Named O n e of Tliliv M;iy;izitic'!i 1 0 0 M O S T I M P O R T A N T i N N t W A l D H S I d U 1111 i lS t i : fNrUUY

"Tiiriq R.iimadan.a proiiiiiK'iii UIII 'IIL'IUI.II'iiriivKi In r i i i i i p t iiliii Aliu'rli'u,

represents a n e w geiicratiGii o f luliinii' ivt'iiniKT","

John L.Hsposito,author o f ( hilialy IWir iiinl W'luil /!i>'t)VJic SH'ih fn himui-iilu'iil hlmii

"Tariq Ramadan is a Mus l im M;irtiii l.niln't "

I'iUil Donnel ly , Tlu'WiuliiufiMi t't>fi

"Ramadan's m o s t important niessi ige— \m iidvifi* In Mnsltius in the West to

make the West their h o m e — i s o n e AnieritMn* nhould piirticiilarly w e k o n i e . "

I'Uan Wolfe, Tlic Chronkk of Hif>licr H<lniWm

"Ramadan has started to pave out the rn;ul ro ri'forili ;ind changes in the

understanding o f I s k m in Mushni toilinuillitieH ill tlu' West."

Conleiiipotiity hLiiii

"The W'Ork o f Tariq Ramadan will take its plate in the aiina^ of Islamic t h o u ^ t . 7

Z.c Moiuk Diploinariquc

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< TARIQ^RAMADAN W H A T I BELIEVE

rHOM THf AUTHOR. OF

Wcslcm MusUiii.': and the Fuliirc of Islam

what I Believe

Tariq Ramadan

OXTORD V r N I V E R S l T Y P R E S S

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Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction I

1. The Early Years 8

2. AMusl ira , and a'•"Contro\'ersial h i tu lkc tuar 17

3. Several Fronts, Two Universes, O n e Discourse 20

4. interacting Crises 24

5. Swift Evolutions, Silent Revolutions 30

6. Multiple Identities: First an American (a European, an Australian), or a Muslim? 35

7. Western Islam: Religion and Culture 41

8. "Culfurar Muslims, Reformists, Literalists, and So On 46

9 . Advances 51

10. Challenges 56

11. The Issue of W o m e n 62

12. The Sense of Belonging and the "Post-Integration" Approach 67

B 13. Sociopolitical Issues, the Media 74

viii Contents

U- T h e Roots of E u r o p e . . . and of the West So

15. Reform and the Seven "Cs" 85

16. T h e West and Its Mirror: A New "We" 90

17- Criticisms and Opposit ions 96

Conclusion 112

Appendix I: Thierry ng

Appendix II: Manifesto for a N e w "We" 123

N o t e s 135

Index 140

Acknowledgments

This b o o k w o u l d n o t have b e e n w r i t t e n w i t h o u t t h e insis­tence of Andrea R o m a n o , w h o pressed m e to wr i te a shor t text p resen t ing the substance of m y t h o u g h t beyond con t ro­versy and polemics, I a m grateful for his proposal a n d insis­tence. T h e r e are so m a n y w o m e n and m e n I should thank here for thei r love, their friendship, and their presence, as wel l as their constructive criticism. W h e t h e r in t h e Musl im majori ty countries of the Middle East, Asia, and Africa or in the Musl im c o m m u n i t i e s of Canada , the Uni ted Sta tes , Australia, N e w Zealand, Mauritius, South Africa, and Europe ; I have learned so m u c h f rom 'ulamâ, intellectuals, leaders, and organizat ion managers , as well as ordinary, a n o n y m o u s , sincere, devoted w o m e n a n d men , Books can neve r rep lace h u m a n be ings : 1 thank each of you, w i t h o u t n a m i n g anyone so that n o o n e is forgotten, for your presence and for your gifts, so impor t an t and so different in na ture .

I have learned so m u c h in the West, from my training, m y readings, m y c o m m i t m e n t , and, above all, so m a n y encoun­ters. H e r e again, it w o u l d b e impossible t o express m y grati­tude nominally. But let m e simply recall a few first n a m e s ,

w h o m a y recogn ize themse lves : Alain, Ca ther ine , Cyn th ia , Diana, Dick, François, Françoise, H a n , Jameel , Jean, Joellyn, J o h n , Mar jo le in , Melissa, Michel, M o n i q u e , Peter , P ie r re , R i c h a r d . . . there are so m a n y others .

In Switzerland, in Geneva , there is a m o t h e r w h o loves and w h o prays. Her presence is light and protect ion. T he r e is also a large family, b ro thers , a sister, nieces and nephews . Najma, Moussa, Sami, Maryam, a n d Iman, always. My hear t loves you and thanks you,

London, J u n e 2009

W h a t I Believe

Introduction

T H I S BOOK IS A WORK OF CLARIFICATION, a deliberately acces­

sible presentat ion of the basic ideas I have been defending for m o r e t han twenty years. It is in tended for those who have litrie t ime to spare; ordinary citizens, politicians, journalists, perhaps some social workers or teachers w h o may be in a bit of a hu r ry bu t w h o want to unders tand and possibly t o check things out . Rather t h a n enter ing m y n a m e in a w e b search engine (and c o m i n g u p wi th the mi l l ion links tha t main ly r e p o r t w h a t o the r s have wr i t t en a b o u t m e ) or b e i n g c o n t e n t w i t h t h e so-called free virtual encyclopedias that are in fact so biased (like Wikipedia, where the factual errors and partisan readings are as tounding) , I give readers this oppor tuni ty to read m e in the original and simply get direct access to my thought .

In recen t years I have b e e n presen ted as a "controversial intellectual," W h a t this m e a n s is no t quite clear, b u t in effect everyone admits that a controversial intellectual is one w h o s e thought does not leave people indifferent: some praise it, others criticize it, bu t in any case it causes t h e m to react and think.

I, I have never kept to a single field of in tervent ion: 1 have n o t dealt only wi th the "Islamic religion," a l though it is impor t an t

What I BelUw

to n o t e that one of t h e areas I w o r k o n is indeed theological and legal reflection s t a r t ing f rom w i t h i n Islamic references. I do n o t r epresen t all Musl ims bu t I b e l o n g to the reformist t rend. I a im to remain faithful to die principles of Islam, o n the basis of scriptural sources, while taking into account t h e evolu­t ion of historical a n d geograph ica l contexts . M a n y readers w h o have n o t yet l o o k e d into re l ig ious issues or w h o have l imi ted knowledge of t h e subject s o m e t i m e s find it difficult t o unde r s t and m y approach and m e t h o d o l o g y Unlike hteral-ists w h o merely rely o n quo t ing verses, reformists m u s t take the t ime t o pu t th ings in perspective, t o contextualize, and to suggest new unders tandings . To g ra sp this reasoning, readers or l isteners m u s t follow it from beg inn ing to end: if they do n o t they may misunder s t and its conclusions and consider that t he r e are con t r ad i c t i ons or tha t it involves "doub lespeak . " Things should be clarified: doublespeak consists in saying one th ing in front of an audience to flatter or mislead t h e m , and s o m e t h i n g else, different in content , e lsewhere, to a different aud i ence o r in a different language. Adapt ing one ' s level of speech t o one ' s a u d i e n c e , or a d a p t i n g the na tu r e of one ' s references, is no t doublespeak. W h e n addressing m y s tudents I use elevated language wi th philosophical references tha t they can u n d e r s t a n d ; w h e n speak ing before social p r o t a g o n i s t s or m a n u a l laborers , I a lso use appropr i a t e speech and illus­t r a t ions ; and if I speak t o Muslims, m y language a n d refer­ences also take in to accoun t their level of discourse a n d their universe of unde r s t and ing . This is a necessary p e d a g o g y To avoid doublespeak, w h a t mat te rs is t h a t the substance of the discourse does no t change .

Introduction 3

fe. Regard ing Islamic references, m y approach has constant ly f t e e n t o develop t h e m e s in th ree distinct steps. First, I q u o t e

the sources: here is a verse or a Prophet ic tradition (hadîtk) and t this is the literal meaning . Second, I explain the different read-' ings offered b y scholars in the course of history as well as the possibilities available for in terpre t ing the said verse or hadîth, because of its formulation or in light of Islam's message. Third, s tar t ing f rom the verse (or hadîth) a n d its var ious poss ible in terpreta t ions , I suggest an unders tand ing and implementa­tion that take into account the context in which w e live. T h a t is w h a t I call the reformist approach.

For example : (i) T h e r e a re i ndeed tex ts (one ve r se , a n d hence s o m e Prophet ic t radi t ions) that refer to str iking one 's wife: I q u o t e t h e m because M u s h m s r ead and q u o t e t hose texts. (2) He re are the interpretat ions that have been suggested, from the m o s t literalist, w h i c h justify str iking w o m e n in the n a m e of the Quran , t o t h e m o s t reformis t , wh ich read this verse in light of the global message and contextualize the verse and Prophet ic traditions as well as taking their chronology into account . (3) In light of those in te rpre ta t ions and consider ing the example set by t h e Prophe t , w h o never struck a w o m a n , I say that domest ic violence contradicts Islamic teachings and that such behavior mus t be c o n d e m n e d .

If m y readers or listeners s top at the first step in m y devel­o p m e n t (or if a reviewer, willfully or no t , quotes only par t of it), they cut short m y reasoning; they m a y even claim tha t I say the same as the hteral ists and accuse m e of doublespeak, Of course I quo te the same verses as the literalists, but m y conclu­sions are different! And it is because 1 systematically s tar t from

4 Wliiif ( Bslim'

the sources and their in te rpre ta t ion tha t Mushms listen t o m y lectures, read m y books , a n d relate to t h e m .

1 have also focused o n phi losophical , social, cul tura l , and poli t ical issues (at b o t h na t iona l a n d i n t e r n a t i o n a l levels). All t hose fields of s tudy a re of course l inked in o n e w a y or another , bu t I have always b e e n careful n o t to confuse orders . Because of the confusion I observe in c o n t e m p o r a r y debates about societal issues (identities, religions, cultures, msecurity, i m m i g r a t i o n , marg ina l i za t ion , and so on) , I have a t t e m p t e d to decons t ruc t and classify problems, t h o u g h w i t h o u t discon­n e c t i n g t h e m . I h o p e t h e p re sen t w o r k will c o n f i r m this c o m m i t m e n t and this approach and methodology.

As m e n t i o n e d above, s o m e people have claimed that I used doublespeak w i t h o u t ever providing clear evidence. A n i m o r has b e e n fostered and journal is ts repeat it: "H e is r epor ted to use doublespeak, and so on . " This is easy criticism: it is often the unverifiable (and unverified) a r g u m e n t of those w h o have no a r g u m e n t and have verified nothing, it is also frequently a d e v e r reversal p e r f o r m e d b y those w h o , del iberately o r no t , have a "double h e a r i n g " a n d hear ve ry selectively. I wil l n o t was te m y t ime here t ry ing t o defend myself: I have n o desire or t ime for this, it is none the less i m p o r t a n t for the r eade r to u n d e r s t a n d w h y w h a t 1 say can give rise to such pass ion and react ions . I k n o w tha t I d is turb and I k n o w w h o m I dis turb . W h e n speaking a b o u t rel igion, philosophy, or politics, I have necessarily, in t he se t i m e s of t roub les , crises, a n d d o u b t s , o p e n e d fronts of in te l lec tua l and ideological oppos i t ion and often highly emot iona l ill feelings. At the end of diis book , as the reader will see, ! identify seven different objective "oppo-

Inlmducticn

nents" : in effect, all t he i r cr i t icisms, e c h o i n g one ano the r , cast a h a z e of d o u b t and suspicion over m y discourse. S o m e people read such criticisms w i t h o u t reading m y own writ ings, wi thout even trying to find o u t w h o their authors are, and e n d up taking w h a t they say at face value. If there is smoke , there is fire, the saying goes. T h a t Is quite t rue , b u t one should find out w h a t the fire is, and w h o lit it.

Yet, w h a t really m a t t e r s hes b e y o n d this s m o k e s c r e e n , which m u s t absolutely b e cast aside t o grasp the essence of m y t h o u g h t and of m y approach . In the present book , I deal

[ wi th the issue of ident i ty crisis and of the doubts t h a t assail I, each and every one of us, I state firmly tha t w e have mult iple ,

moving identities, and tha t the re is no reason—religious, legal, o r cu l tu ra l—a w o m a n o r a m a n canno t b e b o t h A m e r i c a n

L , o r E u r o p e a n and Muslim, Millions of individuals prove this daily. Far from the m e d i a a n d political tensions, a cons t ruc-

1' tive, in-depth m o v e m e n t is u n d e r way and Islam has b e c o m e a Wes te rn religion. W e s t e r n Islam is a reality, just like African, Arab, or Asian Islam, Of course the re is only one single Islam as far as fundamenta l religious principles are concerned, b u t it includes a variety of in terpreta t ions and a plurality of cultures. Its universal i ty indeed s t ems f rom this capacity to i n t e g r a t e diversity in to its fundamenta l oneness.

It is up to Muslim individuals to be and b e c o m e commi t t ed citizens, aware of their responsibilities and rights. Beyond the minori ty reflex or the t e m p t a t i o n to see themse lvesas vict ims, they have the m e a n s t o accept a n e w age of the i r his tory. For those w h o were b o r n in t h e West or w h o are citizens, it is n o longer a ques t ion of " se t t l ement" o r " in tegra t ion" b u t

6 What 1 Believe Intfoducllon

ra ther of "participation" and "contr ibut ion." My po in t is that we have n o w moved, and w e mus t move , to the age of "post-in t eg ra t ion" d iscourse : w e mus t hence fo r th d e t e r m i n e the p ro found , accepted m e a n i n g of be long ing . This is the n e w "We" tha t I have been calling for, and that is already a reality in s o m e local experiences.

O n e should no t be naïve, however. Impor t an t challenges remain: I have d rawn u p a list as far as Muslims are conce rned (the relationship b e t w e e n religion and culmre, gender issues, the t r a in ing of i m a m s , contex tua l ized rel igious educa t ion , insti tutionalizing their presence in society, etc.). Wes te rn and E u r o p e a n societies, the i r politicians and intellectuals, m u s t look realities in the face and, somet imes after four generat ions, s top speaking about the " immigran t or igin" of citizens w h o "need to be integrated." They must reconcile themselves wi th politics and not act as t h o u g h , in the n a m e of culmre or reli­gion, status or social class had become inoperative or ou tda ted references: social p rob lems should no t b e "Islamized" and such issues as u n e m p l o y m e n t , social marginal izat ion, and o the r s should be addressed politically. Curr icu la m u s t also be reas­sessed (especially in h is tory but also in l i terature, philosophy, etc.) t o b e c o m e m o r e representat ive of a shared his tory and include its wealth of r e m e m b e r e d experience. The West m u s t start a dialogue not only w i t h "the o ther" bu t also wi th itself: an earnest , profound, and constructive dialogue.

I will deal wi th t hose issues t h r o u g h o u t this book . I have a t t e m p t e d to be as clear as possible whi le remain ing simple and me thod ica l . This is a b o o k of ideas, an in t roduc t ion to w h a t I believe, m e a n t for those w h o really want to unders tand

[bu t w h o d o no t always have e n o u g h t i m e to read and s tudy 1 all the books . Being an in t roduc tory work , it may n o t suffice [ to convey the complexity of a though t (which may moreover ' have evolved and gained in density in the course of t ime) bu t • it will at least, I hope , he lp s tar t an open , t ho rough , critical

debate. This is greatly needed .

The Early Years 9

The Early Years

I BEGAN TO GET MORE SPECIFICALLY INVOLVED with the i s sUC of Islam and Muslims in the world , and particularly in the West, in the la te 1980s and early 1990s. Before tha t and for m a n y years—since the age of eighteen—J h a d traveled extensively in the Thi rd World, from South America to India and t h r o u g h m a n y countr ies o n the African cont inent . I had b e e n raised in a family in which the call and m e a n i n g of faith were allied to the defense of h u m a n d igni ty a n d jus t ice . Even t h o u g h m y c o m m i t m e n t was n o t in t h e n a m e of Islam, it had always been va lued by m y m o t h e r a n d father: f ighting against pover ty in the Sou th , p r o m o t i n g educa t ion (for w o m e n in par t icular) , p r o t e c t i n g s t ree t ch i ld ren , visiting favelas and s u p p o r t i n g social projects, fighting against co r rup t ion and dictators , and d e m a n d i n g m o r e h u m a n e and m o r e equitable t rade were all jus t causes that they recognized and approved.

I h a d b e e n a teacher, t h e n a very y o u n g dean in a Geneva h igh school , and I h a d l aunched solidarity awareness opera­tions in pr imary and secondary schools. A practicing believer in my private life, I respected professional discretion in m y public position: I never p u t forward my religious affiliation. This was

[iBS it should be . Both the school system and the media praised "exemplary work" pe r fo rmed in mobilizing the y o u n g for

solidarity in Third Wor ld countr ies as wel l as in the West , for kwe had also launched awareness operat ions targeting ext reme poverty a m o n g the underpr ivi leged in industrialized societies and the aged: I had been elected one of the Geneva personali­ties of the year in 1990. As a teacher, ! h a d wri t ten three books with m y s tuden t s to conf ron t t h e m w i t h life, the env i ron-

lent, and the challenges of society: a collective work abou t the elderly and m e m o r y (The Split Hourglass), ano the r abou t marginalization and academic failure (In Red, in the Margin), and a third about diversity (A Common Point, Difference). T h e city of Geneva h a d funded the projects and they had m e t a part icu­larly w a r m and impor tan t reception. T h e point was to place the learning process at the h e a r t of the city and use the teaching of French li terature as a m e a n s to communica te wi th w o m e n and m e n facing social p rob lems or simply difierences. T h o s e years taught m e a lot about listening, pat ience, non judgment , and e m p a t h y Earlier on, one of m y former students h a d died of a d rug overdose. I have never really forgotten h im. I was his teacher, he taught me . H e died when 1 was sure he h a d stopped using drugs. 1 unders tood that no th ing is ever finally achieved and that o u r frailties r e m a i n . , .behind the masks of s t rength. S t rength indeed Hes in accept ing one ' s frailties a n d n o t in persuading oneself that one has "overcome" them. But "over­coming" t h e m may simply consist in accepting t hem. Thierrj'-, m y s tudent with "difficiilt aftection,"' t aught m e those aspects of the educational relationship. It was n o t easy. O n e day in the conflict, he also t augh t m e empa thy a n d critical distance. His

10 What I Belíívf

sister had called m e becatose he had hit his mother . H e r upper Up had go t s tuck be tween h e r teeth. W h e n I reached the hospital I was angry, I could n o t imagine such behavior: h i t t ing one 's mother ! W h e n I walked in to the wait ing r o o m , his sister rushed to m e and explained tha t violence had been their l anguage at h o m e and that I had to understand: b o t h of them had seen their father bea t their m o t h e r and had experienced violence m their daily Hves. "Violence w a s o u r means of communica t ion!" she whispered to me . Suddenly 1 "unders tood" the probable causes of his a t t i tude . I u n d e r s t o o d w i t h o u t accept ing or jusrifying. To unders tand is n o t to justify: empa thy makes this distinction possible and, t h r o u g h unders tanding , intelligence can help us adopt a critical stance tha t aUow.s us to look for solutions, I was young and m y s tudent had thrown those t ruths to m y face. He m a d e m e g row up, I have never forgotten those teachings, his lessons.

T h a t so l idar i ty c o m m i t m e n t , in G e n e v a , Brazil , India , Senegal, o r Burkina Paso, led to m a n y rich experiences. Such p e r s o n a h t i e s as t h e Dala i Lama, D o m H e l d c r C á m a r a , t h e Abbé Pierre , Pierre Dufresne, or Sankara of course impressed m e a n d I o w e t h e m a l o t . But even m o r e i m p o r t a n t w e r e t h e n a m e l e s s : the s i lent b rave , res i s t ing in the dark . T h e y t a u g h t m e so m u c h , away from m e d i a and public a t t en t ion . O n o n e occasion, I h a d invited a C o l o m b i a n social w o r k e r to o u r school as p a r t of o u r solidarity mee t ings d u r i n g the lunch hour . H e w a s t o speak about the p rob lems of injustice, poverty, and crisis in his c o u n t r y I sat at the back and l istened. D u r i n g t h e first half o f h is talk, he spoke abou t t rad i t iona l C o l o m b i a n dances , c o m p l e t e w i th m u s i c and i l lus t ra t ions .

The Earh! Yean ii

[l looked on and told mysel f that he h a d misunder s tood w h a t [I expected of h im. Suddenly he s topped and explained to the [s tudents : I w a n t e d to tell y o u abou t C o l o m b i a n mus i c a n d [ t radi t ional dances so t h a t y o u should k n o w tha t as wel l as [having p rob lems , w e C o l o m b i a n s have an identity, a dignity, t radi t ions , and a cu l tu re , a n d tha t w e laugh, and smile , a n d

[live. In th i r t j ' minutes h e h a d taught m e an unexpected lesson: [never r e d u c e the o t h e r t o m y pe rcep t ion , to his p r o b l e m s , this poverty, or his crises. H e h a d t a u g h t m e a lesson a b o u t ' t h e p e d a g o g y of solidarity. I h a d b e e n mis taken . After t h a t 1 launched a m o v e m e n t in Geneva schools, calling for a t r u e "pedagogy of sohdarity." O n e should b e g i n wi th t h e be ing , the smile , t h e digni ty t h e cu l tu re t h a t fashions the p e r s o n before r e d u c i n g h im t o a s u m of n e e d s w h i c h s u p p o r t . Those th i r ty minu tes of m y h ie radically changed m y o u t l o o k on o thers a n d on fife. T h e twists a n d t u r n s of that c o m m i t ­men t t a u g h t m e so m u c h a b o u t life, wounds , hopes , and fi-ail-ties: t h e p o w e r of k n o w l e d g e , the s t r eng th of e m o t i o n , the necessity of pat ience, t h e n e e d to listen. I have tr ied daily to forget no th ing .

Years later, I resigned b o t h f rom m y pos t as a dean a n d as president of the He lp ingHand Cooperat ive (called Coopérat ion Coup de Main in French) tha t p r o m o t e d the "pedagogy of soli­darity" discussed above, I needed change and to r e tu rn to t h e sources of m y faith and spirituality. A r o u n d me , moreover, the issue of Islam had taken o n g rowing impor t ance over the last ten years: f rom the Iranian revolut ion in 1979 to the Rushdie affair or t h e "Islamic headscarf" controversy in France in 1989. Islam and Muslims had b e c o m e popular topics.

n Whli I Believe

T h a t w a s w h e n I d e c i d e d t o e n g a g e in w h a t 1 a l ready c o n s i d e r e d a m a j o r c h a l l e n g e for t h e f u t u r e : h u i l d i n g br idges , explaining I s l am and m a k i n g it be t t e r u n d e r s t o o d , b o t h a m o n g M u s h m s a n d in t h e W e s t w h i c h I k n e w so wel l , h a v i n g lived t h e r e and s tud ied F rench h t e r a t u r e a n d W e s t e r n philosophy. M y mas ter ' s d isser ta t ion in ph i lo sophy was The Notion of Suffering in Nietzsche's Philosophy; the P h D d i s se r t a t ion tha t I h a d t h e n u n d e r t a k e n (ent i t led Nietzsche as a Historian of Philosophy) had led m e to earnest , in-depth r ead ing of the g rea tes t W e s t e r n ph i lo sophe r s f rom Socra tes , P la to , a n d Ar i s to t l e t o S c h o p e n h a u e r , t h r o u g h D e s c a r t e s , Sp inoza , Kan t , H e g e l , a n d Marx in o r d e r to c o n f r o n t t h e s u b s t a n c e of the i r v i e w s wi th N i e t z s c h e ' s s o m e t i m e s very free t r a n s l a t i o n s a n d i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s . My t i m e w a s t h e n spen t o n read ing ( and a little on spor t ) , and I used t o spend b e t w e e n five and e ight h o u r s a day p o r i n g over texts . I also dec ided t o r e s u m e in t ens ive s tudy of t h e Is lamic sc iences . I set myse l f a special ized reading p r o g r a m , t hen I dec ided to g o to Egyp t w i th m y family. Each of u s was to benefi t f rom this: m y wife and ch i ld ren w o u l d ge t t o k n o w the count ry , l ea rn Arabic , and s t udy Islam, As for myself, I had set mysel f a d e m a n d i n g p r o g r a m a i m i n g t o cove r a five-year univer-sicy c u r r i c u l u m in t w e n t y m o n t h s . T h e t rad i t ional t r a in ing m o d e (private t u t o r i n g w i t h a scholar— 'd l im) a l lowed for an in tensive individual r h y t h m s ta r t ing everyday at five in t h e m o r n i n g a n d finishing at eleven P.M. o r midnight , i will never forget this t r a in ing p e r i o d : it was in t ense , difificult, b u t ever so l u m i n o u s a n d en l igh t en ing , I ach ieved m y a ims , t h a n k s be t o G o d , a n d I have s ince kep t c o m p l e t i n g m y t r a i n i n g

The Early Years 13

t h rough reading, e n c o u n t e r s , and of cou r se wr i t ing art icles and b o o k s a b o u t i s lam in gene ra l or Is lamic law a n d ju r i s ­p rudence (fiqh) in par t icular .

T h e same values and t h e same principles that had inspired '.my initial c o m m i t m e n t to solidarity, h u m a n dignity, and justice in the societies of the Sou th as well as of the North n u r t u r e d m y c o m m i t m e n t as a M u s l i m . I n o w m e a n t to s tand u p for m y religion, explain it, and, above all, s h o w that w e have so m u c h in c o m m o n w i t h J u d a i s m and Chris t iani ty b u t also wi th the va lues advocated by count less human i s t s , a theis ts , and agnostics. I mean t to ques t ion prejudices, to quest ion the false cons t ruc t ions of E u r o p e ' s past ( f rom which Islam was supposed t o have been absent) , and of course , help o p e n t h e way confidently to living toge the r in h a r m o n y as our c o m m o n future requires .

A p o i n t shou ld be n o t e d : m u l t i c u l m r a l society is a fact; the re is n o b e i n g for o r aga ins t it. Th i s bas ic t r u t h m u s t be h igh l igh ted before e n g a g i n g in t h e d e b a t e over "mul t i cu l -tural ism," " in tegra t ion ," or "cit izenship." W h e t h e r w e w a n t it o r n o t , o u r W e s t e r n soc ie t i e s , in t h e U n i t e d S ta t e s or Europe , Canada or Austral ia, are cul tural ly diverse, as S o u t h Amer ican , African, a n d Asian societies have long b e e n (and even Eas t e rn Europe , so often over looked when speak ing of Europe) . Th i s mus t be accepted , and m e a n s m u s t be s o u g h t to b r ing g r ea t e r h a r m o n y to t h e "mul t i cu l tu ra l ci t izenship ' ' discussed b y the ph i losopher Charles Taylor or the sociologist Tariq M o d o o d . The chal lenge of diversity requires practical so lu t ions a n d c o m p e l s c i t izens , in te l lec tua ls , a n d re l ig ious

l i iepresenta t ives t o deve lop a ba lanced crit ical m ind , a lways

¡4 What! Believe

O p e n t o e v o l u t i o n , ana lys i s , empa thy , a n d of c o u r s e self-crit icism. Voicing one ' s o w n needs whi le also l is tening to and hear ing t h e other, accep t ing c o m p r o m i s e wi thou t yielding on essentials, chal lenging deep-set beliefs a n d rigid or dogmat i c minds o n a l l sides and par t icular ly wi th in one's o w n cu l tu ra l a n d re l ig ious family: t h a t is no t easy a n d it r equ i res t i m e , pa t ience , empathy, and d e t e r m i n a t i o n .

