't be put off by the book's size or scholarly presentation: these compulsively readable pages seem to turn themselves. Anyone with the slightest interest in Cuban music-- or music at all-- should be reading this book right now. [review taken from Pitchfork's Summer Reading List... also includes reviews for Can't Stop, Won't Stop and also The Wu Tang Manual if you are interested]
And here is a second review from the All About Jazz Webpage
In his introduction to Cuba and Its Music, Qbadisc label founder Ned Sublette asks the reader to imagine the impossibility of explaining American music to someone who knows nothing about American history. So he starts his magisterial Cuban music history in prehistoric Africa and ancient Spain, the better to understand the roots of this small but potent powerhouse of Latin rhythms. Over 700 dense but absorbing pages later, he arrives at the mambo, the 1952 coup of Fulgencio Batista, and the end of this first installment in a projected two-volume set. Along the way, he follows more fascinating detours than a Neal Cassady bus trip. Who would've thought that the "Spanish tinge" famously identified by Jelly Roll Morton has its roots in the Moorish conquest of Spain? The sections on Afro-Cuban religions like Santeria are more enlightening than most books on the subject, the cutthroat dandies of the 19th century Havana underworld stalk the colonnades in vivid detail, and Sublette finally gives the world a simple explanation of the "clave," the rhythmic key that defines Cuban music. Further on, the releases of various pivotal records ("Bruca Manigua", "Mambo No. 5") crackle with the same excitement as "Rock Around the Clock" or "Anarchy in the UK". Don't be put off by the book's size or scholarly presentation: these compulsively readable pages seem to turn themselves. Anyone with the slightest interest in Cuban music-- or music at all-- should be reading this book right now. [review taken from Pitchfork's Summer Reading List... also includes reviews for Can't Stop, Won't Stop and also The Wu Tang Manual if you are interested]
And here is a second review from the All About Jazz Webpage
i'm back...
or at least, I'm not on the road and I have internet access at the moment. So this weekend my cousin got married and a lot of stuff was going through my head so this blog will be a shade more personal and eclectic than usual.
On the educational tip:
At a picnic the day after the wedding, a section of family members were hanging out, not clear on how to describe how we are related to one another. I mean, we could say that so-and-so's mother is the sister of the mother of the bride etc. But does that make us second cousins once removed or first cousins twice removed or what?
One of the guests helped us to figure it all out, and if you are interested, here is a nice chart which helps to describe how it works. Roughly, saying 1st cousin, or 2nd cousin, or 3rd cousin, etc. is an indication of how many generations you have to go back before finding a common ancestor. (So 1st cousins share a pair of grandparents, 2nd cousins share great-grandparents, etc.) And once, twice, three times, etc. removed is an indication of whether the cousins themselves are in different generations and how far apart they are (So the children of your 1st cousins are your first cousins once removed)
Actually, that reminds me of a talk I attended where Juan Cole (whose blog, Informed Comment is in my links section) described the problems US troops were facing in Iraq. Part of the difficulty was that when US actions led to the deaths of Iraqis, very often their cousins (where "cousins" is a potentially huge set of people) would come out of the woodwork wanting to avenge the deaths of their kin. Cole remarked that some of the military forces with a deeper understanding of Iraqi culture decided it was less trouble to pay the blood price to the families instead of ignoring their desire for satisfaction.
On the political/historical tip:
At this same picnic I had an interesting conversation with a friend of the family which helps provide a decent follow-up to a previous entry about race in Cuba. Basically he was arguing that even before Fidel's revolution there were significant numbers of Afro-Cubans in the Cuban government, and that in certain respects things have gone backwards since the revolution. Furthermore, even among the original revolutionaries who were in the mountains with Fidel, or those who stayed in the cities and helped organize and train the masses to prepare the way for the revolution there were many Afro-Cubans but that afterwards, Fidel found several of these individuals threatening and had many of them executed. The general point (which is not often articulated by the left) was that Fidel wasn't faithful to the true ideals of the revolution and ultimately betrayed it. Even many of the Black revolutionaries from the US who sought asylum in Cuba, became dissatisfied and disillusioned and moved elsewhere. This friend of the family (who had personal knowledge of many of the anti-Batista Afro-Cubans alluded to above, also recommended Carlos Moore's book Castro, the Blacks and Africa which was mentioned in earlier entry.
