Obama Should follow France on This One [Lisa Schiffren]
In a show of his exquisite sensitivity to cultural distinctions, Senator Obama is thinking about hiring a liaison to Muslims, to advise him on how not to offend them. For the job he is considering one Haim Nawas, a Jordanian-American, according to Politico, July 21:
Nawas wrote in 2005 that the Bush Administration should take a more nuanced approach to public diplomacy directed at Muslim women.
"We need to recognise that the social structure in the Muslim world is very different from America's," she wrote. "American women need to understand that what is best for them is not necessarily what is best for Muslim women. Advocacy of women’s rights in the Muslim world must show sensitivity to local political realities."
Those local realities include forced marriage for young girls, honor killing for shows of romantic independence, genital mutilation, polygamy, little or no education, little or no right to any personal freedom, often no political freedom or right to vote, and little or no economic freedom. Also, and above all, traditional Islamic societies presume absolute deference to men, which is to say, radical inequality. So, which of these practices are better for Muslim women, and therefore should get Obama's support, and the support of American (female) tax dollars in our public diplomacy?
It's not often that one would advise an American politician to look to France for backbone, but last week the French government, in its hard-earned wisdom, denied citizenship to a Moroccan immigrant on the grounds that she was too passive and willing to be stepped on by her husband, sons, and male relatives. This, the court pronounced, did not accord with the French character. To which one must say, Bravo! Maybe Sarkozy should raise the subject in this week's meetings with Obama during the pre-inaugural world tour.
07/22 10:53 AM
AI