I h a d dec ided to e n g a g e in t h a t p rocess of m e d i a t i o n b e t w e e n universes of reference, cultures, and religions. I fully accepted b o t h m y MusHm faith and my Wes te rn cul ture and 1 c la imed that this is poss ible and tha t c o m m o n va lues and hopes are m o r e essential a n d more n u m e r o u s t h a n differences. C o n v e y i n g tha t m e s s a g e is difficult in this t i m e of impas­sioned debates d o m i n a t e d by confusion and mutual deafness. A med ia to r is a br idge, a n d a bridge never belongs t o one side only. T h u s t h e m e d i a t o r is always a little too m u c h "on the o the r side," always suspect of double loyalty I was always "a bit t o o Wes t e rn" for s o m e Musl ims a n d "a bit t o o Mus l im" for s o m e Wes te rners . O n b o t h sides of the divide, t h e n , the b r idge-media to r h a d t o prove tha t he fully belonged. W h e n passion and emot ion get the upper h a n d and colonize debates , any balanced, critical, a n d self-critical in te rvent ion b e c o m e s suspect and is soon perceived as ambiguous , as an in ter locutor suggested o n m y websi te . T h e media tor becomes the object of project ions that s o m e t i m e s relate t o a distant past and t o deep disputes a n d t r a u m a s . N o t h i n g is s imple . You m a k e enemies on b o t h sides, so t o speak, and o n b o t h shores you are some­t imes seen as a traitor, a " turncoat ," or a manipula tor special­izing in "doublespeak."

The Early Years t%

(I'l For years, I have b e e n facing such criticism, doubt , suspi-i l ion, and rejection. I have always k n o w n that such wou ld be Ethe pr ice, s ince I set o u t t o u n d e r m i n e a few certaint ies , t o confront prejudices, and to challenge s o m e over-simple conclu-

• sions. T h e political price soon b e c a m e obvious as bans c a m e . in succession; I was b a n n e d f rom Egypt after I criticized its reg ime, t hen for similar reasons from Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Algeria, and Libya. O n t h e other side, I was banned f rom enter ing France for six m o n t h s b e t w e e n N o v e m b e r 1995 and May 1996, and m y U.S. visa was revoked for no valid reason in July 2004. In both universes 1 had to face restrictive measures , and to this day I am often denied venues in France and some-rimes in Be lg ium. It is neve r easy to m e d i a t e b e t w e e n t w o cultural and religious universes for which communica t ion has been a p r o b l e m historically, w h e t h e r o n the philosophical or on the political and e c o n o m i c level. "Values" are p u t t o the fore, while the essence of alliances and conflicts is very of ten— quite simply—power.

T h a t w a s the or ig in of t h e figure of the "cont rovers ia l in te l lec tual" w h o is a lways accused, "on b o t h sides of t h e divide," o f b e i n g unc lear , dub ious , unre l iable—if n o t a l to­gether dishonest . I have kept asking m y detractors to poin t o u t the ambigui t ies in m y pos i t ions so tha t I could clarify t h e m . They somet imes did, b u t m o s t of the t ime m y detractors find it difficult to state precisely t h e so-called ambiguities in wha t I say. T h a t is m o s t often because they simply have n o t r ead my books and articles. Some t imes it is e i ther self-persuasion or a de l ibera te in tent ion to b lu r m y pos i t ion wi th a h a z e of suspicions, rumors , or doub t s fostered by repeat ing t h e same

Tii Wkatmdieve

accusations of "doublespeak" or "rhetorical skill" u n s u p p o r t e d by any ser ious a r g u m e n t . Frequent repet i t ion (in t h e media and o n the web) br ings lasting credibility to the doubtfulness and controversial charac ter of the intellectual. To express that " t ru th ," journal is ts and intel lecmals alike often in t roduce m e as "highly controversial ," whe the r to p ro tec t themselves or to hint at t h e su r round ing a tmosphere ,

Char les Taylor, discussing m y work , once used a very apt formula: he said tha t I did no t use "doublespeak" or "ambig­uous s ta tements" bu t that m y discourse w a s clear b e t w e e n two highly amb iguous universes of reference. Taylor's s t a t e m e n t ep i tomizes w h a t I k n e w f rom the beg inn ing of m y c o m m i t ­men t : coheren t discourse b e t w e e n t w o universes of reference, "civilizations" and cul tures , shot t h r o u g h with doubts , crises, inconsistencies, and p o w e r plays, m u s t expect to c o m e under double critical fire. At least for a while, for history shows that time levels things o u t a n d normal izes w h a t our cu r r en t fears and tens ions cannot conceive.

A Muslim, and a "Controversia Intellectua

INDEED, APTER INITIAL RECOGNITION fi-om m y society a n d the school sys tem, every th ing h a d n o w changed . The values of dignity, solidarity, and jus t ice which I h a d upheld as a citizen afoid t eache r w i th no a p p a r e n t rel igion (and which h a d elic­ited such praise in the past) n o longer had the same substance or w o r t h w h e n they w e r e uphe ld by a "Musl im intel lectual" or "Musl im scholar," F r o m t h e very m o m e n t when I s t a r ted speaking as a "Musl im" o r w h e n I was seen as such, a h a z e of suspicion fell over m y in ten t ions and discourse. 1 experienced

^ithis revelation: the heavy, age-old b u r d e n of Europe 's s t o r m y relations w i th religion, and, in part icular w i t h Islam—including denied intellectual influence, the Crusades, and colonizat ion— still n e e d e d t o be cast off, I was a Swiss, a European, b u t I was above all "a Muslim" in m y fellow citizens' perception: besides, 1 was n o t a "real European ," or if I was, I had to prove it. My inter locutors had lists of quest ions that were to be p u t t o m e to "test" the real na tu re of m y " integrat ion" and incidentally compel m e to a defensive pos tu re of constant justification,

I observed, analyzed, a n d assessed the na tu re of inher i ted b u r d e n s a n d p resen t fears. C o n t i n u o u s i m m i g r a t i o n since

18 What! Believe A Mitiîim, and. a "Coniroversial IntetkctTal" ¡9

\ ered here and there o n t h e In terne t (always the same, repea ted 1« thousand times).

First, m y lineage was at tacked. Being the grandson of the founder of the Muslim Bro therhood , 1 was dangerous by defi­nition and I m u s t not be Ustened to. Islam, people said and still repeat, allows dissimulation {taqiyyah) and so I practiced it in the extreme; all that s o u n d e d so fine to Western audiences w a s in fact no th ing but the presentable side of a far more obscure hidden agenda: I w a n t e d t o Islamize moderni ty , Eu rope a n d Europeans, the whole West , and I certainly had links wi th radi­cals or terror is ts . Such al legations, repeated several h u n d r e d

i t imes o n the Internet (w i thou t any evidence, of course), n o w give the impression that the re mus t be s o m e t ru th in all this. Where there is smoke, the re is fire, they repeat, w i thou t trying to find o u t w h a t the fire is and w h o is feeding it.

i the Second W o r l d War , the n e w visibil i ty of the y o u n g e r genera t ions of Musl ims, n e w demands in schools a n d hospi­tals, a n d o t h e r i ssues—all t hose p h e n o m e n a ( w h i c h w e r e soon to include violence) were liable t o foster fear, suspicion, and d o u b t . Everywhere , the W e s t e r n conscience was facing deep-set doubts : w h a t will b e c o m e of us wi th this ons laught of i m m i g r a t i o n w h i c h , moreover , is necessary t o W e s t e r n societies? W h o are t h o s e Mus l ims w h o r ep resen t "a n e w citizenship"^ and w h o are mainly faced wi th serious economic difficulties, while political parties k n o w so little a b o u t them? W h a t is it they really w a n t : to " in tegra te , " or t o "Is lamize" Europe , America, the West?

My involvement in the Western public debate over t h e issue of Islam was very s o o n t o focus o n the "visible intel lectual" a large n u m b e r of pro jec t ions a n d / o r animosit ies t h a t bese t m e f rom different sides. My appeals for dialogue, for c o m i n g t oge the r t h r o u g h s h a r e d universals, for h a r m o n i o u s coexis­tence involving m u t u a l enr ichment , s eemed " too g o o d t o be t r u e " and were b o u n d t o "hide someth ing ." In effect, m y posi­tions were also apt to i m p e d e the interests of some ideologues, organizat ions , m o v e m e n t s , and gove rnmen t s , for w h o m the p resence of Islam a n d o f confident, s o m e t i m e s critical and p r o t e s t i n g M u s h m s w a s in itself a p r o b l e m and a po ten t ia l danger. Ove r the pas t fifteen years, a t tacks have s t epped u p and have c o m e fi:om several fronts w h i c h can be fairly easily identified, as will be seen at the e n d of this book. T h e media have often relayed those criticisms e i ther t o further thei r o w n dubious agendas a n d objectives (when they were ideologically involved themselves) or simply repeat ing the allegations gath-

I

Several Fronts, Two Universes, One Discourse

M Y DISCOURSE FACES MANY-SIDED OPPOSITION, and this obvi­ously prevents it f rom b e i n g fully h e a r d in its s u b s t a n c e , its subtleties, and its vision for the future. Some of the crit icisms expressed are of cou r se sincere a n d raise l eg i t ima te q u e s ­t i ons—which I will t r y t o answer in t h e present w o r k — b u t o thers are clearly biased and a t tempt t o pass off their selective, prejudiced hear ing as "doublespeak" o n e should be wary of. I

have long been cri t icizing their de l ibera te deaftiess a n d the i r ideological "double hea r ing" : I a m d e t e r m i n e d t o g o ahead , w i t h o u t wast ing m y t i m e over such strategic diversions, and remain faithful to m y vision, my principles, and m y project .

I m e a n to build bridges between t w o universes of reference, be tween two (highly debatable) constructions t e rmed Wes te rn and Islamic "civilizations" (as if those were closed, monol i th ic entities), and be tween citizens widiin Western societies them­selves. My aim is to show, in theory and in practice, that o n e can be bo th fully Muslim and Western and that beyond our different affiliations w e share many c o m m o n prindples and values t h r o u ^ which it is possible to "live together" within contemporary plural­istic, multicultural societies where various religions coexist.

Several Fronts, Two Universes, One Dtseourse 21

T h e essence of tha t a p p r o a c h and of the accompany ing [theses or ig ina ted m u c h earlier t han 9 / 1 1 , Nei ther did it c o m e n s a r e sponse to Samue l H u n t i n g t o n ' s mid-1990s pos i t i ons ' a b o u t the "clash of civil izations" (which anyway have b e e n : largely mi s in t e rp re t ed ) . As early as t h e la te 1980s, t h e n in m y 1 9 9 2 b o o k Muslims in the Secular State, I s ta ted t h e first

' fundamentals of m y behefs about the compatibility of values and t h e possibiUty for individuals and citizens of different cultures a n d religions to coexist positively (and not jus t pacifi­cally). Unl ike w h a t I have observed among some intellectuals and leaders , inc luding s o m e Mus l im th inkers and re l ig ious representatives, those views were by n o means a response to cur rent events nor a change of mind p roduced by the post-

1 9 / r i t r a u m a . They r e p r e s e n t a very old s tance w h i c h w a s conf i rmed, developed, and clarified in the course of t i m e . Its subs tance can be found in m y first books and ar t ic les in 1 9 8 7 - 1 9 8 9 ; those views were t hen buil t o n and expanded in every b o o k I w r o t e u p to the p resen t synthesis. A Mus l im ' s religious discourse, and the media tor ' s role itself, br ing a b o u t negative reactions in b o t h universes of reference. W h a t m a k e s things m o r e difficult is tha t I do no t merely shed light o n over­lapping areas and c o m m o n poin ts be tween the two universes of reference b u t tha t I also call intellectuals, polit icians, and religious figures to a necessary du ty of consistency a n d self-criticism. My in ter locutors do no t like this latter exercise so much because indeed it is no t easy.

The encoun te r be tween the West and Islam (between civili­zations, nations, a n d / o r citizens) will no t be achieved construc­tively a n d posi t ively t h r o u g h m e r e wishful t h i n k i n g , b y

22 What I Believe

Optimistically recalling t h e existence of c o m m o n values. T h e p rob lem lies further ups t r eam. All of us should show humility, respect, and consistency. Humility, by admi t t ing tha t nobody, n o civilization or na t ion , holds a m o n o p o l y on universals and o n the good , and tha t o u r political and social systems are no t perfect; respect toward o the r s because w e should be convinced that their richness and achievements can be beneficial to us; and last consistency, because t h e other 's presence acts like a mi r ro r in w h i c h w e shou ld con f ron t o u r o w n con t rad ic t ions and inconsis tency in the concre te , day-to-day imp lemen ta t ion of our noblest values. This is a difficult exercise but an imperat ive one . Instead of unfairly compar ing the ideal of o u r theoretical values with the other 's practical deficiencies, we m u s t compare practices, shed light o n contradict ions and mutua l hypocrisies, and toge ther impose a doub le requi rement : clarifying t h e area of o u r c o m m o n values a n d striving to be ever m o r e faithful to t h e m intellectually, politically, socially, and culturally. This strict, s t aunch c o m m i t m e n t has caused m e to be perceived as a " trai tor" by some Musl ims and as a "fifth co lumn infiltrated agent" by s o m e of m y Wes te rn fellow-citizens.

To Musl ims, I r epea t that Islam Is a g rea t and n o b l e reli­g ion b u t tha t all M u s l i m s and Mus l im major i ty societ ies did no t in the past and do n o t n o w live u p t o this nobleness: crit­ical reflection is r equ i red about faithfulness to OUT principles, o u r o u d o o k o n others , o n cultures, f reedom, the s i tuat ion of w o m e n , and so on. Our contradictions and ambiguities are count­less. To W e s t e r n e r s , I s imilarly r e p e a t t h a t the u n d e n i a b l e ach ievemen t s of f r e e d o m and d e m o c r a c y should n o t m a k e u s forget m u r d e r o u s "civihzing miss ions ," colonizat ion, t h e

Several Fronu, Two Umvenes, One Discourse 13

[destructive economic order , racism, discrimination, acquies­cent relations wi th the wors t dictatorships, and o the r failings.

tOur contradictions and ambiguities are countless. I a m equal ly I demanding and rigorous wi th b o t h universes.

Interacting Crises

T H E PROBLEM OF MUSLIM PRESENCE IN THE W E S T is often presented as a p r o b l e m of rel igions, values, and cultures that should be addressed t h r o u g h theological arguments , legal measures , or by highl ight ing s o m e indisputable principles and values. It is w r o n g , however, n o t t o take into accoun t the psychological tensions and emot ional envi ronment tha t surround and some­

t imes shape the e n c o u n t e r b e t w e e n the West, E u r o p e , and Musl ims and Islam. Critical debate over systems of t hough t , values, and identities is a necessity and it must be carr ied out scrupulously critically, a n d in depth, b u t its omnipresence on the European scene conceals other preoccupations that must be taken in to account to avoid going after the wrong target.

W e s t e r n societies in genera l and Europeans in par t icular are e x p e r i e n c i n g a v e r y deep , m u l t i d i m e n s i o n a l i den t i t y crisis. Its first express ion stems f rom the twofold p h e n o m ­

e n o n of global iza t ion and^—in E u r o p e — t h e e m e r g e n c e of t h e E u r o p e a n Union , b e y o n d reference to the na t ion­s ta te . F o r m e r l andmarks re la ted t o nat ional identity, the count ry ' s m e m o r y , or specific cul tura l references seem to be wear ing a w a y : everywhere tens ions can be felt, structuring nat ional or

Interacting Crises 25

igiona! identities are be ing r e a s s e r t e d . In addition, m i g r a t o r y l e n o m e n a , already m e n t i o n e d above , intensify the feeling

being ca r r i ed away a n d t r a p p e d in an irreversible logic : r o p e is ge t t ing older and it n e e d s i m m i g r a n t s to main ta in

.e s t rength and balance of its e c o n o m y ; the United States, lanada, and Australia are facing similar needs—with , in addi­

on, a long t radi t ion of i m m i g r a t i o n . Yet, those i m m i g r a n t s reaten cul tu ra l homogene i ty , w h i c h is already endange red

ly the global izat ion of cu l tu re a n d c o m m u n i c a t i o n . This is in to squar ing the circle: e c o n o m i c needs are in contradic­

Jon wi th cul tural resistances a n d obviously those resistances 1 never b e s t rong e n o u g h t o prevai l . This is the s e c o n d

mension of the identity crisis: Ъеге, onslaughts from outside eaken tradit ional l andmarks . B u t that is n o t all: with in soci­

ties themselves , n e w k inds of c i t izens are emerg ing . T h e y ;ed to be Asians, Africans, T u r k s , or Arabs, and n o w they are

'rench, British, Italian, Belgian, Swedish , American, Canadian, Australian or New Zealander. T h e i r parents used to be isolated and had c o m e to earn a living (probably intending to go h o m e ) , ,but now their children are increasingly "integrated" into society jgnd m o r e and m o r e visible in s t ree ts , schools, firms, adminis­

trations, and on campuses. They are visible t h rough their color, i^their dress, and their differences, b u t they speak the count ry ' s language and they are indeed French . British, Italian, Belgian, :Swedish, American, Canadian, Australian, or N e w Zealander . 'Their presence from with in disrupts representat ions and gives 'rise to s o m e t i m e s pass ionate i den t i ty t ens ions rang ing f rom p u z z l e m e n t to sectar ian or even racist re ject ion. A n o t h e r

h e n o m c n o n "from w i t h i n " h a s e m e r g e d in recen t years :

26 WhatlBeUsve

n o t only has insecurity or violence b e e n found t o increase in s o m e areas or suburbs because of p o o r social in tegra t ion , but a global p h e n o m e n o n threatens nat ional securities. F rom New York in Sep tember 2001 to Madrid in March 2004 o r London in July 2005, the Mus l im presence n o w imports internat ional d e m a n d s t h r o u g h v io len t , ex t remis t Islamist n e t w o r k s that strike o u t at innocent citizens. Violent extremism strikes from within, since m o s t of t h e pe rpe t r a to r s of those at tacks were ei ther b o r n and ra ised in the West or immersed in Wes te rn cu lmre . T h e exper ience of this violence completes the picture of this deep identi ty crisis: global izat ion, immigra t ion , n e w ci t izenships , a n d socia l as well as ex t remis t v io lence have palpable effects o n Wes te rn societies" social psychology.

Doub t s and fears are visible. Some far right political parties take advantage of t h o s e fears and use reassuring, popul is t a r g u m e n t s stressing nar ionahsm a n d the need t o revive and p ro t ec t identity. The i r m a i n points are rejecting immigran t s , enhancing security, and stigmatizing the n e w enemy tha t Islam stands fon Populat ions naturally respond to such rhetor ic and all parties have to take posit ion over those sensitive issues. This p h e n o m e n o n brings abou t strategic shifts within former polit­ical g roups ; tensions emerge on right and left b e t w e e n those w h o refuse to respond t o the identity crisis with stigmatizing, sec tar ian , or racist d iscourse and those w ho find no o the r m e a n s to have a poht ical future t han responding to people 's fears. Lectures, debates , and books are increasingly n u m e r o u s : people everywhere try t o define French, British, Italian, Dutch, American, Australian identity, to identify the roots a n d values of Europe , America, or Australia, t o find ou t whe the r culmral

Interacting Crises 17

[pluralism and mul t icu l tura l i sm are viable, and so on. T h o s e rquestions reveal fears as well as doubts.

Similar questionings can be observed a m o n g Muslims. T h e ! identity crisis is a reality t h a t also takes o n mult iple d i m e n ­sions. O n a global level, n u m e r o u s , far-reaching ques t ions

. emerge: in face of globalization, of global culture perceived as Westernizat ion, the Musl im wor ld is u n d e r g o m g a p rofound crisis. Musl im majority societies m o s d y lag beh ind economi ­cally, they are generally undemocra t ic , and w h e n they are rich, they fail t o cont r ibu te to intel lectual a n d / o r scientific prog-

fress. It is as if the Mus l im world , perceiving itself as domi­nated, canno t hve up to its claims. Moreover, the experience of economic exile adds t h e concre te d imens ion of tens ions a n d contradictions to this vague general feeling. T h e fear of losing one's religion and culture at the core of Wes te rn societies has led to na tu ra l a t t i tudes of w i thd rawa l a n d self-isolation. All immigrants have gone t h r o u g h similar experiences in t e r m s of culture, bu t for Muslims religious quest ionings are also often mixed w i t h such cu l tu ra l cons ide ra t ions . T h e first gene ra ­tions ( w h o were usually f rom modes t social b a c k g r o u n d s in

i Europe, t hough no t in t h e Uni ted States or Canada) experi­enced deep tensions, and still do : the feefing of loss regarding their original language a n d cul ture , b e i n g to rn b e t w e e n t w o languages, uneasiness wi th the Wes te rn secular env i ronmen t where rel igious values are so little referred to (except in the United States), relations and c o m m u n i c a t i o n wi th thei r o w n children w h o are s teeped in the W e s t e r n e n v i r o n m e n t , and Other tensions. T h e identi ty crisis runs th rough genera t ions . Here again it has t o do w i t h fears and sufferings: the fear of

iS What I Bdieve

self-dispossession, of los ing one ' s l andmarks , of coloniza­t ion of the inner self, a n d of daily contradictions, wi th all the personal and psychological suffering this experience entails.

O n e m u s t also a d d t o this the direct consequences of the tense cl imate that has developed in the West. Repeated, accel­erat ing crises include the Rushdie affair, the "Islamic headscarf" controversy, terrorist attacks, the Danish cartoons, the pope 's remarks : the list is ge t t i ng longer and longer and each count ry also has its share of pohrical ins t rumental izat ion, sensational n e w s i t ems , and juicy s tor ies r e p o r t e d in the med ia . Many Musl ims experience a feeling of sr igmatizat ion a n d cons tan t pressure: they feel those criticisms and this obsession wi th "the p rob lem of Islam and Musl ims" as aggressions, denials of their rights, and somet imes clearly racist and Is lamophobic expres­sions. They experience this daily: be ing a visible Musl im in the West today is no easy mat te r . In such an a tmosphere , a crisis of confidence is inevitable: some have decided lo isolate them­selves, believing tha t the re is no th ing to hope for in a society that rejects them; o thers have decided to become invisible by disappearing into the crowd; last, o thers have commi t t ed them­selves to facing the p r o b l e m and o p e n i n g spaces for encoun te r a n d d ia logue . C a u g h t amid t h e essential ly negat ive media image of Islam and Musl ims; the populist , sectarian discourse of s o m e part ies; the fears and re luctance of their Amer ican , Aust rahan, or E u r o p e a n fellow-citizens; and, to c r o w n it all, the crisis of confidence and the doubts assailing Muslims them­selves, the challenge is a m o m e n t o u s one .

Such psychological data must be taken into account w h e n s t a r t ing this discussion: people are afraid; they exper ience

Interacting Crises 29

[tensions and doubts that often produce passionate, emorional , l i o m e t i m e s uncont ro l led a n d excessive react ions. T h e conse­

quences of those in te rac t ing crises can be observed every-IWhere: u n d e r the effect of emot ion , o n e listens less, deafness

acts in; reflecrions b e c o m e less complex and subtle, they are expressed in binary t e r m s a n d subtlety is perceived as ambi­guity. Essentialized stories serve tojustify final judgments about the others (one person's behavior is seen to represent all of her

'o r his society or c o m m u n i t y ) . H igh- sound ing phi losophical or political a rguments will have n o effect if one does n o t take

••Into account the real and some t imes devastat ing consequences • of psychological t ens ions , of mis t rus t , fear, e m o t i o n , deat-cliess, b inary thinking, or of focusing on essentialized stories

that serve as indisputable evidence t o reject or c o n d e m n . To run against the tide of t hose p h e n o m e n a (which once again similarly aftect all part ies) , w e need an educarional approach relying o n a pedagogy tha t takes people 's psychological state into account , w i t h o u t t ry ing t o m a k e t h e m feel guil ty (no r to s t igmatize them) and w h i c h strives to explain, qualify, and think in m u m a l terms. T h e evolution of fear and doub t m u s t be answered with a revolut ion of self-confidence and m u m a l

• trust . Emot iona l rejection a n d deafiiess m u s t be answered by intellectual empathy th rough which negative emot ions are kept at bay a n d subjected to constructive criticism. This requires a long- term, demanding , dialectical approach chat can only be developed at the grass roots . It can only be achieved t h r o u g h proximity and I believe at least fifiy years will be necessary for people to get accustomed. T h a t is a long t ime . . . and yet it is so short on a historical scale.

I Swift Evolutions, Silent Revolutions

C U R R E N T PROBLEMS MAY SOMETIMES CAUSE US to lose sight of

the historical perspective and lead to unjustified pessimism. In less than t w o genera t ions , amazingly rapid evolution has been observed both in Musl ims ' thinking a n d in their unders tanding of the Western and E u r o p e a n envi ronment . Yet no th ing was easy: as no ted above, t h e first genera t ions were often namral ly isolated from an env i ronmen t that they did not k n o w well {as in the United States or Canada) or h a d a very m o d e s t social s ta tus a n d educa t ion (as in Europe o r Australia). Above all, they carried with t h e m an array of confusions that it was diffi­cult t o do away with.

T h e first natural a t t i tude was to consider Western countr ies foreign lands whe re they h a d to live as strangers. Moreover , their percept ion of the m e a n i n g a n d fundamenta ls of secu­la r i sm s t e m m e d f rom a h is tor ica l m i s u n d e r s t a n d i n g : t o r N o r t h Africans, Middle East Arabs, Asians, and Turks , secu­larization mean t an impor t ed sys tem imposed by colonists o r implemen ted by such heads of state as Kamal Atatiirk, Habib Bourguiba. Hafiz al-Assad. or Saddam Hussein th rough dicta­torial policies. Secularism and religious neutrality have mainly

Swi/i EvclHlions, Silent RrmtutiiMS )i

en perceived as processes of "dc-lslamization," of opposi t ion religion, ' entailing repressive measures : it was historically

id factually impossible t o associate " secu la r i sm" or "reli-ious neutra l i ty" with f reedom and democra t i za t ion . W h e n I riving in the West, the first genera t ions carried with t h e m tose perceptions and that negative burden (and they often still i). This is accompanied b y major confusion be tween cultural

Icments and religious references: for m a n y of t h e m , b e i n g jiid remaining Muslims mean t being Muslims as they had b e e n

Morocco . Algeria, Egypt , Lebanon, Pakistan, o r T u r k e y What mat te red was thus t o be Moroccan. Algerian. Egyptian, Lebanese, Pakistani, o r Turk ish Muslims in Europe , and n o t merely Muslims in the West , even less Wes te rn Muslims. For many, especial ly a m o n g Arabs . T u r k s , a n d Africans, t h e r e could be n o question of taking the host count ry ' s nationali ty since s o m e day they would "go home . " Some Mu.slim scholars I 'itlamd) conf i rmed those misgivings by c la iming tha t l iving m the West could only be allowed in case of necessity: it was a legal exceplion (ruklisa) and there could be n o ques t ion of settling in those countr ies whe re dr inking alcohol was a l lowed and where religious mora l s were no t respected.