On the religious tip:
The wedding itself was beautiful. It was an outdoor, afrocentric ceremony by the water. Other than a single prayer made "in Jesus' name" nothing else really marked the ceremony as particularly Christian. Along with a number of other things happening in my life, it made me wonder what is going on in American religiosity? A lot of people seem to be moving away from the religious traditions of their childhood and are attracted to newer movements and practices which are consciously chosen in adulthood.
Open Question(s) the United States getting further away from mainstream Judeo-Christian religious practice? Or closer? Should Islam in the US be thought of as a mainstream movement or as a "new religious movement"? What will the religious landscape look like a couple of decades down the road? Will the alternative movements stay on the edge or do any of the new religious movements have the potential to become more mainstream and more organized?
On the educational tip:
At a picnic the day after the wedding, a section of family members were hanging out, not clear on how to describe how we are related to one another. I mean, we could say that so-and-so's mother is the sister of the mother of the bride etc. But does that make us second cousins once removed or first cousins twice removed or what?
One of the guests helped us to figure it all out, and if you are interested, here is a nice chart which helps to describe how it works. Roughly, saying 1st cousin, or 2nd cousin, or 3rd cousin, etc. is an indication of how many generations you have to go back before finding a common ancestor. (So 1st cousins share a pair of grandparents, 2nd cousins share great-grandparents, etc.) And once, twice, three times, etc. removed is an indication of whether the cousins themselves are in different generations and how far apart they are (So the children of your 1st cousins are your first cousins once removed)
Actually, that reminds me of a talk I attended where Juan Cole (whose blog, Informed Comment is in my links section) described the problems US troops were facing in Iraq. Part of the difficulty was that when US actions led to the deaths of Iraqis, very often their cousins (where "cousins" is a potentially huge set of people) would come out of the woodwork wanting to avenge the deaths of their kin. Cole remarked that some of the military forces with a deeper understanding of Iraqi culture decided it was less trouble to pay the blood price to the families instead of ignoring their desire for satisfaction.
On the political/historical tip:
At this same picnic I had an interesting conversation with a friend of the family which helps provide a decent follow-up to a previous entry about race in Cuba. Basically he was arguing that even before Fidel's revolution there were significant numbers of Afro-Cubans in the Cuban government, and that in certain respects things have gone backwards since the revolution. Furthermore, even among the original revolutionaries who were in the mountains with Fidel, or those who stayed in the cities and helped organize and train the masses to prepare the way for the revolution there were many Afro-Cubans but that afterwards, Fidel found several of these individuals threatening and had many of them executed. The general point (which is not often articulated by the left) was that Fidel wasn't faithful to the true ideals of the revolution and ultimately betrayed it. Even many of the Black revolutionaries from the US who sought asylum in Cuba, became dissatisfied and disillusioned and moved elsewhere. This friend of the family (who had personal knowledge of many of the anti-Batista Afro-Cubans alluded to above, also recommended Carlos Moore's book Castro, the Blacks and Africa which was mentioned in earlier entry.
On the religious tip:
The wedding itself was beautiful. It was an outdoor, afrocentric ceremony by the water. Other than a single prayer made "in Jesus' name" nothing else really marked the ceremony as particularly Christian. Along with a number of other things happening in my life, it made me wonder what is going on in American religiosity? A lot of people seem to be moving away from the religious traditions of their childhood and are attracted to newer movements and practices which are consciously chosen in adulthood.
Open Question(s) the United States getting further away from mainstream Judeo-Christian religious practice? Or closer? Should Islam in the US be thought of as a mainstream movement or as a "new religious movement"? What will the religious landscape look like a couple of decades down the road? Will the alternative movements stay on the edge or do any of the new religious movements have the potential to become more mainstream and more organized?
Friday, May 27, 2005
on the road again...
I will be travelling this weekend so I'll probably be doing more thinking about what to blog on than actual blogging. For any newcomers, the bulk of the entries are on "muslim stuff", "afro/black stuff" or "latino/hispanic stuff", preferably in some combination, but not necessarily so. If you stop to think about it, the above parameters actually cover alot of ground. (It really makes me curious about who is reading.) In any case, in the process of writing, it has been interesting for me to find connections which weren't as clear to me before. A few entries here and there have been about other "stuff". But I think that in the future I'll probably loosen up some more about topics and write more broadly about religion, race, culture and politics, but still from a "moorish" perspective.
So...Peace... until Monday or so.
So...Peace... until Monday or so.
Thursday, May 26, 2005
a coincidence you think this is?
ok, i think this will be the last "star wars" entry for a while:
So back when Episode I: The Phantom Menace first came out, The Muslim Magazine (currently on hiatus) had some interesting pieces on the connections between Islam and the content of the Star Wars films. One was an interview with Dhul-Nun Owen who talks about how George Lucas had contacted members of the Habibiyyah Sufi order in Berkeley, CA in order to do research for Star Wars. There was also a piece by Mahmoud Shelton about how Sufi ideas of spiritual chivalry (futuwwat) have parallels in the Jedi teachings. (Shelton is probably more well-known for writing Alchemy in Middle-Earth: The Significance of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings which points to some of the Islamic concepts which appear in Tolkien's work.)
In any case, there are some interesting ways in which Islamic themes either accidentally or quite deliberately appear in the Star Wars saga. One can point to how Tunisia was used as the location to film the scenes set on Tatooine. Or how Coruscant (the capital of the galactic republic) sounds like Khorasan. Or how "jeddi" and "palawan" (padawan?) were titles used by Muslim knights. (actually here is an interesting page on jihad and futuwwat which uses the term "jeddi"). Or how many awliya are thought to experience a certain kind of life where they are still present after death. Or how there are accounts associated with Ali (ra) about a "sword of light" (light-saber?). Or the idea (also associated with Ali) that ones intentions in battle must always be pure and that it is wrong to kill out of anger, even in when one is outwardly justified. And of course the most obvious connection to Islam is the long-lived Jedi master Yoda (better known as the Green Man or Khidr).
A coincidence do you think this is?
So back when Episode I: The Phantom Menace first came out, The Muslim Magazine (currently on hiatus) had some interesting pieces on the connections between Islam and the content of the Star Wars films. One was an interview with Dhul-Nun Owen who talks about how George Lucas had contacted members of the Habibiyyah Sufi order in Berkeley, CA in order to do research for Star Wars. There was also a piece by Mahmoud Shelton about how Sufi ideas of spiritual chivalry (futuwwat) have parallels in the Jedi teachings. (Shelton is probably more well-known for writing Alchemy in Middle-Earth: The Significance of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings which points to some of the Islamic concepts which appear in Tolkien's work.)
In any case, there are some interesting ways in which Islamic themes either accidentally or quite deliberately appear in the Star Wars saga. One can point to how Tunisia was used as the location to film the scenes set on Tatooine. Or how Coruscant (the capital of the galactic republic) sounds like Khorasan. Or how "jeddi" and "palawan" (padawan?) were titles used by Muslim knights. (actually here is an interesting page on jihad and futuwwat which uses the term "jeddi"). Or how many awliya are thought to experience a certain kind of life where they are still present after death. Or how there are accounts associated with Ali (ra) about a "sword of light" (light-saber?). Or the idea (also associated with Ali) that ones intentions in battle must always be pure and that it is wrong to kill out of anger, even in when one is outwardly justified. And of course the most obvious connection to Islam is the long-lived Jedi master Yoda (better known as the Green Man or Khidr).
A coincidence do you think this is?
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
so i finally saw it
Ok, so this will be my third Star Wars-related entry after emperor leads death star memorial service (which was on the funny side) and revenge of the sith (which was more serious and not really about the movie anyway). This one is a little bit on the geeky side:
I just saw Episode III last night, and to be honest I was a little disappointed. The special effects were of course "amazing" but I'm not sure if they were worth the money. Of course, the movie was orders of magnitude better than Episodes I and II, but that's not setting the bar very high. I would actually recommend the novelization of Revenge of the Sith by Matthew Stover. The dialogue is better, the background story is more fleshed out, the significance of events is more apparent. And I was especially surprised at how rich the descriptions of the various duels and fights were. A big part of my disappointment with seeing it in the theatre was due to the fact that the film's portrayal of the lightsaber duels and other action sequences didn't convey the same meaning found in the novel's descriptions.
If you haven't seen the movie yet, I don't want to give away too many details. But I will say that unfortunately there is NOT a scene where Mace Windu says "...And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee. ..." right before killing Jar Jar Binks with a light saber.
Now that the series is "over". I wonder what stories would have made up episodes VII, VIII and IX? There are many novels and graphic novels (i.e. fancy comic books) which deal with the events following Return of the Jedi. The New Republic arises out of the ashes of the empire. Kind of like the Contras in Nicaragua, there are still Imperial forces lying around which need to get mopped up by the new fledgling government. Han Solo and Princess Leia have kids. Luke Skywalker reconstructs the Jedis in order to protect the New Republic and he also eventually marries and has at least one child of his own. And of course, there are many snags and obstacles along the way. Beloved characters fall. Noble Jedi are tempted into the dark. And life goes on. I don't know if George Lucas will really get around to making the last three episodes. But if you are really overcome by curiosity over what happens to the characters, it is easy enough to take a trip to the sci-fi section of your local bookstore and read for yourself.