In less t han t w o g e n e r a t i o n s pe rcep t ions have c h a n g e d ificantly T h e vast majority of Musl ims today assert the i r

esence in the West and in Europe. Similarly, their rclation-ip t o secular ism and rel igious neu t r a l i t y has b e e n revis­

ed after scholars, intel lectuals, and leaders u n d e r s t o o d (by studying the principles of secularism) that the separat ion of' church and state did not m e a n wiping ou t religions but r a the r regulat ing their p resence in the pluralistic (and m o r e o r less

32 What I Believe

neutra l ) public space t o ensure equality. T h e y o u n g n o longer have q u a l m s a b o u t t a k i n g a W e s t e r n nationali ty, referr ing to themselves as c o m m i t t e d cit izens a n d taking p a r t in their coun t ry ' s social, polit ical, and cul tural life. Millions of t h e m are peaceful , l aw-abid ing citizens, whi le the m e d i a and the public seem obsessed w i t h suspect ing a problem inheren t in Islam because of a few Hteralists or extremists ( w h o mav or may no t be violent) w h o claim no t to recognize Wes te rn laws. Critical reflection has b e e n s tar ted regarding or iginal (Arab, Asian, or Turkish) cul tures that do no t always fully respect the f u n d a m e n t a l pr inciples of Islam: ques t ionable habi t s , patri­archal reflexes, failure t o respect w o m e n ' s rights, t radi t ional pract ices wrongly associa ted wi th rel igion (excision, forced marr iages , etc.) have b e e n reconsidered.

Problems remain, of course, and n e w migrants are (and will be) constantly b r ing ing t o the fore old issues that t h e Musl ims w h o have been present for a long t ime have long overcome. ' ' It is also t r u e that n o t all count r ies have reached t h e s a m e level of evolut ion: French, British, and Amer ican Mus l ims have a longer exper ience of W e s t e r n societ ies (Amer ican Mus l ims have no t been there so l ong bu t are be t t e r educated) and they are far m o r e advanced in their reflection and activities. Yet it should be noted that t h e process is accelerating and that o ther Musl im c o m m u n i t i e s in all Wes te rn countr ies are benefi t ing i r o m those achievements and are n o w developing their under­s t and ing of Wes te rn realities at a qu icker pace. T h e role of s o m e leaders w h o are converts to Islam is also crucial t o this e v o l u t i o n . ' N o w a d a y s , people speak of b e i n g M u s l i m s in the Wes t a n d increas ingly define themselves as W e s t e r n or

Swifx Evohtitfns. Silral Revoiutioni n

I uropean Muslims or as Musl im Westerners or Europeans. O n e g round , activities are m o r e and more open toward society

and many scholars and leaders, w o m e n and men , build local or ii.itional bridges with their fellow-citizens and political authori­ties. This is indeed a silent revolution, which does no t directly interest the media because it is be ing achieved on the long- term scale of generat ions . Still, once again, fi*om the s tandpoint of ihc historical t ime of popula t ion movement s , such evolutions .ire revolut ionary and extraordinary. They have not b e e n fully measured yet, and it is cer tain today, as I already w r o t e in 1996

in To Be a European Muslim, t h e n in 2003 in Weslern Muslims and the Future of Islam,'' tha t the Western a n d European experience has already had a very i m p o r t a n t impac t o n Islam t h r o u g h o u t the wor ld and of course o n Mus l im major i ty socie t ies—an impact t h a t will be even m o r e cons iderab le in the yea r s t o come.

O n e should no t fail t o observe the revival of spirituality and of the ques t for m e a n i n g a m o n g Mus l im Westerners . Islam is perceived as such a p r o b l e m today t h a t MusHm scholars or intellectuals are often called upon t o explain what Islam is not in light of current chal lenges. However , Islam is first and foremost an answer for t h e major i ty of Musl im h e a r t s and consciences, echoing a ques t for m e a n i n g at the core of rich and industrialized societies. This is hardly ever ment ioned , and yet this is where the essence of religion hes: millions of Musl im w o m e n and m e n exper ience rel igion as spiritual ini t ia t ion, reconciliation with m e a n i n g , and ques t for the l iberat ion of their irmer selves in a global wor ld domina ted by appearances and excessive possession a n d c o n s u m p t i o n . To be a Musl im

34 Widl I Believe

Weste rne r is also to experience the spiritual tension be tween a faith that calls for l iberation of the inner self and a daily life t h a t s eems t o con t r ad i c t and impr i son it. Th i s is a difficult experience whe ther for a Hindu, a Buddhist , a Jew, a Christian, o r a Musl im; it is a difficult exper ience for all h u m a n beings w h o wish to remain free with their values and w h o w o u l d also like to offer their children the ins t ruments of their freedom. It wou ld be wor thwhi le , at the core of all those debates , no t t o disregard that essential religious, spiritual, and philosophical d imension.

Multiple Identities First an American (a European,

an Australian), or a Muslim?

GLOBALIZATION, MIGRATIONS, EXILE , increasingly rapid poHt-ical and social change, all these p h e n o m e n a cause fear, anxiety, and tens ion . Former l andmarks seem ou tda t ed a n d fail to provide serenity; w h o are w e at the core of such upheavals? The issue of identi ty s t ems f rom those deep d is turbances . W h e n so many people a r o u n d us, in o u r o w n society, n o longer resemble us a n d appea r so different, we na tu ra l ly feel the n e e d to redefine ourselves. Similarly, the experience of be ing uproo ted , of e conomic and political exile, leads to this ques t for identi ty at the core of an env i ronmen t tha t is not natural ly ours. T h e react ion is unders tandable b u t w h a t should be stressed here is tha t it is above all a re-action to a presence or an envi ronment felt as foreign. Thus one defines one's identity by reaction, by differentiation, in opposi t ion to what one is not, or even against others. T h e process is a natural one, and it is just as na tura l that the approach should become binary and eventually set a more or less constructed "identity" against another that is projected on to "the other" or "society." Identit ies defined in th is manner , reactive identi t ies, are in essence un ique and exclusive, because of the very necessi ty .

36 WhatlBdkvs

tha t has g iven rise to t h e m : the p o i n t is to know w h o o n e is and, clearly, w h o one is not .

Th i s a t t i tude is n a t u r a l and, once again, unders tandable in a per iod of rapid upheavals, bu t it is unhealthy and dangerous. A t t e m p t s t o clarify th ings are actual ly oversimplifying and above all reductive. C l e a r answers are expected fi^m oneself and one's feUow-dtizens: one should be primarily "American," 'Austral ian," " N e w Zealander ," "Italian," "French," "British," "Dutch"—orpr imar i ly "Jewish," "Christian," or "Muslim." Any answer that a t t empt s t o qualify this exclusive self-definition tends to be perceived as ambiguous. More fundamental ly this casts doub t o n the loyalty of individuals, and particularly today of Muslims who are required to say whe the r they are first and foremost "Muslim" or 'American," "Canadian," "South African," "Singaporian," "French ," "ItaUan," "Br i t i sh ' . , . T h e ques t ion explicitly addresses t he i r dcfinirion of their identity whereas implicitiy, and m o r e seriously, it has t o do with loyalty Since one can only have one identity, one can only have one loyalty, A clear, unqualified, unambiguous answer m u s t be given!

Yet t h e ques t ion i tself is meaning less . Obsessed w i t h the idea of defining oneself in opposi t ion t o w h a t o n e is no t , o n e ends up reducing oneself t o a single identity that is supposed to tell everything. Yet the re arc different orders wi th in which o n e will have to define oneself differently. Asking w h e t h e r one is pr imari ly " M u s h m " o r 'Amer ican ," "Australian," "Italian," "French" or " C a n a d i a n " opposes t w o ident i t ies a n d affilia­t ions t h a t d o n o t b e l o n g t o the s a m e rea lm. In t h e r e a l m of rel igion and philosophy, chat which impa r t s m e a n i n g to life, a h u m a n being is first a n d foremost an atheist, a Buddhis t , a

Miiiriplc Identities 37

^ew, a Chr is t ian , o r a M u s l i m : he r or h is passpor t or na t ion­ality c a n n o t answer the existential ques t ion . W h e n a n indi­vidual m u s t vo te for a candida te at an elect ion, she o r h e is first an American, Italian, French, o r British citizen involved in national affairs. Depend ing on the realm o r the field of activity, the individual therefore pu t s forward one identity or another , and that is n o t cont radic tory

At a t a l k I w a s g i v i n g o n e d a y in G r e e c e , at G e o r g e Papandreou's invitation, t h e economist Amartya Sen expressed his total ag reemen t w i t h m y though t t h r o u g h a fine illustra­tion. Suppose, he said, you are a poet and a vegetarian. If you are a d i n n e r guest , th is is n o t ime o r p lace t o insist o n y o u r identity as a poet , while if you a t tend a poetry circle, you are certainly n o t going to i n t roduce yourself as a vegetarian, for you wou ld be seen as eccentr ic . In o t h e r words , you have m o r e than o n e identity and you give priori ty to one of those identi­ties or the o the r depend ing on the env i ronmen t or si tuation, w i thou t this affecting y o u r loyalty to one order of affiliation o r the o ther . A poet w h o says h e is a vegetarian a t a m e a l is n o less a poet! The example is indeed enlightening, and it proves that the ques t ion of w h a t o n e is fo remos t (or exclusively) is a bad quest ion, a ques t ion tha t m u s t be quest ioned and that , ultimately, one should refuse t o answer.

O n e m u s t resist the t emp ta t i on to reduce one's identi ty to a single d imens ion tha t t akes pr ior i ty over every o ther . This can indeed b e reassuring, b u t it is above all impover ishing and, in l imes of crisis a n d tens ion , it can lead to rejection, r a d s m . and la tent or passionate conflicts of identity, culture, or "civi­l izat ion." W e should reach a b r o a d e r v i e w of ourse lves and

38 What I Believe

o u r fdlow-cit izens: each one of u s has multiple identit ies that s h e / h e m u s t accept , n u r t u r e , a n d develop, i have l o n g b e e n repeat ing t o Muslims a n d to m y fellow-citizens that I a m Swiss by nat ional i ty , E g y p t i a n by m e m o r y , Mus l im by r ehg ion , E u r o p e a n by cu l tu re , universalistic b y principle, Moroccan and Maur i t ian by a d o p t i o n . This is n o p rob lem whatsoever : I live wi th those identities, and one or the other may take the lead depending o n the context or occasion. Other d imensions shou ld even be added t o those identities: be ing a m a n , having a specific social s ta tus , a j ob , and so o n . O u r iden t i t i e s are mul t ip le and constantly o n the move . '

Reach ing such awarenes s of t h e f luctuat ing mul t ip l ic i ty o f p e r s o n a l ident i t ies supposes acqui r ing a m e a s u r e of self-confidence and t rus t in o thers . O n c e again, this h a s m o r e t o do wi th psychology t h a n wi th phi losophy and religion proper . Such w o r k on oneself, o n one 's mul t ip le affiliations and on b e i n g able t o s t e p o u t o f o n e ' s o w n perspec t ive , r equ i r e s k n o w l e d g e of onese l f a n d of o t h e r s confronted w i t h daily p rac t i ce : t h e cha l l enge is cons ide r ab l e . Only educa t i ona l w o r k — g e n u i n e appl ied , critical p e d a g o g y — t h a t reconci les individuals w i th the different d imens ions of thei r be ing , their origins, and their hopes can enable t h e m to overcome anxious, reactive, and passionate reactions w h e n encoun te r ing others . N a t u r a l ini t ia t ion prec ise ly needs such day-to-day, real-life encounters , a round cul tura l or social projects, t o break barr iers and open prospects . O n l y in such daily practice, in such educa­t ion t h r o u g h exper imenta t ion , experience, and dialogue, can one t ru s t and be t r u s t e d and thus assess the o the r ' s loyalty. T h i s d o e s n o t m e a n express ing b l ind loyalty o r h a v i n g t o

fove one ' s loyalty. Trus t m a k e s it possible t o unders tand tha t rue loyalty is always critical: wi th o a r government , w i th our li'llow believers or wi th t h e " u m m a h " (Musl im faith and spiri-ja l c o m m u n i t y ) , we shou ld never ex tend blind s u p p o r t to

"our o w n kind" against all "others ." We should be faithful to principles of justice, dignity, equality, and b e able t o criticize .ind d e m o n s t r a t e against o u r g o v e r n m e n t (or even the main­s t ream in o u r society) w h e n they u n d e r t a k e an unjus t war, , endorse apar the id , o r associate w i t h t h e wors t d ic t a to r s o n earth. Similarly, we m u s t also develop critical loyalty t o w a r d our Musl im (or other) fellow believers and oppose their ideas ' and actions when they be t ray those very principles, s t igmatize the other , p r o d u c e rac ism, o r justify dicta torships , t e r ror i s t attacks, o r the m u r d e r of innocents . This does no t have t o do with ident i ty issues b u t w i t h t h e coherence o f conscience tha t unites those identities a r o u n d a body of principles that must , to be fair, be used unsclectivety and critically as well as self-critically.

Being a pa t r io t , feel ing t h a t one b e l o n g s to a society, a nation, or a c o m m u n i t y of faith is a g o o d thing, but it canno t justi iy bl ind, chauvinis t ic na t iona l i sm, advoca t ing a na t iona l a n d / o r religious exception o r election, or exclusivist religious d o g m a t i s m defending o n e ' s fellow bel ievers w h a t e v e r the circumstances. T h e m o s t respectable a t t i tudes were s h o w n by those w h o dared take a stand against thei r own in the n a m e of dignity and justice: those who , dur ing the Second Wor ld War, refused t o give u p J e w s (or send t h e m back to t h e frontier) when their government required t h e m to; those w h o refused to fight in Vie tnam and were jailed for it; those w h o resisted

40 What I Believe

unfair apar the id laws at the cost of their lives; t h o s e w h o opposed the ins t rumental izat ion of religion to p r o d u c e very Islamic autocratic systems (as in Saudi Arabia) or w h o opposed the instrumentalization of its so-called modernizat ion to justiiy dictatorships "in t u n e wi th modern i ty" (as in Tunisia); those w h o condemned terrorist attacks against innocents w h e n they were pe rpe t ra t ed in the n a m e of thei r religion.

Western Islam Religion and Culture

NUMEROUS MUSLIMS—'Miantd as well as ordinary bel ievers— have opposed the idea tha t there could be a "Western Islam" or a "European Islam" different from the one and only "Islam." They have interpreted such te rms as a t tempts at division, adul­teration, or perhaps dangerous reform. In o ther circles, soci­ologists have claimed that there is no t "one Islam" bu t several very different "Islams" depending on interpreta t ions or soci­eties and that this diversity mus t be addressed o n a circumstan­tial basis. Confronted by those two contradictory approaches, my posi t ion has been to present things from within and in this m a n n e r to grasp b o t h the uni ty and diversity of the Islamic universe. As regards behef, the pillars of faith ('aqidah) and practice Cibaddt), Islam is one and unites all t radi t ions (both Sunni and Shi'a) o n the basis of the Q u r a n i c revelation and of Prophet ic traditions (Sunnah) that set the c o m m o n frame­work and principles. East and West, N o r t h and South, Muslims relate to those scriptural sources, fundamentals , a n d practices, and everywhere this is, palpably and visibly, w h a t nur tures the "faith communi ty" called the ummah.^

4Z What I Btlieve • '

T h a t be ing said, diversity cannot be denied, and it mainly ope ra t e s o n t w o levels. First, there is a diversity of readings and in te rp re ta t ions , w h i c h accoun t s for the different t radi­t ions, t r ends , a n d legal schools (as m a n y as th i r ty at s o m e periods). This diversiry has always existed and, depend ing o n the differences, it has always been m o r e or less accepted (some­t imes w i t h difficulty, par t icu lar ly b e t w e e n Sunni a n d Shi 'a) by scholars and o r d i n a r y Muslims. T h e o the r level of diver­sity is cultural : the principles of Islam regarding social affairs (mu'dmaldt) have always been very inclusive toward cul tures and t radi t ions ( recogniz ing al-'urf, s o u n d cus tom establ ished before Islam): Musl ims in Africa or in Asia have largely kept thei r way of life a n d habi t s while respec t ing the creed, prac­tices, and principles shared by all Musl ims. They have simply been selective and preserved what did no t contradict any prin­ciple of their faith: it has b e e n so for centuries, and this explains the no tab le differences in mind-sets a n d ways of life a m o n g Arab, African, Turkish , o r Asian Musl ims. Thus the re is one religion, o n e Islam, w i th various in te rpre ta t ions and several cultures.

W h a t happened e lsewhere in the past is happen ing in the Wes t today. W h a t w e cal l W e s t e r n Is lam is of exact ly the same na tu re : it is an Is lam that re.spects the c o m m o n creed, practices, a n d principles a n d makes t h e various Wes te rn and European cul tures its o w n . We are wi tness ing the b i r th of a Wes te rn Islamic cul ture wi thin which Musl ims remain faithful to fundamenta l religious principles while owning up to their W e s t e r n cul tures . They are bo th fully Musl im as to rel igion and fully Western as to cul ture , and tha t is no p rob lem at all.

Western Ishim 41,

fhe point is no t to create a n e w Islam b u t t o reconnect Islam with its original dynamism, creativity, a n d confidence, which niabled the faithful to observe and integrate positively all that was good and positive in the culmres they encountered while remaining critical and select ive w h e n t h o s e cul tures could u'^ult in insularity, in ques t ionable behavior and usage, or in •-ystematic discrimination. All cultures, w h e t h e r Arab, Asian, or Western, require a critical and self-critical mind apt to assess habits in light of principles because habits often erode o r b lu r principles. O n e should therefore be b o t h o p e n and critical: .ilways r e m a i n curious a n d seek what is beautiful and good , and always remain cautiously alert in assessing what is negative and unfair.

To reach this objective, Muslims in the West and in Eu rope must pe r fo rm a twofold w o r k of decons t ruc t ion and recon­struction. O n e must first set o u t to distinguish what is religious and w h a t is cultural in the way they conceive Islam when they come from Pakistan, Turkey, or Arab countr ies . The re is n o faith o r rel igion w i t h o u t cul ture , n o r any cul ture w i t h o u t a religious subst ra te , b u t re l ig ion is n o t cul ture: opera t ing the distinctitjn is no t easy b u t exile makes it necessary and difficult, yet over the course of t ime , paradoxically, it becomes easier and easier. Initially, of course , migran ts always huddle a round their religion, culture, and c o m m u n i t y to protect themselves from the foreign envi ronment . They stick to the ways of life of their countr ies of origin, often confusing rehgion, culture, and traditions. T h e second and later generat ions cannot be content wi th this a t t i tude and they always (being also m o r e educa ted) c o m e t o ques t ion s o m e cu l tu ra l t rai ts of t h e coun t r i e s of

44 WhiU I Believe

or ig in as they na tu ra l ly absorb the language and cul ture of the coun t ry in which they live. This transit ion pe r iod is one of na tu ra l conflict b e t w e e n g e n e r a t i o n s b u t also w i t h the sur rounding society: w h a t is involved here is doing away with the habits inherent in the parents' culture that are seen as prob­lematic and as no t always Islamic, and taking as one's o w n the positive elements of Wes te rn cultures while remaining faithful to Islam's principles. In countries whe re the Muslim presence is longer established, this transition is already well u n d e r way and the stage of cul tura l in tegra t ion has already b e e n over­come : the young are n o w culturally French, British, American, South African, Singaporian, or Canadian. In o ther countr ies , t h e p rocess is acce le ra t ing , and t h e r e are n o w increas ing n u m b e r s of Muslim Westerners w i t h o u t this be ing a problem for the w o m e n and m e n w h o define themselves as such.

W e s t e r n Islam is n o w a reality: w o m e n and m e n have English. French, G e r m a n , or Italian as their first language; they are immersed in the various Western culmres, and despite the negative image conveyed by certain media, political trends, or lobbies, they feel at h o m e in America, Australia, or Europe and this is where they wish to build their fumre and raise thei r chil­dren . The growing n u m b e r s of converts, w h o used to b e c o m e 'Arabized" or "Pakistanized" to feel m o r e Muslim, have now developed into a m o r e positive vec tor for the accu l tu ra t ion of Musl ims since t h o s e converts take o n responsibilities and increasingly own u p to their Western and European heritage. The process is unde r way: Islam is a Western religion, in light of history, of object ive data, of n u m b e r s , and also n o w of culture. This p h e n o m e n o n , which is n o w patent in America,

Western Is\am 45

iritain, or France, will n o t fail to spread th roughou t Europe , [including countries where Muslims have arrived m o i ^ recentiy Even though there wUl always be new Muslim immigrants , the Issue of Islam must n o w be distinguished firom the p h e n o m -' non of immigrat ion. It is henceforth a European issue, and a [Western one .

"CuJh*™!" Muslims, Rcfbrmisu. I.iteralhts, and So On 47

8

M O S T M U S L I M W E S T E R N E R S d o n o t p r a c t i c e the i r r e h g i o n regula r ly a n d e x p e r i e n c e no specific " r e h g i o u s " p r o b l e m s in t he i r daily lives. M a n y refer t o t h e m s e l v e s as be l ievers , abs ta in f r o m a l coho l a n d pork , o b s e r v e R a m a d a n o u t of fai th o r fami ly ( a n d / o r cu l t u r a l ) t r a d i t i o n , b u t t h e y have n o regu la r prac t ice a n d rare ly a t tend m o s q u e s . O t h e r s also refer t o t hemse lves as bel ievers b u t d o n o t respect t h e obli-ga r ions a n d p r o h i b i t i o n s o f thei r re l ig ion ; they m a y dr ink a lcohol a n d live w i t h o u t any par t icu la r re l igious sensit ivi ty (except , h e r e again , d u r i n g R a m a d a n , o r in p u n c t u a l reac­t ion to w h a t they m a y feel to be a t tacks o r aggressions in the media o r f rom cer ta in poli t ical parries) . O the r s still, a small minori ty, define themse lves as atheist ic, agnost ic , or mere ly " c u k u r a l " Mus l ims (or e v e n as "ex-Musl ims") and have n o ac tua l r e l i g ious affi l iation. It m u s t h e s t ressed t h a t t h o s e t h r e e ca t ego r i e s ( the first t w o in pa r t i cu l a r ) r e p r e s e n t t h e major i ty (75 pe rcen t t o 80 pe rcen t d e p e n d i n g on or ig ins a n d places) of t hose w h o are defined and r e c k o n e d as " M u s h m s " in W e s t e r n societies. T h o s e w o m e n a n d m e n have n o "reli­g i o u s " p r o b l e m w i t h t h e Wes t : apa r t f rom their skin color.

their o r ig in , a n d their n a m e , t hey have n o "re l igious visi­bility" ( n o r a n y d e m a n d s ) excep t w h a t t h e s u r r o u n d i n g society i m p o s e s on t h e m aga ins t the i r wi l l b y ass imila t ion or pro jec t ion . W h e n they ge t involved in society or poli t ics, ihey are still perceived as "Mus l ims" w h e t h e r they wish t o b e or not , even if they do n o t overt ly act as Musl ims and have no wish t o b e defined as such .

Among the remaining 20 percent to 25 percent (including all those w h o practice more or less regularly, a t tend mosques, pray daily or once a week, fast, and m a y somet imes be involved in Islamic organizations), the reformist t rend clearly holds sway from the second genera t ion on. Some m a y still express tradi­tionalist views, yet in practice m o s t 'ulamâ, leaders, and ordi­nary Musl ims explicidy or tacitly admit tha t the new Wes te rn context m u s t be taken into accoun t and tha t adequa te solu-rions m u s t be found to face n e w challenges. Those believers and w^orshipers need to find the means to b e faithful to Islamic principles whi l e confront ing t h e new, f luctuat ing realities of Western societies. This r equ i res r e t u r n i n g t o the scr ip tura l sources, revisiting literalist readings that p roceed by reduc t ion or "cul ture-based" readings t h a t ope ra te b y project ion, a n d engaging in n e w in te rpre ta t ions in light of the new context . Indeed fundamen ta l pr inciples ('aqîdah) and ritual pract ices ( 'ihadât) do n o t change, bu t o n e mus t engage in critical read­ings and reason ing (ijtihâd) to find the ways to a faithfulness that is no t bl ind to the evolut ions of t ime and to thé diversity-of societies. For reformists, faithfulness as to practice, prescrip­tions, and prohibit ions is essential, bu t there is n o faithfulness wi thout evolut ion. '

'Cultural" Muslims, Reformists, Literalists, and So On

48 What I Believe

For close to twenty-five years, I have been par t of this t r end that prevails a m o n g those Musl ims w h o claim a religious affili­ation and sensiti\Hty associated to regular pract ice. Over one genera t ion , an a s tound ing evolut ion has taken place in text interpretat ions, in the unders tand ing of the Western context , in discourses, and in views abou t religious, cultural, and soci­etal debates . 'Ulama a n d the i r councils, intellectuals, organi­zation leaders as well as ordinary Musl ims have pe r fo rmed a genu ine intellectual revolut ion: this is n o t always recognized in the West , for the long t i m e of mental i ty change is invisible to the immed ia t e t ime of med ia coverage (or the short t i m e of political stakes), and yet real, highly positive progress has b e e n made . W h a t has been achieved is very impor tan t , as w e shall see, and it brings high h o p e s even though the process m u s t still be carried o n beyond a reformist t hough t that merely strives to adapt ro cur ren t c ircumstances (but remains unable to b e c o m e a force for t r ans fo rma t ion con t r ibu t ing t o the in te l lectual , scientific, and ethical reflection of which o u r world is in such great need) . This is indeed w h y I call for a n even deeper "radical reform" tha t requires u s t o reconsider the very sources of the fundamenta l s of Islamic law and ju r i sp rudence {usui al-jiqk) ra ther t han keeping t o context-related adaptat ions of law and jur i sprudence (Jiqh). W e should thereby equip ourselves w i th the means to move from an "adaptation reform" to a "transfor­mational reform" based o n contribution. '"

T h e r e are , however , literalist t rends , called "salafi" (and inappropriately, "Wahhabi te" ) , which have a totally different approach to the W e s t e r n context . They consider tha t o n e should r e m r n ro the letter of scripmral sources (the Q u r a n and

"Cultural" Musli-ms, Reformüif, Literalist!, and So On 49

le Sunnah) and keep away from Western society that appears "devoid of religion" and "devoid of morals." T h e scholars and

"leaders in those minority t rends are far from being superficial, uneducated minds: to think so w o t i l d b e a profound misjudg-ment. It is their turn of mind, a certain vision of realities, tha t

L determines their particular way of in terpre t ing the Texts and '^the world: w h a t emerges—however sophisticated their m inds— Is always a binary world of good and evil, of "us" versus " them," of "knowledge" and " ignorance , " of Islam a n d others . Th i s results in a relat ionship t o reality as dogmat ic as it is fbrmal-

tfatic, which de termines a certain way of be ing a Muslim today: a rigid, literalist reading of t h e Texts, insistence o n "islamic" knovMedge tha t edifies as opposed to o ther "useless" areas of knowledge, isolation from the world which is going astray and particularly from the West , and, very often, a "literal," bl ind r e spea for ruling Islamic authori t ies. Those trends exist in the West and they are marginal, even though they are able to attract (temporarily, m o s t of the time) young people looking for sharp clarity or go ing t h r o u g h crises and to w h o m their approach gives a sense of security. T h e negative media images, feelings of rejection, or social marginalization have also somet imes pushed those young people toward those trends that at the same t ime offer protect ion and enable t h e m t o construct a far more confi­dent image of themselves and where they belong.