I just saw Episode III last night, and to be honest I was a little disappointed. The special effects were of course "amazing" but I'm not sure if they were worth the money. Of course, the movie was orders of magnitude better than Episodes I and II, but that's not setting the bar very high. I would actually recommend the novelization of Revenge of the Sith by Matthew Stover. The dialogue is better, the background story is more fleshed out, the significance of events is more apparent. And I was especially surprised at how rich the descriptions of the various duels and fights were. A big part of my disappointment with seeing it in the theatre was due to the fact that the film's portrayal of the lightsaber duels and other action sequences didn't convey the same meaning found in the novel's descriptions.
If you haven't seen the movie yet, I don't want to give away too many details. But I will say that unfortunately there is NOT a scene where Mace Windu says "...And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee. ..." right before killing Jar Jar Binks with a light saber.
Now that the series is "over". I wonder what stories would have made up episodes VII, VIII and IX? There are many novels and graphic novels (i.e. fancy comic books) which deal with the events following Return of the Jedi. The New Republic arises out of the ashes of the empire. Kind of like the Contras in Nicaragua, there are still Imperial forces lying around which need to get mopped up by the new fledgling government. Han Solo and Princess Leia have kids. Luke Skywalker reconstructs the Jedis in order to protect the New Republic and he also eventually marries and has at least one child of his own. And of course, there are many snags and obstacles along the way. Beloved characters fall. Noble Jedi are tempted into the dark. And life goes on. I don't know if George Lucas will really get around to making the last three episodes. But if you are really overcome by curiosity over what happens to the characters, it is easy enough to take a trip to the sci-fi section of your local bookstore and read for yourself.
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
muslim watch on empire
As a part of Z Magazines, Z-Net, there is a specific collection of pages under the heading of Muslim Watch On Empire which brings together a number of Muslim voices speaking out against certain oppressive structures in the world. I would probably add this page to my links if I didn't already have the Z-Net site there.
Monday, May 23, 2005
tariq ramadan and globalization
For a while now I've been thinking about what the connections are between the anti-globalization movement and Muslim activists. Especially given that many Muslims live in the developing world and are on the receiving end of globalization, I would think it likely that people in both camps would be willing to form some natural alliances. But at the same time, there seem to be certain disagreements or obstacles which need to be overcome before such alliances can really become effective and powerful. Tariq Ramadan considers this problem in a brief piece, where he focuses on the shortcomings of the secular left. Personally I would say that work needs to be done on both sides towards finding some middle ground, but his article seems reasonable as far as it goes.
another world is possible
If you are interested in finding out more about the World Social Forum (which is coordinating alot of the anti-globalization movement under the slogan "Another World is Possible") here is the World Social Forum website where you can find out about their past and current activities, their statement of principles, etc.
comtemporary art from the islamic world
I just found this interesting website which features contemporary art coming out of Muslim countries. Actually its an entire online magazine with 10 issues archived. Each issue features exhibitions from several artists and includes a decent number of images plus some brief descriptions of the artists and their work. It's supported by the Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations (in Germany).
The index page is available here.
Saturday, May 21, 2005
muslim eye for the straight guy
I just realized that the last two books I've read are the Vagina Monologues and Fight Club! (wow, it's hard to imagine two books so extremely different in their likely audience) Anyway, the two books, especially in combination, are a good spring board to talk about some things.
First, Vagina Monologues:
According to one of the monologues, the last recorded clitoridectomy to occur in the United States was performed in 1948 on a five-year old girl to cure her of masturbation. But other sources suggest that it has been done on female patients as recently as the 50's. I only mention this to say that neither Muslims nor Africans have some kind of exclusive copyright on the practice.
Very often, in a multitude of ways, legitimate concerns for the well-being and position of women in society are used as a club to reinforce racist or otherwise prejudiced attitudes towards certain communities. I don't know what the perfect response/solution is but one which comes to mind is to prescribe a healthy dose of history.
As societies or civilizations, "Islam" and "The West" are not these rigid unchanging things. On both sides, the position of women changes over time and there is no reason to think that it won't continue to change. For long periods during their mutual histories, the position of women has actually been higher in Muslim societies than in Western ones. And from the position of world history, the gains which women have made in the West are quite recent. For example, even if you want to look at this past century, women in Turkey had the right to vote and stand for election before women in France. And Pakistani women had the right to vote and run for office election several decades before women in Switzerland.
So there is no reason to think that women in Muslim societies won't continue to achieve greater opportunity and justice. And there is no reason for Western societies to rest on their laurels. All societies fall short, and all societies have work which urgently needs to be done on this front.
Secondly, Fight Club:
This is a huge oversimplification, but basically Fight Club is a novel about groups of men who find their manhood by getting together and beating each other up. Part of the idea is that modern-life is so emasculating that men feel a need to go to some serious extremes just to compensate. And even in the real world, it seems like in many ways a lot of men feel that they don't quite know how to be men and need to join groups to figure out how; from Promise Keepers, to the Million Man March, to Robert Bly's Men's Movement, etc. Even Queer Eye for the Straight Guy can be viewed as a bizarre and indirect manifestation of the same phenomena.
So how does this phenomena affect Muslim men? I think that's an open-ended question which is worth some further discussion. Off the top of my head I'd say that you probably could find examples of men who "don't know how to be men" and engage in unhealthy or negative behaviors. But I would also suspect that some aspects associated with Islam (clearer gender roles, notions of "male space" and "female space", etc.) are positive and healthy (if they aren't taken to abusive extremes.)
What do people out there think? Is there a need for a Muslim Men's Movement to heal our collective psychic wounds?
First, Vagina Monologues:
According to one of the monologues, the last recorded clitoridectomy to occur in the United States was performed in 1948 on a five-year old girl to cure her of masturbation. But other sources suggest that it has been done on female patients as recently as the 50's. I only mention this to say that neither Muslims nor Africans have some kind of exclusive copyright on the practice.
Very often, in a multitude of ways, legitimate concerns for the well-being and position of women in society are used as a club to reinforce racist or otherwise prejudiced attitudes towards certain communities. I don't know what the perfect response/solution is but one which comes to mind is to prescribe a healthy dose of history.
As societies or civilizations, "Islam" and "The West" are not these rigid unchanging things. On both sides, the position of women changes over time and there is no reason to think that it won't continue to change. For long periods during their mutual histories, the position of women has actually been higher in Muslim societies than in Western ones. And from the position of world history, the gains which women have made in the West are quite recent. For example, even if you want to look at this past century, women in Turkey had the right to vote and stand for election before women in France. And Pakistani women had the right to vote and run for office election several decades before women in Switzerland.
So there is no reason to think that women in Muslim societies won't continue to achieve greater opportunity and justice. And there is no reason for Western societies to rest on their laurels. All societies fall short, and all societies have work which urgently needs to be done on this front.
Secondly, Fight Club:
This is a huge oversimplification, but basically Fight Club is a novel about groups of men who find their manhood by getting together and beating each other up. Part of the idea is that modern-life is so emasculating that men feel a need to go to some serious extremes just to compensate. And even in the real world, it seems like in many ways a lot of men feel that they don't quite know how to be men and need to join groups to figure out how; from Promise Keepers, to the Million Man March, to Robert Bly's Men's Movement, etc. Even Queer Eye for the Straight Guy can be viewed as a bizarre and indirect manifestation of the same phenomena.
So how does this phenomena affect Muslim men? I think that's an open-ended question which is worth some further discussion. Off the top of my head I'd say that you probably could find examples of men who "don't know how to be men" and engage in unhealthy or negative behaviors. But I would also suspect that some aspects associated with Islam (clearer gender roles, notions of "male space" and "female space", etc.) are positive and healthy (if they aren't taken to abusive extremes.)
What do people out there think? Is there a need for a Muslim Men's Movement to heal our collective psychic wounds?
Friday, May 20, 2005
are emily and greg more employable than lakisha and jamal?
Two researchers, Bertrand and Mullainathan carried out a study where they looked at the role of race and racism in the labor market. What they did was to send out resumes to different potential employers (some with "black" names, some with "white" names). The basic result is that the resumes with "black" names got fewer callbacks (yes very shocking). I have a dream that one day Keisha and Darnell will be judged, not by the sounnd of their names, but the qualifications on their resume. (On a side note, several of the "black" names were also "Muslim" names. And it turns out that for women, "Aisha" had the lowest callback rate, and for men "Rasheed" had the lowest callback rate)
If you are interested in more of the nuances and details:
Here is their original paper
If you are interested in more of the nuances and details:
Here is their original paper
muwakkil on domestic terrorism
This is a 2001 Chicago Tribune editorial by Salim Muwakkil on domestic terrorism
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