For those literalist trends, as indeed for traditionalists (who strictly adhe re t o one school of law or o n e ritualistic move-

[men t like the tablighi), reformis ts go too far and have some-imes "gone o u t of Islam." In ternal debates and rejections are

^continuous, a n d often passionate and violent . In the Wes t as

50 What / Bchcvi

well as in Asia, Africa, o r Mauri t ius, in s o m e Muslim majority count r ies o r on the web, I have for ins tance repeatedly been called a "kdfir" (negator , infidel), a "murtad" (apos ta te) , o r an i m p o s t o r seeking t o adul te ra te Islam and destroy it from within . This happens to a large n u m b e r of reformists (ironi­cally considered "fundamental is ts" b y s o m e Wes te rn circles). O the r m o r e sectarian a n d / o r politicized trends exist, bu t they are quite margina l even t h o u g h some of their public declara­tions a t t ract media a t ten t ion . The optical illusion of the media m u s t n o t mislead us: the Islamic groups or groupuscules that m o s t often m a k e news, those that express the most incendiary and violent views, r epresen t the tiniest fringe of the Musl im communi ty , which does n o t identify with t hem.

O n e shou ld also n o t e t h e significant, inconspicuous , a n d often mul t i fo rm presence of Sufi circles. Some are Sufi while be ing involved in Islamic associations, o t h e r s strictly follow Islamic prescr ipr ions a n d t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s of mys t ics b u t w i t h o u t displaying it, o the r s still have a very loose relationship to Islam and even to the Sufi tradition itself, wi th practices and rules tha t are very flexible if not altogether absent. This d imen­sion of Islam is impor tan t and Sufi circles can play active, and highly contradictory, parts in Western societies (as was the case du r ing coloniza t ion or even today in Mus l im major i ty soci­eties): they can stand, internally, as rigorous guardians of t h e spiritual substance of Islam's message; they can merely assert their a u t o n o m y from the authori t ies; or on the contrary, they can be ins t rumenta l ized b y governments t o present a cer tain image of the "other," " m o d e r a t e " Islam, that is "fi:ee" or even "secular ized"—which is, in itself, utterly meaningless.

9 Advances

)R BELIEVING, OBSERVANT MusLiMS w h o m a y have faced lifficulties t ry ing to reconcile the c o m m a n d s a n d prohibit ions

their rel igion wi th life in W e s t e r n societies, the evolut ion 3f th inking a n d mind-sets has b e e n rapid and impressive, as

ll said, if one takes the t ime to seriously assess w h a t has b e e n achieved. Both o n the theoretical and practical levels, a n u m b e r Ipf principles have been established a n d const i tute advances for

Dday and for the future.

First, the old traditional b inary categorizat ion of the wor ld )to "the abode of Islam" (ddr al-isUm) and " the abode of war"

Sr al-harb) h a d to be ques t ioned . Wi th the except ion of a ew literalist, traditionalist, o r pohticized g roups , n o scholarly

fauthority and n o significant organizat ion uses those concepts ' anymore , Such t e r m s as "abode of cont rac t" {ddr al-'ahd o r iddrcd-'aqd), "abode of treaty" (ddr al-sulh), or "abode of predi­

cation" (dar ad-da'wah) are n o w being used. I have suggested le concept of "abode of t e s t imony" (ddr ash-shahAdah), wh ich

[expresses the idea that Mus l ims , like all peop le of faith a n d [convictions, shou ld strive to b e "witnesses" of their message [and p r inc ip les t h r o u g h t h e i r p r e s e n c e a n d by b e h a v i n g

5i WhallBdieve

consistently with those principles. Such an appellation hreak the binary relarion and, in a global world, it achieves reconcili­ation wi th Islam's universal dimension: t h e whole wor ld has b e c o m e a space, an a b o d e , of test imony. T h e wi tness is n o longer a s t ranger in the o ther ' s world, ne i ther is he linked to the o t h e r by a contract : h e is at h o m e , a m o n g his own kind, and he s imply tries to be consis tent w i t h his beliefs and in h a r m o n y wi th the people wi th w h o m he Uves and builds his future.

It is n o w clear that so l ong as the t w o basic rights {freedom of conscience and freedom of worship) a re recognized and protected, as they are in all Western societies, Muslims have to respect the law, which is b inding on t h e m as it is on all o the r citizens and residents. M u s h m Wes te rne r s have u n d e r s t o o d that w h e n secularism and religious neut ra l i ty are not instru-mcn ta l i zed by ideologues or intel lectual or political t r ends opposed to any presence of religion, they guarantee religious plura l ism in Wes te rn societ ies and p ro t ec t their l eg i t ima te rights. O n c e again, n o recognized Muslim scholar, n o credible Islamic organization, requires specific laws or exceptional treat­ment : closer smdy will s h o w that they d e m a n d that the law be enforced and that, in its n a m e , the different religions receive fair and equal t rea tment . T h e media or the political stage have often presen ted the d e m a n d s of some Muslim organizat ions as p rob lemat ic because t hey asked for specific rights: in effect, they were only asking for w h a t had al ready been g r a n t e d to others (Jews, Roman Catholics , or Protes tants) before t h e m , b u t such pro jec t ions a re m a d e o n Muslims* in ten t ions a n d cont roversy s tar ts so qu ick ly that M u s l i m cit izens ' m e r e l y

Advances 53

g for equal creatment is quickly in terpreted by the media .Hid public opinion as a demand for special t r ea tmen t . "

(Considerable effort has g o n e i n to e n c o u r a g i n g Musl im iltizens to s tudy and to interact m o r e and m o r e with society,

effect, thei r n e w visibility represents exactly the opposi te " what is genera l ly said. F i r s t -gene ra t ion m i g r a n t s w e r e

Isolated and invisible: thei r p resence was n o t even not iced . With the second and third genera t ions emerg ing , things have I hanged: the young are now visible everywhere, in the street,

campuses, in workplaces. T h e first natural reaction to this lew visibihty is to identify it as the presence of a new, seem­

ingly different, segregated "communi ty . " Yet it is exactly the < tpposite: percept ion by the publ ic , politicians, and the media l.igs behind reality, so that they give deficient interpretat ions. I he new visibility does n o t p rove the existence of a closed, si'gregatcd communi ty but exactly the opposi te: it shows that new generat ions are opening up , reaching o u t of their social, cultural, and religious ghet tos in take up their place in a space .ind society they rightly consider their own. T h e same is t rue , indeed, of African Americans in the United States. This reality IS a considerable advance: at the intellecmal level, in universi­ties, on the j o b market , socially, politically culturally, even in sports, Musl im citizens are ge t t i ng involved. They are do ing s " individually, following t h e i r o w n asp i ra t ions and hopes , and nowhere can one find w h a t could be considered, socially or politically, a c o m m o n pos i t ion , even less a representa t ion of "the c o m m u n i t y " and of "its interests ." All that is said to that effect has to do with fantasy and wi th the ins t rumental ­ization of fear: in reahty, Mus l im Americans, Europeans , o r

54 What 1 Believe

Australians are get t ing involved everywhere , individually, and they lay n o claim to "representing" or "defending" "the Muslim communi ty ."

O n e can also observe a process of institutionalization of the Muslim presence tha t is occurr ing in several directions. It natu­

rally began with the creation of mosques : this was and every­

where remains the first act of Muslims settling in a n e w envi­

r o n m e n t . T h e n associations and organizat ions with m o r e or less specialized aims were created everywhere; associations for young people , for students, for w o m e n , for cultural activities or sports. Initially Muslims naturally thought of associations exclu­

sively addressing the religious community. They had to answer the needs of Muslims Uving in a new context . In certain soci­

eties where the p h e n o m e n o n was well established and recog­

nized as in Britain, the Nether lands , Scandinavia, the United States, Canada, South Africa, or Singapore, Muslims began to set up private schools. Here again, two needs were addressed: pro tec t ing the y o u n g f rom the Weste rn env i ronmen t (mos t of the time such schools ta rge ted girls) and creating efficient schools that were not second­class schools, as state schools often are in the areas or suburbs where socially marginalized a n d / o r Muslim populat ions are mainly concentrated.'­^ In many coun­

tries, reflection has developed in order t o set up pre­academic or academic t ra in ing colleges t o provide leaders or i m a m s with soUd knowledge of " theo logy" and Islamic law as well as unders tanding of the local context. O n e may also m e n t i o n the creation of small businesses pubhshing books about Islam (whether n e w or t ranslated) , selling halal meat , or otherwise answering the communi ty ' s expectations in t e rms of consump­

Advances н

I t )n several levels, then, a veiy impor tant process of institu­

malization can be observed and is gaining m o m e n t u m . W h a t I also most encouraging and positive is the parallel process of .iching ou t toward organiza t ions outside the c o m m u n i t y :

iharities, social s t ructures , political parties. Musl im citizens ' now gett ing involved beyond their "communi ty" and inter­

i r i ing with society in a wholly n e w manner : they are citizens .11 id they are developing a sense of belonging in their daily lives,

lis is palpable everywhere, and it is impor tant to take its full leasure. The impact of this multidimensional process will b e

jcial in and for the years to come .

In recent years f have m e t a n u m b e r of ministers, secretaries state, and officials in m a n y Western count r ies and 1 have

x t forward those analyses to t h e m along with a few opinions l ^ o u t address ing the issues re la ted t o the Musl im presence .

, have kept repeat ing that an evolution is under way and that I m e m u s t be r eckoned w i t h . Never the less , s t ra teg ies can

Hie devised by gove rnmen t s t o accelerate and facilitate those f ic t t lement processes , all the m o r e so as Musl im c o m m u n i ­

ies are general ly not rich (considering their m e m b e r s ' social origin—apart f rom some American or Canadian immigrants ) : in all circumstances, and while respecting the legal firamework of the separa t ion of orders (state and rel igion) , g o v e r n m e n t action should be conten t with t rying to facilitate evolut ions t rustingly a n d n o t a t t e m p t t o control t h e m whi le foster ing mistrust . Any control ­or iented approach will n o t only foster suspicion and confirm that Musl im citizens are n o t t reated Ике the others : it wLll also fail t o elicit credibility a n d significant support within Muslim communi t i es .

10

Challenges

T H E C H A L L E N G E S AT H A N D are n u m e r o u s and . he re again , mul t id imens iona l . Even t h o u g h I say w i t h force and convic­t ion tha t t h e reformisr r r end holds sway in the West a m o n g Musl im c o m m u n i t i e s and that unde r s t and ing of the con tex t is u n d e r g o i n g rapid evo lu t ion , na ive ty a n d blind o p t i m i s m m u s t be avoided. T h e first major challenge remains to d e e p e n k n o w l e d g e b o t h of Is lam and of W e s t e r n societies a m o n g 'ulamâ, in te l lecmals , assoc ia t ion leaders , i m a m s , a n d m o r e general ly ord inary Mus l ims . This beg ins wi th mas te r ing the t e r m i n o l o g y : it is i m p e r a t i v e to develop and circulate m o r e adequa te unde r s t and ing o f such concepts as "fiqh," "ijtihM" (critical independent th inking) , "fatwa" (legal opinion), "jihad" (effort, res is tance) , "sharî'ah" ( the way t o fai thfulness) o r "secular izat ion," "secularity," "laicity" "cit izenship," " d e m o ­cratic principles," "democra t i c models , " " h u m a n rights," and "universals." Such concepts are read and used bu t confusion is widespread, and M u s h m s m u s t equip themselves wi th clearer discourse relying o n a c loser mastery and definition of t e r m s . I have b e e n w o r k i n g toward this for years in the various b o o k s I have wr i t t en about such issues, bu t the re is still a long w a y t o

challenges 57

before w e can open a sha red critical debate over concepts id their definition. : Clarifying the t e r m i n o l o g y is crucial . For example , w h e n

ite that the shari 'ah is n o t " a sys tem" n o r "a closed body of imic l aws"" b u t ra ther the "Way to faithfulness to Islam's

bjcctives" (which consist in p ro t ec t i ng life, dignity, jus t ice , quality, peace. Nature , etc,),'* this entails direct consequences

my unders tanding of the legal f ramework of Western soci-s. T h u s , all t h e laws that p r o t e c t h u m a n life and dignity,

promote justice and equality, enforce respect of Nature , and so 1, are my shari 'ah implemented in my society, even though this

. no t a Musl im majority society o r those laws have no t b e e n ievised and p r o d u c e d by Mus l im scholars. I follow the W a y llnce those laws enable m e to be faithful to its fundamenta l

fobjectives and therefore to be faithful to Islam's message and ' principles.

Such an u n d e r s t a n d i n g of Is lamic t e r m i n o l o g y to ta l ly [reverses perspect ives . Bet ter k n o w l e d g e of w h a t ci t izenship [implies p r o d u c e s similar resul t s . Musl ims m u s t thus get r id l o f two obstacles tha t result f rom inadequa te unde r s t and ing (of their s ta tus . T h e y are faced w i t h b o t h a d i scourse and a pressure that systematically confuse orders: a l though they are already citizens m some countr ies , diey are constantly consid-

^.ered "minor i t ies" because the i r rel igion or thei r cul ture a re Deing referred to whereas secularized Western societies clearly make a distinction be tween t h e citizen's legal and public status and the bel iever 's re l igious affihation. M u s l i m s often have

i psychologically integrated this percept ion ( that is projected o n them) and also refer to themselves as a "minority," confusing

58 What ! MiEve

1 by fighting against injustice, racism, discrimination, popu-| t stigmatization discourse, a n d hypocrisies. This also means [htmg against paternalist ic, often neo-colonial ist discourse id infantihzing t rea tment : for th i r ty years the West has seem-Igly been faced wi th " y o u n g M u s h m s " w h o are e ternal ly

Pyoung" and w h o are taking qui te a long t i m e to g row in to idults mature e n o u g h to discuss issues on an equal footing.

The feeling of be long ing t h a t s t ems from deeper knowl-(dge of concep ts and objectives is apt to enable Muslims t o ) roaden the i r in te res t s to i n c l u d e social p r o b l e m s beyond lose related t o Islam. Social quest ions , educat ion, schooling

jolicies, pa ren t s ' associations, u n e m p l o y m e n t , the homeless , Jelinquency, u r b a n violence b u t also societal debates , p o w e r

Pgnd " race" re la t ionsh ips , i n v o l v e m e n t in par t ies , ecology, llmrnigJ^^tion poHcies, and in terna t ional relations mus t interest f them like all o t h e r citizens. So far only a minor i ty of Musl im ^citizens reach o u : in this way, a n d they often have to face suspi-

ion or endur ing prejudice, Yet they open t h e w a y to a process lat may be slow bu t is irreversible. T h e challenge is to see that jis process is unders tood and sough t rather than just suffered

[ and managed so chaotically tha t it becomes counterproduct ive : and fosters division.

Drawing u p the long list o f chal lenges is impossible , b u t a n u m b e r immedia te ly stand o u t a n d should b e addressed as priorities. O n e i m p o r t a n t issue is to look in to the processes through which y o u n g people are a t t racted to rigid l i teralism or, on a m o r e pohtical level, to radical izanon. and in rare cases

; to violent action and extremism. Islamic educa t ion in the West ' mus t be revisited bo th in its f o rm and con ten t in light of the

the factual n u m b e r s of t he i r rel igious c o m m u n i t y w i t h the m e a n i n g and legal s u b s t a n c e of thei r be long ing as citizens, However , in the o rder of cit izenship, of re la t ionship t o the law, or of the t r ea tmen t of individuals, the minority concept is inoperative: there is n o such thing as "minori ty citizenship"! They m u s t therefore o v e r c o m e this "minor i ty" mind-set and fully par t ic ipa te in c i t izenship on an equa l footing w i t h the "major i ty" Drawing a hnk wi th the definition and the inclusive unders tanding of the concep t of shari'ah suggested above will shed light o n the na tu re of the intellectual revolution tha t can emerge fi-om this process of clarification. This w o r k remains to be car r ied o u t e v e r y w h e r e in Mus l im c o m m u n i t i e s : the m o r e o r less clear or confused feeling that change is necessary exists, b u t a large-scale popular izat ion effort is required t o give it fo rm and substance.

Such w o r k on p e r c e p t i o n s will m a k e it possible to fight against the t empta t ion for people wi thin Muslim communi t i es to cast themselves as vict ims. W h e n it is m a d e clear tha t they are at h o m e in the West, t h a t the Way of faithfulness to h igher principles m u s t be followed bo th here and elsewhere, tha t they m u s t s top considering themselves a minor i ty bu t that o n the contrary k n o w i n g their du t ies as well as thei r rights as citizens involved in the majori ty is a necessity: w h e n all that is m a d e clear, M u s h m s will be called upon to take responsibil i ty for themselves and get rid of t h e victim mind-set . This is a major chal lenge: it is u rgent t o s t o p b laming "society-that-docs-not-like-us" o r " is lamophobia" o r "racism" a n d thereby justifying guJ ty passivity. T h a t such p h e n o m e n a exist cannot be denied, bu t Musl ims mus t tackle t h e m by g e n i n g involved as d o z e n s

6o What I Udieve

con tex t a n d of the a f o r e m e n t i o n e d cha l lenges . D i scou r se a b o u t t h e s u r r o u n d i n g soc ie ty a n d W e s t e r n cu l tu re m u s t change in t o n e and o r ien ta t ion : MusHms m u s t imperat ively be encouraged to part icipate in the American, Australian, and E u r o p e a n cu l tu res (as w e l l as South African, Maur i t ian , or Singaporian) that are n o w the i r own. Creativity, contr ibut ion, and p roduc t i on in the arts , music, c inema, and l i te ramre are to be encouraged , as well as reading aU types of books . Such confident outreach, such t rus t in their weal th and capacity to cont r ibute a n d give, such shared presence—this is wha t m u s t be e n c o u r a g e d on several levels and in t h e different social, political, cultural fields as well as in sports, of course.

A word m u s t be said h e r e about the ques t ion of t ransmis­sion because the challenge is a major one and is inadequately addressed, as reality shows daily. N e w genera t ions of Musl ims quickly appea r and qu ick ly b e c o m e visible in society, while the ongo ing migra t ion p h e n o m e n o n br ings in a n e w popula­tion of fireshly immigra ted Muslims. T h e nagging ques t ion is crystal clear: h o w can advances in t e r m s of unde r s t and ing , discourse, a n d civic i nvo lvemen t be t r ansmi t t ed b o t h ver t i ­cally t o t h e y o u n g e r g e n e r a t i o n s and hor izonta l ly to reach the different communi t i e s , and a m o n g t h e m the i m m i g r a n t s w h o keep arriving wi th a vision of Islam confused wi th that of their count r ies of origin? I have a l ready po in ted o u t h e r e that s o m e popul is t par t ies use newly arr ived i m m i g r a n t s to cast d o u b t o n all the Musl ims settled in the different countr ies , and the m e d i a s o m e t i m e s cont r ibu te t o fostering suspicion by focusing o n the p r o b l e m s n e w i m m i g r a n t s occasional ly encounter . This is a real difficulty: Mus l im citizens mus t th ink

Challenges 61

at the means and methods of educat ion and t ransmission in better-organized, m o r e efficient manner , for if they do not , i^ances and achievements will constantiy be u n d e r m i n e d by

ate at t imdes of s o m e young people or some n e w immigran t s Cting in the n a m e of wholly deficient perceptions, or sincerely (id/or naively allowing themselves to be instrumental ized.

11

T H E ISSUE OF WOMEN has always been a priori ty in m y commit ­ment , I have kept ques t ion ing tradit ional in terpre ta t ions a n d inviting Musl ims to hones t lucidity and critical reflection cjver the s i tuat ion of w o m e n in Musl im major i ty societies a n d in communi t i es settled in the West . T h e po in t was not to respond to Wes te rn criticisms by adop t ing a defensive (or a l toge ther apologetic) att i tude bu t to answer tiie r equ i remen t of intellec­tual probi ty and consis tency I have repea ted this m a n y times; Islam has n o p r o b l e m w i t h w o m e n , b u t Musl ims do clearly appear to have serious p r o b l e m s with t h e m , and the reasons and s o m e t i m e s the (quest ionable) justifications for this m u s t be sought from within.

First, there is a double p h e n o m e n o n at the source of all the theological and social const ruct ions that have been established a posteriori . The issue of w o m e n is a m o n g those mos t widely affected by literalist readings of the Q u r a n and of P rophe t i c t radi t ions. Neglect ing the fact that the Revelation took place in a g iven context a n d t h a t its t ransmiss ion over a per iod of twenty- three years de te rmines an orientat ion as to divine peda­gogy, Mteralist readings fi-eeze the text o u t of its context, o f its

The loue of Women 63

Iternal progression, and of the ends of the global message, ley proceed b y "reduction" a n d somet imes m a n a g e tojustify

i terpretations t h a t clearly con t rad ic t the overall message in Its historical evolu t ion or t h e m o d e l of behav io r set by t h e

•ophet of Islam. Beyond unjustified practices (such as phys-;al violence as already m e n t i o n e d ) , reformist and literalist iterpretations differ in their very concept ion of w o m e n , a n d

their identity and au tonomy. Literalist interpretat ions inte-•ate the patr iarchal context of t h e time w i t h o u t any critical

[istance and associate w o m e n ' s presence and role to their rela­tion to men, while the reformist approach reaches out beyond

;e historical con tex t t o ex t rac t f u n d a m e n t a l objectives as ;o women ' s ident i ty and their s ta tus as a u t o n o m o u s beings .

'Women shou ld thus b e c o m e subjects and mas t e r their o w n fates.

The s t udy of t h e wr i t i ngs a n d c o m m e n t a r i e s of ear ly 'ulamâ, fi-om Tabar i to Abu H â m i d al-Ghazâli, clearly shows

jthat they were greatly inf luenced by their cu l tu ra l environ-iment. One can ofi^en observe tha t they unwit t ingly proceed by "projection" o n the Texts, thei r substance and their objectives. A contemporary/f lqif i (Musl im jur is t ) or c o m m e n t a t o r m u s t therefore p e r i b r m a twofold dialectical analysis: die scriptural sources m u s t first be read in l ight of their context , and t hen later commenta r ies mus t be read in light of t h e sociocultural contexts of the scholars w h o p roduced them. This process of deconstruct ion IS difficult, b u t it makes it possible to cri t ique the historical a n d cul tura l c o a t i n g tha t has b e e n p ro jec ted

S'Onto p r i m a r y sources . T h u s , d i s cou r se a b o u t w o m e n h a s been widely influenced by pat r iarchal cul tures , so that s o m e

The Issue of Women

64 Wkar 1 Helkvt:

cul tura l p rac t ices t h a t w e r e n o t "Islamic" have c o m e t o be justified. Female excision, forced m a r r i a g e s , h o n o r c r imes , for instance, are no t Islamic even though cer tain scholars may have a t t empted t o provide rehgious justification for t h e m . This critical w o r k is a long way f rom being comple ted , and aware­ness m u s t be raised a m o n g Muslims and their fellow-citizens a b o u t t h o s e confusions t h a t lead to the original message b e i n g bet rayed. This is why 1 coope ra t ed w i t h the Musl im organi­za t ion S P I O R ' ' f rom R o t t e r d a m in l a u n c h i n g a E u r o p e a n campaign against forced mar r iages in May 2008: the poin t is to speak o u t a n d state forcefully that such practices (like excision, h o n o r cr imes, and others) arc against Islam.

Moreover , the psychological d imens ion in the debate over w o m e n shou ld n o t be downplayed . T h e re la t ionship t o the West is a complex o n e : before, during, t hen after colonizat ion, the issue of w o m e n has b e e n central t o p o w e r relations and political as well as theo log ica l and cul tural debates. This has fostered a k ind of reflex reacrion in the con tempora ry Musl im psyche: the less Western t h e discourse abou t w o m e n , the m o r e it is perceived as Islamic, and conversely, the m o r e islamic it is, the m o r e it should b e restrictive and oppose Western permis­siveness w h o s e objective is supposed to be to u n d e r m i n e reli­g ion a n d mora l s . Such a n a t t i tude has often prevented Mus l im scholars a n d intellectuals f rom unde r t ak ing an a u t o n o m o u s , r igorous cri t ique from wi th in , s t e m m i n g f rom a conce rn for reconci l ing Mus l ims w i t h t he i r o w n m e s s a g e and its e n d s . The point is no t to be naive abou t relations of domina t ion b u t indeed t o ge t rid of t h e fear and alienation t h a t keep t h o u g h t static in o rder to stand apa r t from the o the r s and refuse their

The Issv-e. of Women 65

jntrol. Refusing "Western" d o m i n a t i o n by be t r ay ing one 's m rel igious message is an even m o r e d a n g e r o u s form o f

.Henation s ince, in the p r o c e s s of resist ing, one ' s crit ical iipacity, c o n c e r n for consis tency, and crea t ive ene rgy are

lost. O n e ends u p being de f ined only t h r o u g h the o the r s , i rough their negative mir ror : he r e , psychology wins ou t over

libération.

It is therefore impor tant to carry ou t in-depth critical w o r k . i i id e n c o u r a g e w o m e n t o b e c o m e involved a n d acquire t h e irligious learning necessary t o develop new feminine readings. Women m u s t b e present in t h e rel igious c o m m u n i t y ' s deci-ion circles, in organizations, in m o s q u e m a n a g i n g bodies, and

other places. Things should be shaken up so tha t w o m e n can rcover their p rope r place, b u t w o m e n themselves m u s t also

get organized: they will achieve no th ing if they retain a \ ' ictim mind-set. It is obvious today t h a t wherever w o m e n hâve h a d access to schooling, have received Islamic educat ion, or have become involved at t h e communi ty or social level, they perform bet te r than m e n : they achieve b e t t e r results, they are m o r e committed, m o r e rigorous, and m o r e earnest. Facts and figures speak for themselves. This process m u s t g o o n and offer w o m e n full access t o civil society and t o e m p l o y m e n t wi th d e m a n d s t h a t should be taken for g ran ted : similar t ra ining, similar quali­fication m e a n get t ing the s a m e salary, and j o b discrimination (becaiL ' îe a w o m a n is too young a n d will probably have a child, or because she is too old and d o e s no t fit w i th the youthfhl "image") m u s t be rejected a n d fought against . W h e t h e r or no t one calls it feminist (I d o n o t mind) , this c o m m i t m e n t for women 's legit imate rights can and mus t take place fi:om within

66 Wkac I Believe

t o have a chance of be ing successful. There is a long way to go and we m u s t all engage in it together: by elaborating a discourse that speaks of w o m e n as beings before addressing only their functions in the family or society, a discourse that protects their au tonomy and fi'eedom of being and of action. We all have to be consistent: guaranteeing women 's freedom entails accepting that they m i g h t make a choice one unders tands or a n o t h e r choice one does not understand. O n e should be wary of those very " l iberal , ' and above all very dogmat ic , n e w judges w h o think they have a right to judge what use others should m a k e of their freedom,

12

T H E FEELING OF BELONGING to Western or European societies will not spring from incantatory, idealistic discourse. Beyond all the modal i t ies of " in tegra t ion ," the feeling of be longing involves very deep and s o m e t i m e s complex psychological d imensions . It feeds on var ious e lements : the s u r r o u n d i n g a tmosphere ; political, in te l lec tual , and p o p u l a r d iscourse ; media imagery; daily representat ions; ne ighbor relations; the feeling of be ing recognized as a n asset or at least of be ing "valuable" in the other's eyes. It requires jo int effort to nu r tu re this feeling deep inside individuals: no th ing is easy here, and all parties m u s t take their responsibili t ies. If one were still to use the concept of " integrat ion" one could, as I did in m y 1993 bookL^5 musulmans dam la laïcité (Muslims in the Secular State), speak of " in tegra t ion of in t imacies" to refer t o the process of "feeling comfortable" and "at h o m e . " Gradually, the different m o d e s of "integrarion" [linguistic, intellectual, social, legal, cultural, and religious integration} have become o r are becoming obsolete: what remains is the ul t imate stage, which is psychological as well as intellectual and which nurtures , and is nu rmred by, the sense of belonging.

The Sense of Belonging and the "Post-Integration" Approach

68 What I Believe

At this u l t imate stage, t h e success of the integrat ion process precisely lies in no longer speaking of integrat ion. So l ong as one refers to "integration," o n e nurtures the perception of t w o entit ies based o n a feeling o f "us" versus " them," of a society that "receives" and of cit izens w h o are still a little "of immi ­gran t o r ig in" and w h o are "received." T h e all b u t obsessive discourse a b o u t the "mtegra t ion" of n e w citizens is an objec­tive i m p e d i m e n t to the posit ive deve lopmen t of a feeling of be long ing . In this sense, a t s o m e stage in t eg ra t ion policies result in t h e exact oppos i te of w h a t they set o u t t o achieve: they h igh l igh t differences, define ca r i ca tu red ent i t ies , a n d main ta in the idea that after several genera t ions certain citizens remain gues ts , w h o are t o o different, w h o perpe tua l ly n e e d to "adapt." Such discourse n u r m r e s percept ions: in France or in Britain, after th ree , four, o r even five genera t ions , p e o p l e still speak of French or British citizens "of immigran t origin." African American Musl ims arc still too African or too Musl im t o b e t r e a t e d equally. H o w l o n g does o n e r e m a i n an i m m i ­grant , while the only difference be tween "ethnically French" or "ethnically Brirish" ci t izens and recen t immig ran t s lies in the fact that the "ethnically French" or "ethnically British" a re simply i m m i g r a n t s of l o n g e r standing? In t h e United States, African Americans sull face t h e realities of racism, of relation­ships of d o m i n a t i o n , d i sc r imina t ion , a n d al ienat ion, w h i c h s t igmat ize the "other ." Barack Obama ' s e lect ion should n o t deceive u s a b o u t t h e deep- ly ing cu r r en t s t h a t still inf luence and d e t e r m i n e A m e r i c a n society as far as the racial issue is conce rned . O n the scale o f history, differences are relat ive: t h e p r o b l e m here has t o d o w i t h pe r cepuons a n d representa-

TheStnseef Belonging and the "Post-Inlegration"Approach 6g

s, which p r o d u c e affiliations a n d out l ine differences and

elusions. W e m u s t e l a b o r a t e a " p o s t - i n t e g r a t i o n " a p p r o a c h a n d

scourse, revisit ing the way in w h i c h people represent a n d j ^ a l y z e themselves and thereby taking into account the trans-

j r m a t i o n s in Wes te rn societ ies. In this respect , the h i s to ry f ind social a n d political pos i t ions of Afidcan Amer icans are instructive and useful since their discourse a n d approach have overcome those registers and firmly situate themselves inside

, 'American society. Tha t discourse and approach from wi th in requi re rev is ing o u r official h i s t o r y syllabi a n d sugges t ing an inclusive approach . We n e e d a n official h i s tory (nat ional , European, and Western) that in tegra tes the plural memor i e s of t h e citizens (new o r no t ) w h o a re par t of it: it is impor tan t to ment ion t h e m , t o shed l ight o n their culmral and intellec-lual wealth, and to value their contr iburion a n d presence. N o feeling of b e l o n g i n g to a social s t rucmre can develop if it does not acknowledge the value and t h e (historical and present ) contribution of its m e m b e r s , of all its m e m b e r s . T h e point is not to p roduce guilt-fostering discourse abou t past coloniza-rion bu t posit ive, confident d iscourse that is able to o w n u p to mistakes , t o assess i n p u t a n d assets, t o tell of the painful experience of slavery, of exile, a n d of the contr ibut ion of the first generat ions, the new ci t izens ' fathers a n d mothers , t o t h e construct ion of Western countr ies .

It is impor t an t to develop positive, official policies focusing on contr ibut ions and sha r ing r a t h e r t han o n a so-called in te ­gration whose meaning has b e c o m e unclear n o w that the va.st majority of citizens speak the country 's language, respect laws.

70 What I Bdicve

and, precisely, d e m a n d the right to equal t r ea tment . Yet, all is as t h o u g h they .still had t o prove that they be long by having to answer lists of sensitive ques t ions (which m a y vary f rom o n e Weste rn c o u n t r y t o a n o t h e r ) m e a n t t o establish w h e t h e r or no t they are "mode ra t e " a n d can be "integrated." Are you first a Musl im or American, Canadian , AustraHan, Italian, British, o r French? D o you speak t h e national l anguage at home? W h a t do you th ink of the "Musl im veil"? W h a t is your position about homosexuahty? H o w d o y o u educate y o u r children? D o you go to the s w i m m i n g pool? D o y o u w a n t Islamic schools? H o w do you choose y o u r female o r m a l e doctor? and so on. Somet imes they are even ques t ioned a b o u t the IsraeH­Palestinian conflict, t h e w a r i n Iraq, o r m o r e genera l ly t h e crises i n t h e Middle East, Asia, or North Africa. Such testing quest ions are utterly unacceptable , yet they are everywhere presen t and distinguish "good"' f rom "bad" Musl ims, good cit izens from "suspects"; a n d yet n o o n e w o u l d d a r e ask such q u e s t i o n s of ordinary, "purebred" citizens, of atheists , agnostics, Jews, CathoHcs, or î ' ro tes tants , howeve r conservat ive o r d o g m a t i c they m i g h t be.

Along w i t h the above ­men t ioned policy regarding school syllabi, i t is i m p o r t a n t t o l a u n c h local projects that br ing citi­

zens t o g e t h e r a r o u n d c o m m o n values a n d s top classifying t h e m as "nationals ," " in tegra ted ," or " to b e in tegra ted" (or as " a u t o c h t h o n o u s " or "a l loch thonous" as in the Nether lands) . It is i m p o r t a n t to a c k n o w l e d g e that they are citizens a n d t o involve t h e m in local social actions tha t recognize their près encc, p r o m o t e their input , a n d mobil ize thei r energy. D u r i n g the past th ree years, I have taken par t in a n extremely inter­

es t ing a n d innovat ive pi lot pro jec t w i t h t h e municipal i ty of

Tht Sense af Belonging and the "Post-Integration" Approach

to t t e rdam, u n d e r the initial i m p e t u s of a counci l m e m b e r rom the ecologis t party ( O r h a n Kaya), A r o u n d the gener ic l e m e "Citizenship, identily, and seme of belonging," it aims at

.leveloping bridges in various fields: education, the job market , media, re la t ions be tween faith commun i t i e s , a n d social proj ­

ects. T h e local level is w h e r e a t r u e sense of b e l o n g i n g can i e fostered, t h r o u g h mutua l respect and t r u s t a n d innovative, plural initiatives. Aftier an initial cycle of e n c o u n t e r s in t h e lield, 1 have publ i shed a first­stage repor t a b o u t educat ion , ' " and the p r o c e s s is go ing o n a b o u t such i s sues as the j o b market and t h e m e d i a . J u s t like those projects tha t insist o n proximity': a c o m m o n sense of be long ing , and civic creativi­

ty—in the n a m e of an approach tha t is clearly "post­integra­

l ion" in n a t u r e — w e n e e d na t iona l policies for local initiatives. Besides, o n e can observe at the local level t h a t the t ens ions and pass ionate deba tes tha t focus the a t t e n t i o n of na t iona l I 'rotagonists are no t part of local reality. O n e should n o t be misled by the debates in national capitals, by t h e declarat ions of some very visible poli t icians o r of s o m e nat iona l m e d i a who arc no t aware of the very construct ive dynamics u n d e r way everywhere in cities a n d ne ighbo rhoods .

The rcsponsibiUty of Muslim citizens is also very impor tan t . As 1 said, t hey m u s t revisit b o t h t h e con ten t s of t h e t each ing offered in organiza t ions and m o s q u e s a n d t h e п а ш г е of t h e represen ta t ions tha t are spread regard ing t h e s u r r o u n d i n g s(Kiety, Musl im circles shou ld insist on t h e i m p o r t a n c e of knowing the language and t h e s u r r o u n d i n g legal f ramework b u t also d e v e l o p a posit ive a p p r o a c h t o cu l t u r e , t h e a r t s , contributing, creativity, and of course the sense of belonging

7% What / Brfteve

that m u s t be acknowledged a n d nur tured. W h a t Muslims hear in mosques , lectures, or c o m m u n i t y events m u s t enable t h e m to feel comfortable both wi th their affiliation to Islam and wi th a confident cit izenship r each ing out t o thei r fellow citizens. This is w h y ins t i tu t ional iza t ion is so i m p o r t a n t bo th at the local and national levels: in the long run, i m a m s will have t o be t rained in the Western , European , and national context— independent ly , of c o u r s e — a n d to k n o w t h e language a n d culmre of the country and be suffused wi th t h e m from wi th in in o rde r t o offer faith c o m m u n i t i e s a v is ion and so lu t ions a t tuned to the realities in the field.

Intellecmals, leaders, organizat ion managers , and numerous Mus l im scholars are m a k i n g cons iderable efforts to effect this t ransi t ion and as I said, things are m o v i n g very quickly. Nevertheless , it will still t ake t ime for Musl ims to develop a consistent global vision a n d de te rmine the forms and stages of the mult idimensional c o m m i t m e n t s they need. N u m e r o u s chal lenges and far-reaching issues are involved: aside f rom strictly religious questions, the re are of course economic and cultural considerat ions that m u s t be taken in to account in t h e processes of representat ion and perception of oneself and of the env i ronmen t . To this should be added the political issue: at the national level, m a n y political parties claim that religiotts affiliation should be dist inguished from citizenship: yet on the local level one can observe tha t practices are quite different a n d that officials and representatives not only take religious affilia­tion into account bu t also rely on that feeling to attract votes or appeal to voters . This p h e n o m e n o n is visible everywhere : Muslims and their n u m b e r s are, and are increasingly going to

The Smu of Bdanging and ifcf 'Post-lntegiatim " ApfroatM 73

become, i m p o r t a n t stakes in e lect ions, and political part ies , often out of touch with those n e w citizens, frequendy manage ito reach t h e m only through "communi ty-or iented" discourse, by promising t o take their "rel igious" demands into account. I his is in comple te contradict ion wi th the political principles

that claim t o k e e p religion a p a r t from politics. For M u s h m leaders and citizens, the challenge is a major o n e : they can play on power s t ruggles and o n n u m b e r s to influence local poli­cies and, at the same t ime, reinforce communi ty feelings. O r ihey can. on the contrary, set ou t t o develop a citizen's ethics by demanding consistency, fair social policies, and equal treat­ment. This means demanding political integrity, competence , .ind ^ne civic evaluat ion of local policies r a the r than leading Muslim ci t izens i n to the d e a d e n d of c losed, c o m m u n i t y -oriented political logics i n to w h i c h elect ion-obsessed politi­cians are s t rangely and dangerously at tract ing t h e m .

13

Sociopolitical Issues, the Media

W H E N POLITICIANS LACK T H E IDEAS o r c o u r a g e t o p r o m o t e social policies, they simply take advantage of popular percep­t ions and feelings and e n d u p "culturalizing," "religionizing," or "Islamizing" social issues. A direct o r implicit l ink is t h u s established be tween social p rob lems , violence, marginalizat ion o n the one hand, and individuals ' skin color {"race"), cul tural origin, or rehgion on the o t h e r hand. At a loss for political ideas, they develop expedient, popul is t theories that are often cxplic-idy or implicitly racist. At t h e core of this process, the danger consists in Musl im citizens themselves taking in this discourse and beg inn ing to th ink t h a t thei r p r o b l e m s are no t political bu t religious and cultural. Because they are often unaware of t ime-honored strategies a n d manipula t ions (power relat ions, representarions, etc.) in the general t r ea tmen t of the race issue (concerning Native Americans, Airican Americans, Arabs, etc.), they are all t o o ready—with faulty naivety—to accept the equa­t ion according t o which, because of thei r minor i ty rel igious and culmral affiliation, they will never be able to escape social marginalization. The victim feeling then appears justified, since society a n d its policies offer n o hope ; w e have c o m e full circle.

Sociopolitical Issues, die Media 75

Such th ink ing is dange rous a n d must b e firmly rejected. I have been repeat ing that the vict im feeling m u s t be fought against, b u t this m u s t no t p reven t us from seeing that the re ai'e indeed victims of job or hous ing discrimination and m o r e general racially mot iva ted injustice. Racism is a reality and the way some cities, districts, o r suburbs are m a n a g e d is unfor­tunately reminiscent of colonial pa t terns , wi th some citizens being made to feel that they are w o r t h less t han others , tha t they are second-class c i t izens . However , r ecogn iz ing t h a t there are victims is one thing; mainta ining a victim mind-set is another. I am calling tor an entirely opposite at t i tude: because there are actual victims, peop le m u s t resist any t empta t ion t o Ifel Victimized and take it upon themselves t o d e m a n d their rights.

This begins w i th stating tha t politicians m u s t stop "cultural­izing" and "Islamizing" p r o b l e m s because they do no t k n o w how to solve t h e m with new, b o l d e r social pohcies. Our politi­cians lack courage and are obsessed wirh the t ime span of elec­tions, which is no t the far longer t i m e of social reforms. Such problems as missing social s tructures, unemployment , housing, o r social d i scr imina t ions have n o t h i n g t o d o wi th rel igion: they are social issues that r equ i r e social pohcies . O n e canno t but rejoice that dur ing the 2005 riots in France's suburbs, the majority of the political class abstained from tu rn ing the situ­ation into a cultural and reHg]ou.s problem: t h e consequences could have b e e n dramatic . However , four years on—and in spite of presidential , legislative, and local e lec t ions—noth ing has been done , n o t h i n g has changed . Prudence w a s shown abou t liow the riots should be qualified bu t this has been followed

76 What f Believe SociopoHikal li-^es, the Media jy

andition for integrat ing wi th the European Union, or does it

Et? If it does , it can join; if it does not. it should wait and try meet those goals. But wha t can be observed is here again a ft toward religion and culture: the problem of Turkey is. we

_ . J told explicitly or implicitly, a religious a n d cultural issue 1 hat endangers European balances and the cont inent ' s cultural I lomogeneity. M e m b e r s of t h e European Par i iament have said n, and g o v e r n m e n t s p r e t e n d to be unaware of it: however,

l-'rench pres ident Nicolas Sarkozy has said o u t loud w h a t the majority was silently thinking. T h e picture is a gritn one, and it involves dangerous inconsistencies.

Everywhere the same displacements of social and pohtical issues toward the cultural and religious field can be observed: unable t o devise fair, ega l i t a r i an policies o n t h e social a n d political levels, polit icians just ify inconsis tencies , contradic-lions, and somet imes hypocrisies th rough racial, cultural, and leligious considerat ions that are supposed to explain or justify differential t r e a t m e n t . W h a t Mus l im W e s t e r n citizens m u s t urgently d e m a n d is recogni t ion o f thei r s t a tus and the e q u a l t reatment that society has to provide at all levels. Social policies should be reexamined as well as the necessary m a n a g e m e n t of power relationships, since this is ultimately w h a t it is all about , 'I he point is to accept that e c o n o m i c relat ionships should be addressed pohtically: because they are obsessed with ident i ty issues and keep focusing the debate on "values," "culture," or "civilization," Western societies avoid such issues as the rule of law, equal t rea tment , objective relations of dominat ion, deni­gration, and economic and social marginal izat ion, of political d iscr iminat ion, racism, a n d x e n o p h o b i a . In so doing, t hey

by passivity, the political class keeping silent over those issues, giving the impress ion that those are n o t the p rob lems of t r u e citizens, tha t they are n o t real, priority in ternal concerns : all is as if u r b a n districts and suburbs were cut off from the rest of t h e country , [n t h e U n i t e d States, the election of the first African Amer ican p re s iden t should n o t de lude us in to over­looking the s t ructural rac ism and daily injustice faced by black peop le . Such p rocesses o f "cu l rura l iz ing" o r " I s lamiz ing" social ques t ions or conversely shifi:ing t h e m t o a sort of civic no-man's- land can be observed in all Wes te rn countries w h e n elections are drawing near o r in t imes of crisis.

I f t o th i s w e a d d t h e i ssue of i m m i g r a t i o n , t h e p i c tu re gets even darker. Rather t han being judged in light of h u m a n rights o n the one h a n d a n d e c o n o m i c realities o n t h e o t h e r hand, p h e n o m e n a are t u r n e d into ques t ions of identity, reli­g ion, and cul ture : these th ings arc no t only th rea tened f rom within b u t also fi-om outs ide by the cons tan t influx of immi­g ran t s . Tenden t ious or clearly racist r e m a r k s are b e c o m i n g increasingly c o m m o n in political speeches and a m o n g peop le : the r ea lms of poh t i c s a n d of e c o n o m i c m a n a g e m e n t a re a b a n d o n e d t o give w a y t o ident i ty -centered , "essential is t ," cul tural and rehg ious cons idera t ions that justify xenophob ia and re ject ion. In Switzer land, '^ D e n m a r k , Spain. G e r m a n y , France, Italy, and finally t h r o u g h o u t Europe , as well as in the Uni ted States, Canada, or Australia, Islam and Muslims do n o : symbohze settled citizens b u t eternal immig ran t s w h o are to be in tegra ted or s t igmatized. In Europe, the political issue of Turkey's integrat ion should have been considered solely on the basis of the condit ions for accession: does Turkey answer the

7M Hluil i Believe

assent to dangerous democra t i c shor tcomings. In the n a m e iil a reconst ructed idea of its identity and of a selective and highly ideological self-representation, a huge n u m b e r of intellectuals and politicians in the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, or N e w Zea l and seem ready Co bet ray s o m e of their funda-menral democra t ic values. T h e danger is real.

T h e role of the media in representarions and in the na ture of national and international debates can no longer be downplayed or under ra ted . One can indeed remain passive and endure the "media logic" that na tura l ly focuses o n crises and amplifies problemat ic or negative representat ions; o r one can th ink of involving journal is ts and t h e media in t h e general dynamics that I have been describing. This does no t m e a n a t tempt ing to control journalists or limit their freedom of expression and anal­ysis, but work ing on fundamentals and on long-term issues, first by making journalists aware that they are citizens and that they ought to keep their civic conscience alert while performing their work. This entails their focusing on processes rather than news items, o n in-depth efforts to bmld rather than o n media "scoops" and on the sensational covering of striking, shocking events. It requires "media policies" focusing o n the training of journal ­ists (about religious and cul tural issues on the one hand and social issues and marginal izadon processes on the other hand) . Local media must get involved, and interesting short- and long-t e r m local act ion m u s t get to be be t te r k n o w n . Because they are unavoidable mediators, journalists shape representations and are in effect key protagonists in managing social, religious, and culmral pluralism, in developing a sense of c o m m o n belonging, as well as in potentially nu r tu r ing fears and phobias.

Sociopolitical Issues, the Media 79

!itizens, social p ro tagon i s t s as well as poli t icians, m u s t ...line the communica t ion issue m o r e rigorously and system-

ically Leaving aside 'pubhc relat ions" strategies and playing . sensation and image , j ou rna l i s t s and m e d i a t o r s m u s t bC' icouraged to take their t ime , to unders tand the complexity

issues, and to grasp things in light of long- te rm processes d historical evolut ion. Th i s is a difficult chal lenge i ndeed

.cause journa l i s t s themselves are subject t o t h e pressure of ,mc and of major i ty percept ions . At any r a t e , we also n e e d

'Wild journalists w h o dare cont radic t accepted opinions, w h o lucstion certaint ies and ask appropr ia te ques t ions . They are .creasingly scarce, bu t they exist and their contr ibut ions are

'ssehtial.

14

IN RECENT TEARS, the deba t e has been seen to shift from poht -ical and e c o n o m i c issues t o cul tural a n d rel igious ones , b u t it has also b e e n pro jec ted on history, w i th some t imes surre-ahst ic d e b a t e s over " W e s t e r n va lues " a n d " the r o o t s " of Eu rope a n d its "Greco -Roman" or "Judeo-Chrisdan" identity, o r s imply "Greek a n d Chr i s t i an" according t o the p o p e in his 12 S e p t e m b e r 2006 R e g c n s b u r g address . W i t h the arrival of Islam and new. m o r e visible i m m i g r a n t s a n d wi th t h e p a t e n t change in Wes te rn societ ies , the t e m p t a t i o n seems t o b e to close r a n k s , t o redefine w h a t the West a n d E u r o p e a re in o rder t o b e able to de l imi t (in the sense of .setting l imits to) w h a t W e s t e r n / E u r o p e a n ident i ty is a n d w h a t c o n s t i t u t e s it cu l tu ra l ly a n d rel igiously. At the co re of p lu ra l i sm, t h e grea tes t d a n g e r would be for the idea o n e has always ma in ­t a ined a b o u t onese l f t o col lapse: neve r m i n d t h e h u m a n i s t values and t h e social a n d poli t ical vis ion of Eu rope a n d of the West ; w h a t m a t t e r s hence fo r th is o u r roo t s , o u r identity, and w h a t defines us historically as "Wes t e rn , " " E u r o p e a n , " or "French ," "Italian," "Brit ish," or "American" in t e r m s of ancestral cu l ture and es tabhshed rel igion. W h a t this p rocess

The Roouaj'Europe... and of the West 81

vr.ils is u l t imate ly as s imple as it is explicit: Islam is " t h e 'ilitT," even w h e n present a m o n g us.

This idea is a n y t h i n g b u t n e w and t h e very pro jec t of u rope , b e y o n d its g e o g r a p h i c a l c o n s t r u c t i o n , h a s b e e n

iiirtured and shaped by this p rocess of dist inction from—or I l iar oppos i t ion t o — w h a t is n o t itself. T h e selective recon-

^ toucUon of historical liabilities, of Europe ' s roots , and the B l a n k " c h a r a c t e r i z i n g of t h e c o n t r i b u t i o n by Islam and

B u s l i m s to t h e cons t ruc t ion of E u r o p e are edifying in this ^ B p e c t . T h e scientific, legal, philosophical, a n d r e h g i o u s input B Musl im scholars and intel lectuals has b e e n overiooked t o ^ftch an ex ten t—both in the collective m e m o r y and in school ^ n i b i — t h a t o n e cannot b u t see th is as an ideological choice B the process leading to self-construct ion. T o make a g o o d B l p r e s s i o n , t h e figure of Ave r roes (twelfth c e n t u r y ) — t h e ^ftionalisl-who-is-so-much-like-us a n d w h o rediscovered " o u r " Br is to t le^"—is m e n t i o n e d obsessively whi l e several d o z e n Ht ien t i s t s , th inkers , p h i l o s o p h e r s , and ar t is ts are neg lec ted B t h o u g h they no t only lived in Europe bu t deeply influenced B i r o p e a n mind-se ts as wel l as scientific, phi losophica l , a n d H r e n legal a n d political p rac t ices . Tex tbooks , from p r i m a r y • c h o o l t o universi ty , m a k e b u t m a r g i n a l m e n t i o n of t h a t I n p u t , and universi ty syllabi s o m e t i m e s fail to refer to t h e m H k o g e t h e r . Is this partial loss of m e m o r y incidental, o r does it H f s u l t from a deliberate ideological and pohtical choice? T h e r e B n o doub t as to the answer.

1 ^ The reflexes that can be observed today confirm the basic na ture of this very old process , which consists, while deter­mining a n d select ing w h a t defines us , i n h igh l igh t ing w h a t

The Roots of Europe.. and of the West

82 What I Beheve

is different from us o r s t a n d s in oppos i t ion t o us. W h a t w e are direct ly w i tnes s ing t o d a y is a very vo lun t a ry react iva­t ion of this p rocess of redef ining ident i ty : t h e p r e sence of n e w M u s l i m ci t izens , t h e c o n t i n u o u s flow of i m m i g r a n t s and d e m o g r a p h i c p ro jec t ions cause fear, and it is therefore b e c o m i n g urgent to clearly state w h o one is for fear that one ' s identity and culmre will be lost in diversity or simply disappear. T h e fear of rehgious and cul tura l pluralism leads to reduct ion and t o a very exclusive o u t l o o k on one ' s past. Indeed, those were the cons ide ra t ions unde r ly ing the p o p e s Regensburg address: by speaking a b o u t the Hnk b e t w e e n faith a n d reason and insisting o n the privileged relationship be tween the Greek rationalist t radit ion and t h e Christian religion, Pope Benedict XVI s o u g h t t o define E u r o p e a n (and W e s t e r n ) ident i ty as primari ly Christian in its faith and Greek in its philosophical r eason . Is lam, supposed n o t to r ecogn ize this re la t ionsh ip to reason, was thus seen as foreign to the European ident i ty tha t developed o u t of this her i tage. It w a s m the n a m e o f such a percept ion tha t a few years ago, then Cardinal Ratzinger had already s tated his refusal o f Turkey in t eg ra t ing Europe : b e i n g Muslim, Turkey had never b e e n and could never be genuinely European in cul ture. O n c e again, Islam is different; it is " the other," In this respect, Benedic t XVI is a very European pope w h o calls u p o n the con t inen t ' s peoples to b e c o m e aware of the cent ra l , inescapable charac te r of Chris t iani ty if they are in ten t o n n o t losing the i r identity. Th i s message m a y be a legir imate o n e in these t i m e s of identi ty crisis b u t it is above all potent ia l ly d a n g e r o u s since it o p e r a t e s a twofold reduc-

The Kooii sf Europe... and of the West 83

. in its historical approach and in its present definition of

iropean identity. Europe cannot survive, and ne i ther can the West , if it keeps iving t o define itself in exclusive t e r m s and in opposition t o

ic other—Islam or Mushms—of w h o m it is afraid. W h a t the k'est. including of course Europe , m o s t needs today may no t • so much dialogue with o t h e r civilizations as actual dialogue

^•ilh itself It needs to acknowledge the facets of its own self i.il it has t o o l ong refused to see and that even now prevent

, from enhancing the wealth of its religious and philosophical raditions. T h e Wes t and E u r o p e m u s t c o m e t o t e r m s w i t h ,ie diversity of thei r past in o r d e r to mas te r the necessary

pluralism of thei r future. T h e reductive approach used by the >( tpe and by those who conjure up the bugbear of dangerous iltural pluralism is of no help in this process of reappropria-

ion. It is up to academics and intellectuals, w h e t h e r Mushm 5r not, to prove—through historical-critical studies—that they ire mistaken b o t h historically and scientifically.^*' Th i s w o u l d ,ilso be a m e a n s for today's M u s h m s to reconcile themselves wilh the edifying creat ivi ty of t h e W e s t e r n a n d E u r o p e a n Muslim thinkers of the past, w h o no t only were "integrated" but who deeply contr ibuted t o b o t h Europe and the West at l.iige, nur tu r ing and eruiching t h e m wi th their critical reflec­tions. It is impor t an t to show that the selective m e m o r y tha t tends to "forget" the decisive i n p u t of such Musl im th inkers .ind active ra t ional is ts as al-Kindi (ninth cen tu ry ) , al-Farabi ( t en th c e n t u r y ) , Ibn Sina (Av icenna , e l e v e n t h c e n t u r y ) , .il-Ghazali (twelfth century) , ash-Shatibi ( th i r teen th c e n t u r y ) /

84 What I Believe

Ibn Khaldun ( four teenth century), a n d o the r scientists recon­structs a Europe that misleads itself and others about its past. In light of this n e c e s s a r y rec lamat ion , Musl ims can show, reasonably and wi thou t polemics, chat they share the essence of the va lues on which Europe and the West are based and that the i r own religious t radi t ion has also contr ibuted t o the emergence and p r o m o t i o n of chose values.

15

MY THEORETICAL AND LEGAL STUDIES as well as m y w o r k at the grass roots over the past t w e n t y years have ted me to evolve, expand my thinking, and explore new avenues. O n the theo­retical level, I have c o m e to th ink that Musl ims ough t to g o further t han m e r e reflection a b o u t Islamic law and jur ispru­dence (al-fiqh). For a h u n d r e d a n d fifty years w e have b e e n speaking about a u t o n o m o u s critical reasoning (ijtihdd), which ought to enable us to face c o n t e m p o r a r y challenges: yet crises and obstacles remain , a l t h o u g h considerable evolut ion has taken place. I believe w e m u s t n o w re tu rn to the sources of the fundamenta ls of law a n d ju r i sp rudence (usul al-fiqh) and question the original categorizat ions and methodologies . This is wha t I have called "radical reform," which should lead u s from s t rugghng adaptation re form to creative transformational reform.^' T h e challenge is a major one and the process t h a t can lead to those developments will take t ime and wiU initially meet sharp criticism, if no t s taunch opposi t ion and rejection. The te rms of the debate have nevertheless b e e n set: m y aim, along wi th o t h e r Muslim scholars and intellecmals, is t o o p e n a debate over fundamentals .

Reform and the Seven "Cs'

fifS What 1 Believs

I have always sought to pursue this theological-legal, intel­lectual, and academic c o m m i t m e n t ups t ream in parallel wi th m y c o m m i t m e n t at the co re of civil societies in the West o r in the Thi rd World , and of course wi thin Musl im societies and communi t i es . Over the past twen ty years I have been able to visit a lmost all European countr ies , the United States, Canada, . Russia, Australia, N e w Zealand, and m o s t African, Asian, and Arab countr ies . I have always been in t ouch with citizens of all backgrounds and religions as well as ordinary Muslims so as to listen, analyze, and try to unders tand. In the case of M u s h m communi t i es the wor ld over, in the West and everywhere else, it soon b e c a m e clear t o m e tha t p r o b l e m s had as m u c h t o do w i t h spirimality a n d psychology as w i t h strictly religious, social, o r political realities.

Over the years, 1 have developed an approach and discourse I initially summar ized in a theory of the "four C s . " " T h e idea was to set priorities and o p e n simple, clarifying prospects as to unders tanding issues and get t ing Muslims involved. Dur ing a visit to Africa for the Internat ional Symposium of Francophone Muslims (CIMEF), which took place in Ouagadougou [Burkina Faso) in Augus t 2006, t w o speakers took u p the quest ion and suggested t h a t I a d d ano the r t w o "Cs" t o m y list. They were absolutely right. Recently, after a l ec tu re I gave at Oxford University, a w o m a n from the audience c a m e up t o m e and suggested tha t I should consider ano the r " C " : that, in effect, deeply echoed a conversation I had had wi th Karen Arms t rong and had developed in m y latest philosopfiical book.'^^ T h a t is w h y t h e approach n o w includes seven "Cs" tha t ough t t o b e so many pillars in elaborat ing priorities and strategies.

Reform and the Seven "Cs" Sj

W h a t Muslims urgently n e e d is first of all conjidaice. T h e intity crisis is a deep one and it is imperative, t h r o u g h educa­

t ion, to develop be t te r knowledge of oneself and one 's history, •o shape a conscience and intel l igence that is confident and M-rene: tha t is b o t h sure of itself and h u m b l e toward o thers . I ijiimately, self-con/idcnce should be allied to con/uieficc in others. I his process m u s t be associated wi th a p e r m a n e n t , rigorous duty of consistency: one should n o t idealize one ' s values a n d mes.sage and b e c o m e unable t o d raw u p a t h o r o u g h critique nf the contradict ions, malfunct ioning, or even betrayals that I un through Muslim societies a n d communit ies . Critical mind, critical loyalty, active rationality are no t only the bes t allies o f deep spirituality bu t also the condit ions for deve lopment and renewal. Whereve r they are , in whatever region of the world , Muslims should be witnesses (shahid, plur. shuhadd) to the rich­ness and positive potential of their message. To this end, they mus t cont r ibu te t o the c o m m o n welfare, wha tever people ' s religion, status, or origin: the poor, the sick, and the oppressed, in o u r eyes, shou ld have n o rel igion. Musl im cit izens ' coiitri-bulion mus t be an answer t o the outdated discourse obsessed with "integration." In all the rea lms of intelligence and action (the sciences, the arts, cul tures , societies, politics, economy, ecology, ethics , etc.) Musl ims m u s t recap ture the energy of; creativity a n d a taste for initiative and risk. Minds a n d ta lents must be l iberated and w o m e n and m e n m u s t be offered space for expression, exper imenta t ion , criticism, and renewal . Yet they mus t no t forget that m a n y of their fellow citizens (even of their fellow believers) have fears, do not unders tand, and wou ld like to know m o r e : communication is essential. Choos ing termi-

88 What I Believe

nology, defining concepts , b e i n g able to shift one's perspective and show intel lectual (and cultural) e m p a t h y are i m p o r t a n t n o t only from one 's o w n s tandpoin t as a speaker bu t also in the si tuation of those w h o Usten (with their fears, their history, their references). Anothe r requ i rement remains : being consis­

tent a n d self­critical canno t justify failure t o criticize o t h e r s ' tnconsistencies or hypocrisies. Confronted by powers , govern­

m e n t s , or even laws (like t h e apartheid laws tha t used t o be inst i tutionalized in South Africa), one m u s t retain one 's du ty and r ight t o contest. O n e m u s t be able to resist the betrayal of principles, even w h e n t h e betrayers are one ' s o w n family, one's fellow believers, one 's government , or whoever else. O n e m u s t n o t r e m a i n silent, w h e t h e r in front of the hypocri t ical pos tur ing of Weste rn states in reaction to China 's repression of Tibetans ( w h o m I have b e e n defending for over twenty­five years) or amid the i n t e r n a t i o n a l c o m m u n i t y ' s silence whi le Palestinians suffer colonizat ion and repression at the hands of successive Israeli g o v e r n m e n t s / " Developing the capacity for empathy, unders tanding, forgiveness, and reaching compassion for oneself a n d others (as t h e Buddhist t rad i t ion requires) is ano the r imperat ive. W h a t this involves is n o t pity or passive sen t imen tahsm bu t u n d e r s t a n d i n g and forgiveness in act ion, d e m a n d i n g jus t ice w i t h o u t ever forget t ing the rea lm of t h e hear t and of love ."

T h e seven "Cs" (Confidence, Consistency, Contribution, Creativity, Communication, Contestation, a n d Compassion) provide a clear f ramework a n d above all a sense of priorit ies. Educa t ion , self­knowledge, critical t h ink ing , and creat ivi ty are areas tha t m u s t be u r g e n t l y addressed. MusUm w o m e n

Жфгт and the Seven "Cs" 89

iind m e n alike are experiencing a psychological and intellec­

Uial crisis of confidence. Only t h r o u g h such persona l efforts ran Muslims learn t o communica te wi th their envi ronment in more t han a reactive or e m o t i o n a l , and t o o often defensive, manner . T h a t is also t h e neces sa ry condi t ion to th ink o u t contestation and strategies t o resist dictatorship, dominat ion, and discrimination no t in a r a n d o m , chaotic m a n n e r bu t wi th a vision tha t defines priorit ies and stages. It is urgen t tha t in the course of this matu ra t i on process, Muslims do not allow the most radical voices to m o n o p o l i z e the m e d i a and public attention. With and for their fellow ci:tizens, they m u s t raise the voice of, and s h o w the way to , confidence, poise, and critical rationality—but also wisdom, love, a n d forgiveness: remaining t hemse lves , re fus ing t o b e c o m e "s tock A r a b s " or " s tock Musl ims." sp read ing peaceful , ba lanced , critical, g e n e r o u s discourse in times of crises and tension but also speaking ou t

' firmly whenever w o m e n or m e n , M u s h m or not , betray the universal va lues of dignity, f r eedom, and jus t ice . D e m a n d

(justice and give love.

16

W E S T E R N SOCIETIES HAVE C H A N G E D a n d t h e process is irre­versible. M u s h m ci t izens have sett led in and will c o n t i n u e j t o d o so. Moreover , E u r o p e ' s e c o n o m i c survival , l ike tha t j of Canada , t h e United States, Australia, or N e w Zea land , is d e p e n d e n t o n future i m m i g r a t i o n . W h a t e v e r the n a t u r e of cultural and religious resistance today, reality and needs must be considered objectively to manage cur rent challenges in the best possible way. Discourse and policies that instrumentaHze fear and play on po la r iza t ion t o win elect ions may indeed at tract confused, anxious cit izens in t h e shor t run , bu t they are dangerous , inoperat ive , a n d mis leading and d ishones t in the long run . Western societies must look themselves in the face, acknowledge ongo ing changes, a n d build a new future that is not simply imposed by economic necessity bu t rehes on definite political will, a project for society, a t rue "philosophy of plurahsm,"^"^ and a lucid o u d o o k on cultural diversity, inter-culturality, and religious plurality. This is a categorical neces­sity: w i t h o u t a purposeful policy a imed a t manag ing cul tural and rel igious diversity within democra t i c societies, t h e very •principles of d e m o c r a c y will b e endangered , a long wi th t h e

The West an4 ¡t¡ Mirror 91

idamenta l assets of political p lura l ism in which the West stly takes pride. The issue at h a n d is clearly to save Europe's il or simply t o provide it w i th one, as suggested b y the title

IF the p r o g r a m in which I t ook par t several years ago^' unde r u' pat ronage of Jacques Delors , w h o was t hen president of le European Commiss ion.

In ft-ont of this mirror, the first challenge is t o avoid confu-iion. Looking beyond perceptions and imagination, the na ture )f problems m u s t be m o r e precisely defined and one m u s t

•ep more stricdy to facts and figures. There are religious and I iiltural quest ions that mus t be considered as such. There are I ither challenges that, as men t ioned above, are socioeconomic 111 nature , and they must no t be confused wi th t h e religious ind culmral issues even t h o u g h the majori ty of t h e pe r sons involved are recent immigran t s or Muslims. T h e overlapping a n d / o r c o m b i n a t i o n of factors (culture, re l ig ion, and social marginalization) do not m a k e t h e m the same: as I said, social policies m u s t tackle social p rob lems and they m u s t b e distinct f rom pol ic ies address ing cu l t u r a l and re l ig ious diversity. T h e former will necessarily b e helpful t o the lat ter (and vice versa) bu t they are not identical and these rea lms m u s t not be confused. Moreover, internal questions m u s t no t be confused wi th i m m i g r a t i o n issues t h a t d e m a n d t h o r o u g h reflection and fair and reasonable long- te rm policies. W o m e n and m e n flee poverty, the West needs labor: how can fear b e overcome to ensure that the dignity of h u m a n beings is respected and that they are no t t ransformed into criminals and illegal immi­grants while the mos t objective forecasts show that they will be needed? Are we going to scrupulously respect o u r principles

The West and Its Mirror A New "We"

9i What I Believe

and h u m a n rights or casually accept the bi r th of a new, mode rn form of u n a c k n o w l e d g e d slavery in w h i c h often u n d o c u ­mented workers are driven unde rg round and then exploited, some t imes compel led to pros t i tu t ion , and work illegally for shamefully low wages?

D i s t i n g u i s h i n g [ a n d d e c o n s t r u c t i n g ) p r o b l e m s in th i s way may clarify issues a n d s takes. It shou ld be added tha t facts a n d figures may s o o t h e fears. C o u n t r i e s wi th the m o s t recent , in pa r t i cu la r Mus l im , i m m i g r a t i o n shou ld o b s e r v e ' w h a t h a p p e n s in F rance o r in Br i ta in w h e r e i m m i g r a n t s set t led l o n g e r ago, I have said this a n d it m u s t be tirelessly repea ted : away from m e d i a effects (because the media natu­rally focus o n p rob lems a n d crises) and political i n s t rumen­talization, virtually all Mus l im citizens are law-abiding, speak the l anguage of the country , and are involved in their society (intellectually, socially, politically, cul tural ly, in t h e a r t s , in spor t s , etc.),^^ They m a y i n d e e d exper ience tens ions or, in t imes o f crises, express uneas iness o r have e m o t i o n a l reac­t ions in w h i c h the n a t u r e o f their r e sponses is cond i t ioned b y t h e o f t en h ighly b i a s e d q u e s t i o n s t h e y a re asked;^" b u t facts speak for themselves and prove that th ings are evolving qu ick ly a n d posi t ively Yet this does n o t m e a n t h a t p e r c e p ­tions are following suit: a s tudy by my colleague at E r a s m u s Univers i ty R o t t e r d a m , P ro fe s so r H a n Etz inger , c o v e r i n g Moroccan and Turk ish p o p u l a t i o n g r o u p s , has shown tha t r e g a r d i n g m o s t of t h e p a r a m e t e r s u s e d t o assess i n t e g r a ­t ion processes,^" c o n s i d e r a b l e advances have o c c u r r e d a n d the set t l ing-in process is objectively g o i n g ra ther well , and b e t t e r a n d be t te r . T h i s pos i t ive o b s e r v a t i o n c o m e s w i t h

The West and /is Mirror 93

exactly o p p o s i t e obse rva t ion as far as c o m m o n pe rcep-)ns are conce rned : people feel tha t the y o u n g are no t in te -

^ a i i n g , t h a t t h e g a p b e t w e e n c o m m u n i t i e s is w i d e n i n g , tat Islam is i ndeed a p r o b l e m . " I n t e g r a t i o n " is u n d e r way Ifjth the t r o u b l i n g pa r adox t h a t in p r o p o r t i o n and at t h e

( t m e t ime, a feeling of " insecur i ty" and d is t rus t is spreading ifilhin plural socie ty This has b e e n conf i rmed b y the recen t

riallup repor t (Gallup Coexis t Index , 2009).

The dis tor t ing mi r ro r of the media (which focus on the lost ext reme discourse and o n t h e m o s t critical s i tuat ions)

IS well as instrumental izat ion by popuhst political parties and Ippeated crises all converge to k eep u p fear a n d polarization.

rovications o n the one hand and excessive reactions on the | n ) e r br ing no rehef terrorist at tacks and violence o n one side. He Danish car toons, the pope ' s speech, excessive remarks by Hme ex-Muslims or "anti-Islamic" films, from Ayan Hirsi Ali Hr'Geert Wilders, will go on nu r tu r ing fear, mu tua l rejection, Ind prejudice for s o m e rime yet . T h e road will be long, and 1 Believe it will take no less than t w o generat ions to overcome

those tensions. T o this end, t o override fear and build the future, we must nevertheless begin t o prepare the g r o u n d and make it possible for t rus t to develop; a real revolution of trust is indeed required to resist the evolut ion of distrust in o u r societies. 1 have highlighted a n u m b e r of preventive measures (educational and social policies, fighting discrimination, political participa­tion, e t c ) , b u t it is mainly on the local level that advances will increasingly occur and that success may be possible. We need national movemen t s of local initiatives that , beyond the shor t run of elections, think and build for the long run.

94 What I Believe

It is o n the local level t h a t a deeper, m o r e concrete sense of p lura l , creat ive, crit ical b e l o n g i n g can be deve loped : a new " W e " as I called it five years ago, which mater ia l ized in a Manifesto for a New "We" wr i t t en in 2 0 0 6 / ' O u r societ ies are await ing the e m e r g e n c e of a n e w "We." This "We" musi br ing t o g e t h e r w o m e n a n d men , cit izens of all rel igions or w i t h o u t rel igion, w h o wil l joint ly u n d e r t a k e to resolve the contradict ions in their society and fight for the right t o work, to housing, to respect, against racism and discrimination of all sorts or offenses against h u m a n dignity. Such a " W e " w o u l d hencefor th represent this coming t oge the r of citizens confi­den t in the i r values , de fend ing p lura l i sm in their c o m m o n society, respectful of p lura l identities, and w h o together wish to take up the challenge in the name of thei r shared ideals at the very hea r t of their societies. As loyal and critical citizens or residents , they jo in forces against shallow, emot iona l , o r sectarian reactions. They s tand firm for rationality, dia logue, listening, and a reasonable approach to complex, difficult social questions. I have said so, a n d let m e repeat it: it is at the local level that the plural future of Western societies will be played out, It is a ma t t e r of greates t urgency to set up local initiatives whe re w o m e n and m e n o f different re l igions, cul tures , a n d sensitivities create spaces for mu tua l knowledge and sha red c o m m i t m e n t : spaces for t rus t . Those c o m m o n projects m u s t hencefor th b r ing t h e m toge the r and give b i r t h in practice t o this n e w "We" anchored in citizenship. Indeed "intercultural" and " interfa i th" d ia logues are i m p o r t a n t and necessary b u t they c a n n o t be as effective as shared c o m m i t m e n t over all pr ior i ty issues: educa t ion , social divides, insecurity, r ac i sm.

Thl West and It) Mirror 95

tainafon, and other pressing mat ters . Governments and J T u t h c r t t t e s bear a major responsibility n, t ins prccess^bu ^ h e end of tire day .t is u p t o c t r z e n s t o c rea te dynam.cs • * o . ngknowledge , . . spec t . and trust, and thereby pro^nde T a n d tndrrect resistance agarnst the lures of seetanantsm.

17

Criticisms and Oppositions

As I SAID, THAT HAS BEEN MY STANCE FOR YEARS. CriticismS, first of (and mainly in) France, then taken up by some French-loving g r o u p s or some ideological currents , have built u p a haze of controversy a round m e and m y c o m m i t m e n t . " Web links and b log entries have mul t ip l ied a m o n g the mass of "informa­t ion" a n d criticism circulat ing on the Internet . It is no t always easy to identify the n u m e r o u s repetitions and allegations t aken u p he re a n d there , w h i c h give the impress ion that t he r e m a y be s o m e t r u t h in the facts repor ted , whi le m o s t of the t i m e they are mere ly "high-frequency repet i t ions" tha t peop le do no t take the t ime t o c h e c k or to subjecr t o critical s c r u t i n y Moreover, they hasten to say that whe re there is smoke, there is fire, and tha t the re m u s t b e s o m e t r u t h beh ind all those criri-cisms, repor ted remarks , a n d rumors .

O n e should perhaps take the t ime to look into the origins of that "fire," which crea tes such a smokescreen of suspicion a round my work and c o m m i t m e n t that they b e c o m e blur red a n d s o m e t i m e s d o w n r i g h t invisible. W h a t g r o u p s are so dismrbed by this discourse that they are constantly striving to revive the "fire" of cont roversy to mis lead ordinary citizens?

CriCUisms and Oppositions 97

('hat ideology a n d / o r interests d o they defend before focusing I my own discourse and c o m m i t m e n t ? Whi le the attacks are

lany and diverse, the campaigns tha t turn m e in to a "contro-•rsial intel lectual" have a logic of thei r o w n and suit well-

111 iderstood interests. It may be interest ing to take a closer look ,11 ihem.

Very D o g m a t i c Secularists

H MY FIRST DEBATES IN FRANCE, it clearly appeared that s o m e • c c U l a r i s t " t r e n d s were ba t t l i ng o n t h e fi-ont l ine . For t he i r B e o l o g u e s and advocates, t h e n e w presence of Muslims and

their thinkers revived the old fears of a " re tu rn of religion," B̂r France i n d e e d h a s a d o u b l e p r o b l e m . O n the one h a n d ,

H h a s a his tor ical quar re l w i th "re l ig ion," a n d Cathoficism T n part icular , because of w h i c h any d e b a t e a b o u t re l ig ion

quickly b e c o m e s loaded, pass iona te , and excessive. O n the o ther hand, t h e colonial exper ience in Algeria was a painful one . a n d past disputes wi th former ly colonized popula t ions , with Muslims and wi th Islam, have still n o t b e e n left: beh ind . Th i s was t h e a t m o s p h e r e in w h i c h the d e b a t e over I s lam flared u p in t h e late 1980s over t h e issue of the "Islamic head­scarf." Some highly sectarian ideologues of secularism t u r n e d it into a n e w religion wi th its principles and dogmas , r ead ing into legal texts wha t they did no t say (and some t imes rejecting or denying w h a t they did say or allow). T h o u g h I was initially misled by such ideological, d o g m a t i c d iscourse , I later s tud i ed

9S WbatlBdinv

the legal texts and m e t and dehated wi th t o p French specialists (Jean Boussinesq, Emile P o u l a t j e a n Baubérot , and others) and I took par t for several years in the Commiss ion on Secularism and Islam of the Ligue française de l ' e n s e i g n e m e n t " w i t h such figures as Michel Mor ineau and Pierre Tournemire . This was w h e n I u n d e r s t o o d t h a t no th ing in secularism o p p o s e d a free a n d a u t o n o m o u s prac t ice of Islam: I have since h e e n calling for a strict i m p l e m e n t a t i o n of France ' s 1905 law o n secularism, b o t h in let ter a n d spirit, equally for all ci t izens be they Mus l im o r no t . Th i s w a s precisely t h e posi t ion of the above-ment ioned specialists of secularism, b o t h in the Ligue française de l ' e n s e i g n e m e n t and in the Ligue française des Droits de l ' H o m m e (French H u m a n Rights League). For the ideologues of a certain f o r m of sectarian secularism ( w h o a re themselves "fundamentaUsts" as Jean Baubéro t puts it) tha t is confused w i t h the rejection of religion (and the hope tha t it may disappear) , my pos i t ion is unacceptable and dangerous : their own secularist dogmat i sm, and the mili tant a theism of s o m e o f t h e m , are b e n t o n showing a t all costs tha t such a posi t ion "hides s o m e t h i n g " and that this is one m o r e "reli­g ious" colonist in disguise.

Deafiiess is at its peak , a n d it has b e c o m e impossible to hold a reasonable debate w i t h some secularist g roups w h o foster suspicion against Musl ims and try t o spread their doub t s all over Eu rope and the West , t h rough European and inter­nat ional ins t imt ions , for ins tance . A s imple c o m m o n sense formula that I keep repeating, such as "CompeUing a w o m a n to w e a r a headscarf is against Islam, and compel l ing h e r t o r e m o v e i t is against h u m a n rights," is inaudib le in F rance

Critidsm and Oppositions 99

vhereas it is serenely accepted a n d u n d e r s t o o d in all o t h e r / es te rn coun t r i e s . Never the less , one should n o t downplay rench influence over debates a b o u t Islam in Europe and the /est: poli t icians and in te l lec tuals u p h o l d i n g a secularistic ieology (by definition e i ther ant i rel igious o r "anti-Islamic") ry to spread their influence a n d find a n u m b e r of supporters lie world over, in the media as wel l as with s o m e intellectuals

or some political parties.

The Far Right

T H E NEW M U S L I M PRESENCE IN T H E W E S T ( resul t ing fi-om i m m i g r a t i o n b e t w e e n t h e t w o w o r l d w a r s t h e n essentially after World W a r II) has of c o u r s e been the b u t t of criticism from the m o s t na t ional is t ic , chauvinis t ic , a n d s o m e t i m e s clearly racist parties. As 1 said, the increasingly visible presence of the younge r generat ions of Muslims th roughou t the West , continuous immigrat ion, and the identity and confidence crisis of nation-states amid globalization have b e e n ideal targets for far right popuUsts denounc ing t h e danger of foreign presence. In the past that danger used to be , here and there on the same cont inent . Italians, Spaniards, Por tuguese , Poles, Blacks, a n d others. T h e n people increasingly began to speak about Arabs, Pakistanis, T u r k s , Bosnians , Kosovars , a n d Albanians , a n d assimilate t h e m to "Islam" and "Musl ims" w h o were endan­gering the ident i ty and h o m o g e n e i t y of G r e c o - R o m a n a n d Judeo-Christ ian "Western and European culture."^''

100 What I Belicw

Some Feminist Trends

M A N Y TRENDS OF FEMINISM were or iginal ly quite close t o p rogress ive Chr i s t i an c i rc les . O t h e r s s t o o d o u t b y t h e i r s taunch opposi t ion to religion, which they saw as intrinsically p r o d u c i n g pa t r ia rcha l d i s cou r se tha t d i sc r imina ted aga ins t

Cnnàsms and Oppositions iot

j m e n . In f o r m e r C o m m u n i s t o r Socialist e n v i r o n m e n t s , ...linism w a s natural ly associated wi th a radical cri t ique of cligion (Christianity essentially) said to foster a negative image ..' w o m e n , reinforce inequalities, a n d oppose w o m e n ' s libera-inn, in part icular b y prohibi t ing contracept ion and abort ion.

' t h e n e w M u s l i m p r e s e n c e , a l o n g wi th t h e visibility of lusl im w o m e n w e a r i n g headscarves , a n d s o m e t i m e s even

• he "niqab" (veil covering t h e face), has intensified fears of .1 r e tu rn t o re l ig ion , necessar i ly opposed to w o m e n , thei r status, and their autonomy. Al though dur ing the Middle Ages ,(iul Renaissance and until the e igh teen th cen tu ry Islam and Muslims w e r e t h o u g h t t o have a par t icular tas te for sensu-.ility and "lewdness" in keeping wi th the s tereotyped Oriental universe of t h e Arabian Nights, co lon iza t ion and the post-colonial p e r i o d b r o u g h t t h e tota l ly con t ras t ing image of a strict, unsophis t ica ted re l ig ion, opposed t o w o m e n ' s bodies iind to p leasures . It will be no t i ced tha t in b o t h historical periods, Islam was always pictured as "the other ," "different," "antithetical": the conservative Christian West pictured Islam as lewd and permissive; the free m o d e r n West depicts a carica­ture of Islam focusing on prohibi t ions and sexual oppression.

Feminist organizat ions have spHt up t h r o u g h o u t the West . Some g r o u p s have establ ished links w i th Mus l im organiza­tions (in E u r o p e , Canada . Australia, the U n i t e d States, a n d South Africa as well as Musl im majority countries): they d e e m it possible to find c o m m o n poin ts be tween their c o m m i t m e n t and the s t ruggle of w o m e n w h o want t o remain Musl im a n d fight f rom wi th in Islam t o f u r t h e r thei r causes against liter­alist a n d / o r cu l tu ra l i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s . O t h e r s c a n n o t accep t

W h a t is disquieting today is that w h a t used to be said exclu­sively by far right politicians and intellectuals has now b e c o m e standard discourse a m o n g m o r e t radi t ional parties right and left. S t a t e m e n t s abou t i m m i g r a t i o n , assimilat ion, Mus l ims be ing "impossible t o in tegra te , " the incompatibil i ty of values or "cultures," essentialism in the representat ion of "Musl ims" are so m a n y references and clichés that often stem from racism and somet imes recall the darkest periods of the West's history. W h a t used t o be said a b o u t Jews (doublespeak, double alle­giance, and obscure connect ions with " internat ionalJudaism") is n o w reproduced in a lmost similar te rms about Muslims; the compar i son is m o s t d isquie t ing, and yet w h a t is shock ing is the b read th and "transversahty" of this discourse, which n o w transcends ideological a n d political affiliations. Lacking innova­tive and efficient social policies, m a n y par t ies have n o qua lms abou t playing o n fears and in the popul is t vein, especially at election times, wi th closed discourse about "national ident i ty" and "securi ty" and very biased s ta tements about immigran t s and foreigners or, m o r e explicitly, abou t Musl ims and the i r practices.

102 WhatlBelieve

such alhances and carry o n their feminist struggles exclusively wi th "ex-Muslims" or simply against Islam, which they see as intrinsically d i s c r i m i n a t i n g . . . like all rel igions, or pe rhaps a little more . T h e idea that a w o m a n might find liberation in and t h r o u g h Islam, as I have b e e n suggest ing for years, is simply meaningless to them, and those w h o spread such an idea can only be m a n i p u l a t o r s . T o t h o s e "Wes te rn feminists" ( w h o often believe that they alone hold the m o n o p o l y of universal va lues a n d feminism), t h e s t rugg le of Mus l im w o m e n , o r "Islamic feminism," is a fraud, a n d they t r y t o discredit a n y discourse suppor t ing its posit ions; the Musl im headscarf can only be a symbol of male oppress ion a n d the only t r u e and leg i t imate feminism is t h a t deve loped b y W e s t e r n w o m e n . This is clearly a Western-centered view and, with the i rony of terminology, paternal ism looms large.

Some Homosexual Groups

H O M O S E X U A L ORGANIZATIONS DISPLAY t h e same a p p r e h e n ­sions about reUgions in genera l as can be observed in s o m e secularist and feminist circles. Religions general ly c o n d e m n homosexuality, and the r e tu rn of religion, and particularly of Islam, is t h o u g h t to imply that discourses of condemna t ion , rejection, o r of passive and active h o m o p h o b i a will reappear. Recent years have seen the bi r th of actual lobbies of gay and lesbian organizations that intervene in politics and in the media t o d e n o u n c e t h e reality o f h o m o p h o b i a in Islamic circles.

Criririsnti and Oppositions 103

dally in the books and discourse present in t h e West (and East), and point out the danger lurking in the very prin-

,Jes of Islam. Islam's and Mus l ims ' capaci ty to " b e c o m e ,jodcm" wiU, according to them, lie in their capacity t o accept lomo.sexuahty a n d n o t c o n d e m n it . S o m e o f t h e m expect

uslims to acknowledge homosexua l marr iage and adoption .d to accept the possibility t h a t an i m a m m i g h t be h o m o -xual. This is the price for Muslims to be truly in tegrated and

.my other discourse will inevitably be held in suspicion.

There are of course discourses of condemnat ion, and others ixplicitly homophob ic , within Muslim majority societies and .iinong individuals living in the West. It w o u l d be w r o n g to v l i -ny k . However , var ious approaches exist a n d t h e different positions present a m o n g Mushms mus t be no ted . I have been repeating for years that Islam does no t p romote homosexual i ty (it is rejected in principle since it does no t co r respond to the divine project established for all h u m a n beings), b u t that does no t prevent m e from having a clear position: n o t shar ing the opinions and actions of homosexuals as to their sexuality does not prevent m e from respecting w h o they are. This is indeed what each of us should expect f rom fellow h u m a n beings; respect as a b e i n g even t h o u g h the re m a y b e d i sag reemen t over belief a n d / o r behavior. T h o u g h I have reservations about homosexual couples mar ry ing or adopting children, I do n o t hesitate to fight against the homophob ic discourse or measures of which they may be the v ic t ims and t o ge t involved in all c o m m o n causes by their side. Some homosexual organizations still find this discourse too "conservative" as well as dangerous because of its appareiit openness . They see only one possible

104 WhatlBdievc

future for coexistence wi th Muslims: p r o m o t i n g and allying.; themselves w i th Muslim gay and ieshian organizations. Those scholars and Muslims w h o respect beings wi thout p romot ing their sexual behavior do n o t go far e n o u g h for their all-out, often qui te ou t spoken mil i tancy

Pro-Israeli and Neoconservative Circles

T H E ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT is a central issue and its impact has b e c o m e global. Two p h e n o m e n a linked co the situ­a t ion in t h e Middle East have appea red in recen t years and have a major effect o n Musl im se t t l ement in the West. They mus t be identified and fully assessed. First, there is w h a t has been t e r m e d the rise of a "new anti-Semitism" that is said to originate no longer in far right part ies b u t a m o n g Arab, Asian, Turkish, and Muslim residents or new citizens. Jewish organi­zations and intellectuals, in France, Germany, Britain, Australia, Canada, o r the United States, have d e n o u n c e d the emergence of this p h e n o m e n o n , s o m e t i m e s s t igmatizing Muslim p o p u ­lations living in the West . T h e presence of n e w Muslim citi­zens has also resul ted in increasingly critical discourse a b o u t Israel's policies and its t r ea tmen t of the Palestinian populat ion. More and m o r e intellectuals and organizat ion leaders of Arab, African, or Asian descent (mainly but n o t exclusively Muslims) have developed a pos i t ion o n successive Israeli g o v e r n m e n t s and have rallied left-wing, far left, or altermondialist (but also right-wing and center-right) political m o v e m e n t s that criticize Israeli policies.

Critidsm.î ami OppositiùM 105

lus, the M u s l i m p re sence h a s b e e n desc r ibed by s o m e „ jn iza t ions o r intel lectuals (bo th Jewish and non-Jewish) .1 danger t h r e a t e n i n g t o revive t h e old d e m o n s of ant i -litism in t h e West . S o m e have added to t h a t th rea t one ,111 anti-Israeli "Is lamo-lef t ism," c la iming t h a t the l a t t e r

aled i ts deep ly an t i -Semi t i c n a t u r e , i w a s a m o n g t h e rst, as ear ly as 1992, t o speak o u t aga ins t an t i -Semi t i sm _long Mus l ims : I said tha t "ant i -Semit ism w a s by essence i t i - Is lamic" and that one h a d t o d e n o u n c e the devia t ions Wt couid b e found in s o m e Mus l im d i s cou r se s jus t i fy ing

Rhc r e jec t ion o f J e w s o n t h e g r o u n d s o f t h e o p p r e s s i o n I .irried o u t b y Israel i g o v e r n m e n t s . In t h e m e a n t i m e , I decided no t t o remain silent and to reject all fo rms of black­mail: c r i t i c i z ing Israel a n d i ts c o n t i n u o u s c o l o n i z a t i o n , irmexarion, a n d o p p r e s s i o n pol ic ies is n o t an t i -Semi t i sm: nei ther does cri t icizing t h e Saudi Arabian g o v e r n m e n t have .niything t o d o w i t h I s l a m o p h o b i a . I h i n g s m u s t be k e p t M 'parate: o n e shou ld reject an t i -Semi t i sm in all its a spec t s b u t d r a w u p a c lear a n d neces sa ry c r i t ique of Israeli po l i ­cies. T h a t is precisely t h e m e a n i n g of t h e pr inciples o f t h e Global M o v e m e n t of N o n - V i o l e n t Res i s t ance^ ' chat w e l aunched w i t h in t e l l ec tua l s and o r g a n i z a t i o n s the w o r l d over (of all poli t ical and re l ig ious affiliations) as a resul t of the a t tack o n Gaza in D e c e m b e r 2008 - January 2009: o n t h e one hand , s t a u n c h re jec t ion o f all injust ices; o n t h e o t h e r hand, unfai l ing opposi t ion t o all racisms.

Such discourse is cons idered dangerous b y all the u n c o n ­ditional s u p p o r t e r s of Israel and its policy. T o p reven t t h e c r i t ique f rom b e i n g h e a r d , t h e s imp le s t w a y is t o cas t a

106 Wkat I Believe

susp i c ion o f a n t i - S e m i t i s m o v e r all t h o s e w h o q u e s t i o n Israeli pol icies . Many o t h e r s , a long wi th m e , have e n d u r e d the ange r and man ipu l a t i ons o f cer ta in pro-Israeli lobbies . In 2003 I spoke out against the m a n e u v e r s of some (Jewish and non-Jewish) intel lectuals w h o d e n o u n c e d the n e w ant i -Semi t i sm and s t i gma t i zed its n e w p r o m o t e r s as "Arabs," "Asians," and m o r e genera l ly " M u s h m s . " I also said tha t the influence of pro-Israeli lobbies was i m p o r t a n t in p r o m o t i n g the war in Iraq, bo th in Eu rope and in the Uni ted S t a t e s , a n d that this was in itself a p r o b l e m and a danger . I should also have m e n t i o n e d the c o n s i d e r a b l e inf luence of Evangel ica l Chris t ian Zionists . Be tha t as it may, m y t ak ing this doub le stand set off a s lander campaign in France and in the Uni ted States ( then in Europe as a resul t of the French campaign) : 1 was p r e sen t ed as an "ant i -Semite" w h o den i ed Israel 's exis­tence or wan ted it dest royed. My pos idon also led to m y U.S. visa be ing revoked n ine days before I was to move p e r m a ­nent ly t o Ind iana t o t a k e u p a dua l p rofessorsh ip at N o t r e D a m e University.^^

Beyond those incidents, one m u s t r e m e m b e r the reality o f t h e g e n e r a l c l imate a n d of poli t ical g a m e s a n d tact ics: n u m e r o u s Israeli lobbies work at spreading suspicion toward the Musl im presence—-seen as potential ly ant i -Semite—and try to associate any criticism of Israeh policies coming from Arab and Musl im (but also Chris t ian) intel lectuals w i th t h e same dangerous anti-Semitism. Some Israelis and Jews have denounced this unwho lesome game, bu t they run against the t ide and they have heen labeled "self-hating" Jews.

Criticisms And Oppositions 107

Some Arab and... Western States

I'iCTURE WOULD NOT BE COMPLETE if one did n o t add the

us employed by certain Arab government s . They are also .ful of all the voices that , l iving in the Wes t , can criticize ta torship, l ack of democracy , the absence of civil soci-

,BS, to r ture , and the oppression of popula t ions . Such states , J Saudi Arabia, Egypt , Syria, Tunisia, Algeria (and so m a n y ilhers) keep interfering t h r o u g h direct political o r d iplomat ic .leans to vilify the MusHm scholars, intellectuals, or leaders vho cri t icize t h e m . T h o s e a re s u p p o s e d t o b e p a t e n t l y l.ingerous w o m e n and men , w h o main ta in l inks t o Islamism .v'he'ther radical or not) while p re tend ing to be democra t s . It

IS in those count r ies ' interests to cast a haze of suspicion over ligures w h o m i g h t make themselves heard in the West since, having defini tely set t led in d e m o c r a c i e s , t h e y a r e free a n d ihey no longer need to " r e tu rn to their h o m e countr ies ."

Survei l lance by foreign embass ies , i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t so-called suspects, or " rumors" about the reliability and loyalty of this or that association leader or intellectual are c o m m o n

• practice: that is the daily lot of many Western citizens involved in Muslim associations. Ove r t ime. Western governments will certainly b e c o m e less dependen t o n foreign sources of infor­mation, but for the time being, "very democrat ic" Arab states keep fostering r u m o r and suspicion abou t thei r o p p o n e n t s living abroad, and Western leaders (as well as s o m e journaUsts w h o are regular guests at press dinners) receive that useful , "firsthand" information.

io8 What I BeliciK

It should be added that s o m e Western governments them­selves are no t very happy wi th their Muslim citizens and resi­dents criticizing the duphci ty of their policies when they speak of d e m o c r a c y and do n o t hesi tate to co l labora te w i t h the worst dictatorships if they are rich or geo-strategically inter­esting. Foster ing suspicion about those Musl im intellectuals ' and leaders ' c o m m i t m e n t a n d intentions may also reduce the impact of their internal pohtical criticisms. There is an objec­tive alliance of well-understood interests be tween some auto­cratic Arab and Asian states and some Western governments w h o collaborate wi th t h e m , in comple te contradict ion o f the values they claim to e n d o r s e and p r o m o t e ( h u m a n r ights , democracy, etc.).

Some Salafi Groups and Some "Ex-Muslims "

O N E MUST NOT FORGET T H E OBSTACLES A N D CRITICISMS t ha t c o m e from within Musl im communi t i e s in the West and w h a t advantage can be taken of t hem. The p icmre becomes aU the m o r e complex when one fully measures the internal tensions and divisions that are far from clarifying things and that may be used politically in one way or another.

T h u s literalist salafi g r o u p s or highly tradit ionalist move­ments generally avoid ge t t ing iiwolved in politics while they often e l abo ra t e a very h a r s h theological discourse t o w a r d reformist a n d / o r Islamist movements . Some of those hteralist salafi g r o u p s s u p p o r t s u c h states as Saudi Arabia, b e i n g convinced that one m u s t respect the authori ty of governments

Critictims and Oppcsirions 109

. according to them, " imp lemen t Islam." T h o u g h they no doub t religiously s incere , thei r political naivety is as

Tofound as it is dangerous . T h o s e groups o r the i r criticisms lay be exploited in the West to cast suspicion or disrepute o n

Ither currents. Elsewhere, in painful circumstances, this very cuHar play of alliances could b e observed wi th the Taliban:

ilier be ing useful to Amer ican goals in Afghanis tan for a vhile, they became everybody's enemies as soon as the Bush idministration changed their m inds about them. '" Similar stra-icgic instrumental izat ion exists, o n another level, in Western ocieties w h e r e MusUm leaders o r g o v e r n m e n t s deliberately

exploit such divisions and some people 's political naivety.

One should also add to this the efforts and criticisms of those who still refer to themselves as Muslims o r "cultural Muslims" or who call themselves "ex-Muslims," and whose cur rent or past affiliation to Islam g r a n t s thei r speech s o m e credibility. Some of t h e m have gone t h r o u g h difficult experiences within Muslim societies or communi t ies ; others used to be radicals or violent extremists , while o t h e r s c o m e from Musl im majori ty societies and claim to know the t rue nature of problems "from within." S o m e of their cr i t ic isms are u n d o u b t e d l y justified and relevant, and they m u s t be answered. Yet wha t is obvious today is the exploi tat ion of such "insider d iscourse" that is supposed to prove the danger of Islam, the duplicity of s o m e Muslims, or the secret ramifications of a "sprawling Islamist International ." Deliberately or n o t (and s o m e t i m e s wi th full awareness), those "modera t e Muslims" o r those "ex-Mushms" (who gain recognit ion, fame, a n d some financial benefit) g o along with certain governments ' tactics or ally themselves with

no Wliiii ! Bdicve

supposedly "ideologically neu t ra l " intellectuals to foster suspi cion and confirm doubts a b o u t Islam o r abou t some Muslim scholars or intellecmals.

If s o m e Musl ims say it, it m u s t be t r u e ! Once again, the point is no t to claim that all their crit icism is g roundless but to be fully aware of t h e p o t e n t i a l poli t ical exploi ta t ion of such d i scourse : s o m e of t h o s e Mus l ims o r "ex-Musl ims" '" have m o r e o v e r unde r s tood tha t they only have to repeat wha t people want t o hear, and they are happy to oblige.

As can be seen, t h e cr i t ic isms d i r ec t ed at m e are var ied and diverse. W h e n one cons iders an intel lecmal p resen ted as "controversial" and takes s tock of the a m o u n t of criticism that seems to c o m e from all sides, having s o m e doubt and suspi­cion is n o r m a l . Yet one should go further and no t only ques­tion the target but also analyze the ideological dispositions and the in tent ions of the different sources that p roduce those criti­cisms, foster rumors , and r epea t allegations. Then , one stops be ing naïve . O n c e again, m y point is n o t t o deny the legiti­macy of s o m e necessary a n d relevant quest ions. But o n e m u s t n o t m a i n t a i n a political naivety that p reven t s debate, m a k e s one deaf to a rguments , and m o s t of all, causes our democra t ic spaces and o u r respective capacities for fruitfrtl and construc­tive exchanges of ideas to slowly disintegrate. T h e "fires" that p roduce thick, rarely innocen t , often s t ra tegic smoke should therefore be carefully scrutinized. They should be k n o w n and identified; and w h e n they involve dishonesty, lies, or man ipu­lation, they should be ignored. As far as I a m concerned, I go o n wi th m y c o m m i t m e n t , with m y efforts to m a k e th ings clear and to communica t e , resisting injustice, fighting against

Critkisms and OpposiriofU i n

iti ism, political lies, and ideological over-simplicity: I k n o w vlic'ie some at tacks come from and I also k n o w that my pa th iviies m e to p u t t h e m into perspective, or even to brush t h e m

nitdc, with de te rmina t ion a n d w i s d o m . I have learned that one : n luld say "Peace!" to those w h o shout thei r ha t red for one ' s

I 'ling and presence or at one 's passage. T h a t is not always easy. Such is the m e a n i n g of all spirituafities, the deep jihad of the Ill-art and m i n d . So I say "Peace," with force, tranquility, and dignity, t o all the instigators o f lies, hypocrisies, a n d wars .

Conclusion

T H E READER MAY BY NOW HAVE REALIZED t h a t m y fields o f activity are multiple, complex, and often complemen ta ry My addressing a variety of issues in different fields or realms m a y have led to confusion, a l o n g wi th oppos i t ion and criticism. I am aware of this a n d 1 have often had t o make it clear fi-om what s tandpoint and wi th w h a t status I was speaking. Was it as m a n of religion? A m o n g religious trends, was I a reformist or a conservative? Did I speak as a Westerner , or as a citizen of which country? Politically, was I ra ther to the left or to the center of the political spectrum?—and so on and so forth. Some commen ta to r s have found it difficult to s imate me . and this is understandable because of the variety of topics addressed (reh-gious, cul tural , social, phi losophical , and political, na t ional , and international) and of the complexity of the issues. Yet this is what be ing a commi t t ed intellectual involves, and it would b e con t rad ic to ry t o e.xpect a "Muslim intel lectual" t o speak about no th ing but Islam; or t o decide that his being a "Musl im" is e n o u g h t o cast suspicion o n his political c o m m i t m e n t a n d discourse which of course by definition carmot be free, au tono­mous , and even less, universalistic. An openly Muslim Western

Conclusion 113

ifdlecmal is after all m o s t unse td ing: he reflects t o Western Ciety a mirror of not always acknowledged contradictions or, his mere presence, reveals unconsc ious Wes tem-cen t r i sm

iih its suppressions, its h a n g u p s , possibly its t r aumas . I have L casionally had live personal experience of the tense, obses-

iive reactions or obvious faulty acts that could result from ly presence in certain societal debates—from which 1 should

;irnhably have b e e n namral ly absent . 1 have seen intelligent, ' l in. i ted w o m e n and m e n , e n d o w e d wi th perfect hear ing,

I ' lua l ly b e c o m e d e a f . . . and suddenly less intel l igent , a n d ••nnietimes no t educated at all. My study of psychology and jsychoanalysis, w i th the he lp of critical d is tance and some-,1mes humor, have enabled m e to unders tand such symbolical ransfers and negative subhmat ion .

Never theless , I r emain fundamenta l ly opt imis t ic whi le knowing, as I said, that the road will be long a n d tha t evolu­tions and progress must be considered in te rms of generat ions rather than of years. Efforts are required in m a n y fields and we must get involved, steadfastly and consistently, in accelerating . and accompanying the t ransformat ion processes. For twenty-five years I have kept trying, b o t h on the academic and theo­retical level and very practically at the grass roots, to set forth a vision, n u r t u r e reflection, and test strategies and projects. Everywhere in the West, advances must be recorded and a thor­ough assessment of the s imat ion and of remaining challenges must be carried out in every country. By put t ing forward a few ideas, this b o o k has also outHned prospects for p resen t a n d future commi tments . This also must be discussed and debated earnestly, wi thout undue passion or excessive emot ion .

JJ4 What I Bdteve

As I have repeatedly s tated, the challenge is also a psycho­logical o n e . We m u s t l e a r n and recap tu re the m e a n i n g of self-confidence and of t rus t in others . This requires consider­able effort from everyone: facing one's fears, smdying, ques­t ioning one ' s position, t e lhng and conveying what one is but also l i s tening and r each ing ou t of oneself t o m e e t o the r s . Self-confidence and t rus t in others require that b o t h par t ies be lucid as to their o w n difficulties and genuinely seek knowl- ' edge and understanding. Such an effort involves resisting one s own fears, phobias, and distrust to reach a state of knowledge, • mastery, and fulfillment, and to achieve self-respect and respect for o the r s : for everyone , Musl ims a n d non-Musl ims , this is genuine jihad, in the very precise m e a n i n g this t e r m has in Islamic references (effort a n d resistance), a jihad for trust . This is a daily effort, with oneself and with one 's neighbors, in one's h o m e and in one's ne ighborhood: this is h o w the plural ism of ideas, cultures, and religions should be managed if w e w a n t to give uni ty t o diversity o r simply give a m e a n i n g t o o u r living together. This is by no m e a n s easy and it will never he, b u t we actually have n o choice: like every conscience or society at a specific t ime in history, w e are facing the key requi rement of our t ime.

It is difficult, in these t imes of global communica t ion and culture, of speed, s o m e t i m e s of haste and collective emot ion­alism to take the t i m e t o reconcile ourselves with the slow, dense t ime of critical reason, of knowledge , unders tanding, and complexity. Experience has shown m e , bo th wi th y o u n g and o lde r people , t h a t day-to-day m i n g l i n g and pe r sona l involvement is wha t awakens minds, br ings awareness, and

Condusion 115

)urs the desire t o go further , t o unders t and bet ter , and to irry out a dialogue. This is w h y w e mus t really live and work

((grther on shared projects. The ques t ion is in effect s imple . Over and beyond all the

iheories that could be devised, it is impor tan t t o ask everyone, .IS I often do w h e n concluding lecmres: how m a n y w o m e n and men from outside your "own circle," your " o w n culture," or your "own universe of reference" have you m e t dur ing the past month?''" Wi th h o w many of t h e m have you exchanged views, debated, or even worked at a c o m m o n social, cultural , o r polit­ical project? H o w many w o m e n and m e n have you me t in the [>ast month , o r t w o or six mon ths , with w h o m you have expe­rienced cultural , religious, and social diversity, been positively questioned, and been compe l l ed t o recons ide r y o u r way o f thinking, your certainties, and your habits as well as some of your prejudgments and prejudices? It is easy to th ink of oneself as "open" in a universe peopled with always the same citizens and friends, a n d where openness is t h o u g h t r a t h e r than actu­ally experienced. Mental ghe t tos are not mirages ; they actually exist in palpable reahty: b e i n g "open" inside one ' s men ta l or intellectual ghe t to does n o t o p e n its d o o r b u t simply allows one to ha rbor the illusion that there is n o ghe t t o and no d o o r The most dangerous prisons are those wi th invisible bars.

Reaching o u t of the m e n t a l , intel lectual , b u t also social, cultural , a n d rel igious g h e t t o is of c o u r s e a fundamenta l r equ i remen t for Musl ims as well . I have of ten repea ted to Muslim Westerners that they should th ink of themselves as "gifts" as wel l as "ques t ions" t o their fellow citizens. T h e y are gifts because they carry wi th t h e m o t h e r prospects, o the r

life WhrUlBdieve ' i cul tures , a n d o t h e r m e m o r i e s that are a wea l t h w i t h which they n u r t u r e thei r o w n society. They m u s t be aware of and consider confidently w h a t they are a n d w h a t they can b r ing to W e s t e r n societies: o t h e r v i ewpo in t s , t h e exper ience of t rue c u l t u r a l p lu ra l i sm, t h e m e a n i n g of shared , a n d n o t monopol ized , universals. Th i s presence f rom within is n o w a constitutive e lement and suggests that advances in economic deve lopment and technological skill should never be mistaken to imply ideological or philosophical superiority. This presence and gift offers its wea l t h a n d teaches humili ty. But Musl ims mus t also r ema in "quest ions": wi th their faith, their practices, thei r behavior , and their day-to-day civic c o m m i t m e n t , they m u s t positively challenge their fellow citizens. This is exactly the m e a n i n g of the f o r m u l a I used m a n y years ago w h e n I told Musl ims; your presence m u s t b e c o m e n o r m a l w i t h o u t becoming commonp lace . Learning to cope wi th the spiritual quest for t h e divine, for oneself, and for m e a n i n g at the core of Wes te rn societies, w h e n one has chosen to, is no t c o m m o n ­place. T h i n k i n g and living ou t this ques t b y practicing a daily ethics tha t shapes one 's conscience and h e a r t and orients one's act ions is n o t trivial. Deve lop ing an ethics of citizenship tha i requires consistency and rehes on reconcil iat ion b e t w e e n the universality of values and t h e sense of be long ing (and critical loyalty) o n the nat ional and local level is n o t commonp lace . At the core of the West, M u s h m s ' individual and collective pres­ence shou ld be seen as a ques t ion or r a t h e r a series of ques ­t ions: W h a t does this p r e s e n c e m e a n to me? H o w can their behavior b e explained? W h e r e do I stand? W h o am I a n d w h a t do I w a n t to be in front of this "other," at the core of shared.

Omdmion 117

jnfident p lura l i sm? Th is q u e s t i o n i n g p resence is a mi r ror ,

phe mi r ro r of t h e o t h e r reflects a thousand ques t ions a b o u t

oneself T h o s e ques t ions may i n d e e d be unse t t l ing at t imes ,

iiut they are ever so necessary. It will take t ime; it will take pat ience. Genu ine , impressive

.idvances have already been achieved. Beyond the crises in the media and politics, new dynamics emerge , initiatives and inter­est ing projec ts b r i n g t o g e t h e r w o m e n a n d m e n w h o refuse polarization, simplification, manipula t ion , a n d exclusion: poli­ticians and social workers (locally o r nat ionally) , responsible .md consc ient ious journa l i s t s , o rd ina ry a n d / o r a n o n y m o u s citizens. Those w o m e n and m e n are far more n u m e r o u s than is generally believed, and they share a certain sense of humanity, dignity, and ethics , whe the r t hey are behevers or not, M u s h m s or not. It is w i t h those w o m e n and m e n tha t the future m u s t be built, w^thout naivety, b u t w i t h t rus t and de te rmina t ion .

1 ', i-' ..

Appendix I Thierry

THE BACK OF THE CLASSROOM, he had kept his coat on; as ' he was ahou t t o leave. Yet w e had just got in. That was the rst time I m e t Thierry. Later encounters gave rise to a particu-rly tense conflict. Alone, b o t h feverish and proud , he kept

drying to show m e that m y posi t ion as a teacher was enough to Jirove that "I could not unders tand ," that of course "I judged

ih im" .. .badly, like " them." All m y "teacher 's" demands , all m y Jt tempts at dialogue, all m y suggestions were b rushed aside

^with the coldness and ha t red shown to enemies . "Mind your o w n bus iness . . . I don't want t o talk to y o u . . . " H e was scornful to excess—"asocial," they said.

T h e n , t h e day before the a u t u m n break, as he h a n d e d in a French essay, he told m e : "It m u s t b o t h e r you t o read o u r essays d u r i n g the holidays?!" H e was w a t c h i n g m e , as if to t ake i m m e d i a t e n o t e of m y reac t ion t o t h e chal lenge. " O f course , m y dea r T h i e r r y . . . " 1 answered, look ing straight at h im. H e was embar ras sed , b u t this was t h e first exchange , the first " w a r m t h , " the first sign. "See y o u , " he said, as h e t u r n e d away wi th a s t ra ined smile. Affection was so difficult for h im.

Tio Appendix 1

T h e fol lowing w e e k s a n d m o n t h s a l lowed m e t o cha r t Thierry 's background . T o o m a n y absences, t o o m u c h violence had u n d e r m i n e d all his p ro tec t ions . H e w a s ever so fragile and w i t h d r a w n that he e n d e d up t u r n i n g his weakness i n to a s t rength: he did no t a l low anyone to love him. At best , he accepted to be judged , at s c h o o l . . . and very badly. H e w a s so used to it tha t he m a d e a p o i n t of s t rengthening that image: he knew h o w t o show adults h o w worthless he was, from teachers to the y o u n g offenders depa r tmen t . Wi th the painful paradox that he was a victim of w h a t he thought he decided.

T h e r e were drugs a n d theft; runn ing away and wander ing . T h e n , m o r e and m o r e often, signs s h o w e d that a b o n d w a s fo rming t h r o u g h t h e successive failures. Th ie r ry t es ted m y t ru s t a n d m y pa t i ence , a n d wi th u n s e t t l i n g regu la r i ty he failed t o r espond to the sl ightest of m y h u m a n d e m a n d s . H e needed t o be loved beyond the law, beyond n o r m s , at t h e far e n d o f t r a n s g r e s s i o n . . . O t h e r w i s e , t h e r e cou ld be n o love! His b r o k e n h o m e , his so l i t ude had t a u g h t h im tha t t h o s e w h o give n o r m a l love can easily be t ray it. T h e n a m r e o f his fate h a d o v e r s h a d o w e d s c h o o l expec ta t ions : w h e r e o t h e r s l e a rned , T h i e r r y s t u m b l e d . W h e r e o t h e r s found the i r way, he lost his.

THIERRY TAUGHT ME THE SADNESS of paths out l ined very early on. I b e c a m e aware , in t h e m o s t violent manner , tha t s o m e teenagers ea rn life th rough a n infernal inner struggle. Between survival and school, the choice is obvious. Emptiness served as an ident i ty in Thier ry ' s conscience , w h a t was there to train? His doub t s and mine t a u g h t me to be the re and say no th ing .

Appendixl m

Ic demanded silence. H e h a d m r n e d m e in to a teacher w h o i.id nothing to say I was supposed t o give "'knowledge"; 1 had

Id experience the ignorance of a collapse. The darkness tore apart w h e n w e traveled to Mali together.

1 here were three of us and Thie r ry was a m o n g us. H e stopped s m o k i n g " . . . for a m o n t h , he marve led . " H e r e , it is w o r t h it ' i m e h o w . . . " Strangely, he felt tha t he was b e c o m i n g par t of

.1 background tha t r e sponded w i t h sympathy, n o ques t ions

.isked. His will was suddenly b r i m m i n g with resources: " I 'm

starting again from scratch I 'm going to get wha t 1 was not given." Today those words e c h o in m y memory . W h e n w e g o t hack, and for six mon ths . Th ie r ry lived on tha t hope , o n that strength. We had "won ' " . . .

And then, all was empry. T h i e r r y was lying at the foot of a iree when he was found dead, in the a u t u m n of 1983. T h e t r ap of his life had snapped shut: a n overdose, qui te simply Images, hor izons c rowd into m y m i n d . And a tes t imonia l , a t r ibu te , .i gesture . T h i e r r y shaped m y fate as a teacher . H e had n o t I hosen anyth ing , and all d o o r s h a d closed. Even before he was born , he h a d b e e n c o n d e m n e d , t o be b o r n c o n d e m n e d . Like all those a r o u n d h im, I was necessary to h i m , and insuffrcienr. His death at n ine teen colored my c o m m i t m e n t wi th a require­ment: to be the re above all, c o m e w h a t may. Wi thou t a hea r t o u r profession is n o longer o n e . W h a t remains is t o overcome failures. Th ie r ry is no m o r e . A m e m o r y ; images from which, with a few doubts , one should d r a w the s t rength to go on.

Appendix II Manifesto for a New "We"

An Appeal to Western Muslims and Their Fellow Citizens

W E HAVE AMPLE REASON TO BE CONCERNED. T h e situation of

MusHms in Wes te rn societies has, for the last twenty years, been fraught wi th difficulty. If anything, this s i tuat ion has worsened over the last five years. The "war against t e r ro r " launched after the events of September i i , iooi , a long wi th repeated terrorist attacks th roughou t the wor ld and increased tensions arising from social problems or from immigra t ion , have combined to portray Islam—^and Muslims in genera!—as a threat ro Wes te rn societies. Fear, with the emot iona l and often irrauonal reactions that accompany it, has become a par t of the public mind-set. Whi le such reactions may somet imes be legitimate and understandable, they are also being exploited with increasing frequency for political and electoral ends.

From Canada to Australia, by way of the United States and Europe, hardly a Western society has been spared its o w n searing quest ions of "identity," its own "integration"-related tensions, and its own debate on the place of Muslims within its confines. Muslims, meanwhile , realize that the a tmosphere has b e c o m e m o r e highly charged, that suspicions have deep­ened; they have become the subject of debates that are nei ther

124 Appendix U

entirely t r anspa ren t n o r ve ry healthy. Mus l ims find t h e m ­selves faced with clear-cut alternatives: they can accept thei r lot and adopt the a t t imde o f the "victim," the "discriminated minority," w h o withdraws in to itself and never ceases tojustify itself, o r they can face u p to their difficulties, b e c o m e full-fledged subjects of the i r o w n history, a n d take the necessary corrective measures. It is only namral that they complain of the t rea tment handed them, tha t they criticize the racism and daily discrimination they mus t endure , but in the final analysis, their fate is in their hands. No th ing will change until they accept full responsibility for themselves , b e c o m e constructively critical, and self-critical, and respond to the creeping evolution of fear wi th a firmly g rounded revolution of trust .

Handling Fears; Facing Legitimate Questions

E V E N T S OF RECENT TEARS have brought Western populat ions face to face wi th new realities and self doubts as deep as they have been chal lenging. T h e increasingly visible presence of millions of Muslims in t he i r midst has m a d e t h e m aware t h a t their societies have changed: cultural homogene i ty is a th ing o f the past, the ques t ion o f their own identi ty has b e c o m e complex, social mixing is an ideal that can only be achieved wi th difficulty, par t i cu la r ly w h e n social p r o b l e m s such as u n e m p l o y m e n t , racism, a n d margina l iza t ion multiply. T h i s sense of instability, c o m b i n e d with the presence of a reli­g ion a n d a cul ture seen as "foreign," has given rise to fears

Appendix n 115

m d to ques t ions that are perfect ly legi t imate , even t h o u g h I hey may be expressed with a certain confusion. Are Muslims II Lily capable of living in secularized societies? Are their values I ompatible wi th those of democracy? Can they live side b y side and mingle wi th their non-Musl im neighbors? Can they II imbat the shocking behavior exhibited in their name , in the lorm of te r ror i sm, domest ic violence, forced marr iage , and die like? Can they free themselves from their social ghet tos , those b r e e d i n g g r o u n d s of u n e m p l o y m e n t , insecurity, a n d inarginality?

Faced wi th these questions, Muslims m u s t rise t o the occa­sion. They m u s t express conf idence in themselves , in thei r valuts, in the i r abihty to live and to c o m m u n i c a t e w i th full serenity in Wes te rn societies. T h e revolution of trust w e are calling for will depend first o n self-confidence, on confidence m one's convictions: their task is to reappropriate their heritage and to develop toward it a positive yet critical intellectual atti­tude. They m u s t b e capable of affirming that the teachings of islam s u m m o n Muslims first t o spiritual life, t o introspection, and to self-reform. They m u s t forcefully insist that Musl ims are expected to respect the laws of the countr ies in which they reside and t o which they m u s t b e loyal. Millions of Musl ims are, in fact, already proving every day that "religious integra­tion" is an accomplished fact, that they are indeed a t h o m e in the Western countries w h o s e tastes, cul ture , and psychology they have m a d e their own.

Still, faced with legit imate fears, Musl im Westerners canno t simply min imize or avoid these quest ions . They mus t , as a mat te r of u t m o s t urgency, develop a critical discourse tha t

rejects the vict im's s tance, o n e that criticizes instead radical, literal, a n d / o r cu lmral readings of the sources. In the n a m e of the guiding principles of Islam, they m u s t take a stand against, for ins tance , t h e use and misuse of thei r re l ig ion to justify terrorism, domest ic violence, or forced marr iage . The future of the Mus l im spiritual c o m m u n i t y will necessarily require insti­tut ions of religious t ra ining (Islamic studies, Islamology, i m a m training schools, etc.) to b e established in t h e West and help to respond to Wes te rn ci t izens ' expectations. W i t h the same crit­ical a t t i tude, they mus t l e a r n to make distinctions; they m u s t no t endorse the confusion tha t sur rounds the debates related t o thei r societies: social p rob l ems , u n e m p l o y m e n t , m a r g i n ­alization, a n d i m m i g r a t i o n are no t "rel igious p rob l ems" and have n o t h i n g to do wi th Islam as such, it is imperative to reject the "Is lamizat ion" of educa t iona l and soc ioeconomic issues that require political, n o t rehgious , solutions.

O n e of the m o s t effective ways of r e spond ing to legit i­ma te fears is t o separate p rob lems into thei r componen t par t s b u t w i t h o u t d i s c o n n e c t i n g these closely re la ted e l e m e n t s . "Deconst ruct ing wi thout disconnecting" m e a n s that w e accept the obligation to distinguish w h a t is strictly religious in na tu re f rom educa t iona l , social, o r immigra t ion- re la ted issues, a n d t hen analyze h o w cause-and-effect relationships are established at the sociopolitical grass r o o t s . Citizens of the Musl im faith m u s t cont r ibu te to a re formula t ion of the political ques t ions of the day. Seen in this l ight , u n e m p l o y m e n t , school failure, and de l inquency have, as w e already m e n t i o n e d , no connec ­tion wi th Islam. Yet it is vitally necessary t o grasp the reasons that Mus l im citizens and residents bear the b r u n t of failure in

Appendix I! 127

ilicse very areas. W h a t n e w pohtical , social, a n d city-planning

policies can w e p r o p o s e t o r ed re s s this s ta te of affairs, n e w

initiatives tha t wou ld enable u s to comba t segregat ion and sell-

segregation, and encourage g r ea t e r social just ice and mixing at

all levels of society?

Exploiting Fear

T H E A R G U M E N T S THAT W E R E , Ï E S T E R D A Ï , t h e so le p rov ince of part ies of t h e ex t reme right have un fo r tuna t e ly found a h o m e within traditiontil m a i n s t r e a m part ies. Pohtical leaders increasingly play u p o n fear t o mobi l ize vo ters and to p r o m o t e increasingly hard-line pohcies for m a n a g i n g social p rob l ems , security, and i m m i g r a t i o n . At a loss for creat ive, innovat ive ideas for p r o m o t i n g cultural plural ism or for combat ing u n e m ­ployment a n d social ghc t to iza t ion , they prefer the d a n g e r o u s rhetoric of pro tec t ing " ident i ty" and "cul tura l homogenei ty ," of defending "Western values ," of impos ing strict l imitat ions ; on "foreigners" with, o f c o u r s e , t h e w h o l e appara tus of n e w securi ty laws to fight t e r r o r i s m . These pol i t ical d i scour ses . play u p o n deep-seated apprehens ions , p e r p e t u a t e confusion over t h e t e r m s of d e b a t e , a n d p r o m o t e a b i n a r y a p p r o a c h to sociopolitical issues. T h e implicit t e r m s of t h e d e b a t e a re of ten r e d u c e d to a d i s t inc t ion b e t w e e n t w o ent i t ies : " W e Wes te rners" and "They, t h e M u s h m s , " even when citizens are Mushms and Westerners ,

The constant r e tu rn t o t h e same quest ions in nat ional polit­

ical d e b a t e s (violence, w o m e n , in tegra t ion , etc.) is far from

ii8 Appendix I!

innocent; t h e question o f " [slam" often becomes a diversionary tactic that pohtical part ies employ to u n d e r m i n e their adver­saries and attract voters. Racist and xenophobic speech prolif­era tes ; t h e pas t is r e in t e rp re t ed so as t o exclude Islam from the shghtest participation in the creation of the Western iden­tity, henceforth redefined as purely Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian; individuals are tes ted at the border to de termine the "moral flexibility" of immigrants , and laws reinforcing security become reflexive in these t imes of fear and instability, no t to ment ion the policies of intransigence whose ultimate effect is to criminalize immigrants a n d asylum seekers.

In response to these a t t empts at exploitation and, on occa­sion, t o the man ipu la t ion tha t accompan ies t h e m , c i t izens of the Musl im religion m u s t behave con t r a ry to the na tu ra l reactions. Instead of wi thdrawing from the public debate and into isolation, they mus t m a k e themselves heard; step o u t of their religious, social, cul tural , o r political ghet tos ; and move forward to m e e t and reassure their fellow citizens. The poli­cies of those w h o exploit fear are intended to create precisely what they claim t o combat : b y perpetuaUy accusing Musl ims of not be ing integrated, of set t ing themselves apart, of sett ing up barriers be tween " t h e m " and "us," and of shutt ing them­selves u p in a re l igious iden t i ty they v i e w as exclusive, t h e intellectuals and politicians w h o warn against the "naivety" of o the r poHticians, against " the Islamic threat" or the "failure" of pluralist society or of muJt icul turai ism. spread suspicion, create divisions, and try to isolate the Muslims. As citizens, Muslims are today called u p o n to establish a rigorous critique of these very alarmist p r o n o u n c e m e n t s tha t badly conceal the

Appendix II 119

ideology they p r o m o t e . In t h e n a m e of Wes te rn values t h e Muslims m u s t fight against policies that normal ize c o m m o n racism and discriminatory t rea tment , that stigmatize a por t ion of the populat ion. The true loyal citizenship is a critical loyalty tha t m e a n s t o refuse t o have t o p e r m a n e n t l y prove o n e ' s be long ing to the society in full knowledge of one's respon­sibilities as a citizen, lay claim t o one's rights, and carry ou t a thoroughgoing critique of government policies when these

^ U c i e s be t ray the ideals of a democrat ic society.

A New "We"

IF THERE IS A CONTRIBUTION that Muslim Westerners can br ing to their respective societies, it is surely that of reconcihation. Confident in convictions, frank and rigorous in their critical outiook, a rmed with a broader understanding of Western soci­eties, of their values, their history, and their aspfracions, they are ideally placed to engage their fellow citizens in reconciling these societies wi th their o w n ideals. T h e vital issue today is no t t o c o m p a r e social mode l s or experiences in a fruitless debate (as w e have witnessed a m o n g the United States, France, and Great Britain) but m o r e simply, and in a far stricter and more demand ing way, t o take t h e measure of each society by comparing the ideals affirmed and pmclaimed by its intellecmals and politicians with the concrete practices that can be observed at the social grass roots: h u m a n rights and equality of oppor-

I mnity (be tween men and w o m e n , people of different origins, skin colors). We must br ing constructive criticism to bear on our

130 Appendix U

societies and measure words against deeds: all the citizens m u s t adopt toward their society the same healthy self-crirical attitude that MusHms must demonst ra te toward their community.

O u r societ ies are awa i t ing t h e emergence of a new "We." A " W e " tha t w o u l d b r i n g t oge the r m e n a n d w o m e n , citi­z e n s of all r e l i g i o n s — a n d those w i t h o u t r e l i g i o n — w h o w o u l d u n d e r t a k e t o g e t h e r t o resolve t h e c o n t r a d i c t i o n s of the i r society: the r ight t o work , t o h o u s i n g , t o respec t , against rac ism and all f o rms of d iscr iminat ion, all offenses aga ins t h u m a n dignity. S u c h a " W e " w o u l d h e n c e f o r t h represent this c o m i n g t o g e t h e r of cit izens confident in the i r values, defenders of p luraHsm in their c o m m o n society, and respectful of the ident i t ies of o thers ; ci t izens w h o seek to take u p the chal lenge in t h e n a m e of t he i r shared va lues at the very hea r t of their societies. As loyal and critical ci t izens, as m e n a n d w o m e n of integri ty, they j o i n forces in a revo­lu t ion o f t r u s t and conf idence t o s t em the o n r u s h of fear. Against shallow, e m o t i o n a l , even hyster ical react ions they stand firm for rationality, for dialogue, for attentiveness, for a reasonable approach t o complex social quest ions.

Local, National

T H E FUTURE OF W E S T E R N SOCIETIES is n o w being played o u t at the local level. It is a m a t t e r of greatest urgency to set in m o t i o n n a t i o n a l m o v e m e n t s of local initiatives, in w h i c h w o m e n a n d m e n of different religions, cul tures , and sensi-

AppendixU 131

tivities can open new hor izons of mutual unders tanding and shared commi tment : hor izons of trust. These shared projects mus t hencefor th br ing us t o g e t h e r and give b i r th to a n e w • "We" anchored in citizenship. O f course , "intercultural" a n d "interfaith" dialogues are b o t h vital and necessary, bu t they cannot have the impact of the shared c o m m i t m e n t of citi­zens in the priority fields: educat ion, social divides, insecurity, racisms, discriminations, a n d m o r e .

Together they must learn to question educational p rog rams and to p r o p o s e m o r e inclusive approaches to the s u m of r emembered experiences tha t m a k e u p today 's Western soci­eties. These societies have changed, and the teaching of history must change apace; it m u s t include the multiplicity of these experiences; it must even speak of the dark periods of history, those of w h i c h n e w c i t izens o f the Wes t have often b e e n the original victims. Alongside the En l igh tenment , and the progress and achievements of science and technology, some­thing must also be said about slaver)', about coIoniaUsm, abou t racism, genocide , and m o r e . Objectively, wi thout a r rogance or a p e r m a n e n t sense of guilt. At the risk of touch ing off a competi t ion for most -wounded victim status, a more objective reading of t h e memor ies building the cur ren t national h is tory mus t be m a d e official. O n the social level, w e m u s t c o m m i t ourselves t o a far more tho roughgo ing social mixing in bo th our schools and o u r c o m m u n i t i e s . Far m o r e c o u r a g e o u s and creative social and u r b a n policies are needed, of course . But even n o w citizens can foster h u m a n interchange in and

^ th rough projects focused o n local democra t i c par t ic ipat ion.

132 Appendix 11

Nat iona l poli t ical au thor i t i e s m u s t go a long wi th , facihtate, and encourage such local dynamics .

Wes te rn societies will n o t win the bat t le against social inse­curity, v io lence , a n d d rugs t h r o u g h t h e sole secur i ty-based approach. W h a t we n e e d in our communi t i es are social insti­tu t ions , civic educa t ion , local j o b c rea t ion , and confidence-bui ld ing policies. Local poli t ical au thor i t ies can do m u c h t o transform the prevailing a tmosphere of suspicion, and citizens, including Muslims, m u s t n o t hesitate to knock on their doors , to remind t h e m that in a democra t ic society the elected repre­sentative is at the service o f the voter, a n d n o t the opposi te , It is impera t ive that w e b e c o m e involved in nat ional affairs, that w e n o t allow ourselves ro be carried away by the passions g e n e r a t e d o n the i n t e rna t iona l scene. Still, it is clear t h a t a critical discussion of h o w i m m i g r a t i o n is m a n a g e d has yet to take place in the West; it is no longer possible to strip t h e Thi rd Wor ld of its riches a n d in the s a m e b rea th treat t h o s e who flee poverty and dictatorial regimes as criminals. N o t only is such behav io r unjust a n d i nhuman ; it is intolerable. To h e and to r ema in the voice of the voiceless of Iraq or Palestine, of Tibet or Chechnya, of abused w o m e n or of AIDS vict ims (particularly in Africa, even t h o u g h medicat ion exists) is to take a stand for reconciliation in the n a m e of the ideals of dignity, h u m a n rights, and just ice t o o often sacrificed on the altar of shor t - te rm political gain and geostrategic interests. In t imes of globalization, bo th local m u t u a l t rust and global critical m i n d pave the road toward reconciliation b e t w e e n civilizations.

A revolut ion of trust a n d confidence, of critical loyalty, the bi r th of a n e w "We" dr iven by nat ional m o v e m e n t s of local

Appendix II 133

initiative: such are the con tour s of a responsible c o m m i t m e n t . by all t h e cit izens in Wes te rn societies—for they lay claim t o the benefits of a responsible, citizen-based ethic; for they w a n t t o p r o m o t e the Western cul tural richness; for they k n o w tha t survival will depend, imperatively, upon a n e w sense of polit­ical creativity. Citizens m u s t work in the l o n g term, above a n d beyond t h e electoral dead l ines that para lyze polit icians a n d h inder t h e fo rmu la t i on of innovat ive , c o u r a g e o u s pol ic ies . W h e n t h e e lec ted official has nowhere t o t u r n , w h e n he n o longer can t ransla te his ideas i n to reahty, it falls to t h e voters , t o the c i t izens , to lay full c la im to thei r ideals, and t o m a k e t h e m a reality.

1 N o t e s

See the text I have dedicated to him in Appendix I. In the most advanced countries such as Britain. France, Belgium, the United Statei, or Canada, This phen.omenon of definitive scii lement. of passing from immigrant to citizen status, was to spread to all Western countries and continues to do so. One translation for secularism in Arabic is al-ládijtiyyah, a sys tem without religion. An intelligent policy would be to involve long-standing Western Muslim citizens to help new migrants facing conscience or cultural conflict issues. Yet today, political discourse exploiting fear doe.'! exactly the oppo­site: it makes dangerous use o f n e w migrants' difficulties and of some shocking stories—to cast suspicion over all Muslims, wiiether citizens or new immigrants. This is no t always so: s o m e converts, instead o f taking advantage o f their knowledge of society, adopt a position of self-marginalizacion and self-segregation, thu5 becoming strangers in their own society. To Be a European Muslim (Leicester, UK: The Islamic Foundation, 1998); WfjierM Musiims and the Future of Islam (New York: Oxford University Pres.s, 2004). This is what IcKplained and analyi::ed in the boo\íTo Be a European Mu-ilim whe[i 1 spoke of a Muslim identity that is always open, always inclusive, always on the move. Be longing to the "ummah." to the spiritual community or "faith community," is subject ro the same conditions mentioned above. As I noted in To Be a European Muslim, it is a matter of respecting principles and contracts; thus, Muslims are strictly bound by the laws of the coun­tries in which they Lve in the West, and ihey must moreover be critical and self-critical coward their fellow believers (as indeed toward all men

136 Notes

and all societies). If those latter uphold justice, they must support them; if they do not, ihey must rt'sisi them. Muslims be long lo a "spiritual community" based on prmdplcs . and if the community ur its members betray those principles, their duty is to stop ih^m or oppose them. The Prophei of Islam once said: "Help your brother, whether he is just or unjust!' His companions inevitably questioned him about the support they were to give an unjust brother; how could that be? And the Prophet answered, reversing ihe perspective: "Preveni him [ihe unjust brother! from performing injustice; this is how you will support him!" (hadith reported by al­Bukhàrì).

9. On the level of more learned, specialized terminology, ihis I'eformisni defines itself as saiaji. meaning that its advocates want tn return to the faithfulness of the first generat ions ol Muslims [the salaf) and recap­

ture the energy, creativity, and boldness of early scholars w h o did not hesitate to suggest n e w approaches to new contexts. This word can be confusing because it is used with another, opposed meaning. There are literalist saiafi irends that also refer to the salaf to advocate a return to rigid, literal inierpreiations of the past. For the former group, faithful­

ness involves movement (since times and societies have changed) while for the latter it implies freezing the text beyond time and environment.

10. This is the subject of my book Rai^iciil Reform: Islamu Ethics and Liberation (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009), which deals with this in^>era­

tive evolution of contemporary Muslim thinking. 11. I have, for instance, taken a posit ion in Canada (and in Britain after the

Archbishop o f Canterbury's remarks) in debates over the religious arbi­

tration and conciliation courts granted lo and used by other religions. A polemic appeared w h e n s o m e Muslims asked to he granted the same rights as iither religions. F r o m a strictly legal standpoint, the Muslim organizations which demanded such equality were right, but my posi­

tion was that iti fact Mu.siims did not need those iriernal adjustments and that solutions could b e found within the existing legal framework,

12. J have explained in m a n y b o o k s and articles that my posit ion is to encourage Mu.shm citizens 10 enroll their children in the public schoo l system where they will learn to live with their fellow citizens of various origins and cultures. Private .schools, which anyway only receive z percent or i percent of Musl im children, arc neither a panacea nor a fu tu re­oriented choice. Engaging in the state school system, as parents and as students, is a necessity. It remains that the system should be reformed in depth, for the mixing of social statuses and cultures is but an illusion in what ought to be c o m m o n , equal schooling for all. S o m e

Noto 137

Stale schools are actually social and cultural ^ e t t o s , and inequaiilles in treatment within the public system are simply unacceptable. If nothing is done in this field, it can be no surprise that s o m e people think of creating efficient altemaiive structures exclusively for Muslims: anyway, such segregation already exisus in state schools in some area.s or suburbs

i (where 80 percent or 90 percent of pupils are "of immigrant origin" or "Muslims"), with the additional bitter truth that achievement levek in those schools are very low and offer childn;n no hope of success,

13, As Mushm jurists (fuqaha) have defined it according to their specialty a.s scholars of Islamic law and juri.sprudence [fiqh).

14, See my books To Be a Eurapeûn Muslim, WeUern Muslims and the Future of Islam, and especially Radical Reform: Islamic Ethics and lAberation. in which I put forward a n e w categorization of the ethical finabtics in Islam's message.

15, See on ray website (www.tariqramadan.com) the information about this European campaign "Joining hards against forced marriages" in collabo­

ration with the Rotterdam municipality and the "think tank" I chair. The European Muslim Network,

16, Sec the reports published s o far; Report on City Tour of Tariq Ramadan March 2007-Ыпе 2007, Municipality of Rotterdam, Youth, Education and Society (Jeugd. Ondcrwijs en Samcnieving). September 2007, and Ctttzenship, Identity umi A Sense of Belonging; Bridge of Trust, Education: The First Pillar, Municipality of Rotterdam, Youth. Education and Society (Jcugd, Onderwijs en Samenleving), Apnl гоо8,

17, An academic component is hnked to ibis project, with the creation of a "Citizenship and Identity ' chair at the University of Rotterdam, Three PhD projecus haw started over comparahvc studies of local policies and dynamics. See my webpage at tbe univer.sity; www.eur.nl / fsw / staff/ homepages .•' ramadan,

18, In Switzerland, some leaders of the tar right party Union Démocratique du Centre (UDC) have demanded that 1 be stripped of m y nationality because my comraitraent for Islam was evidence of my failure to inte­

grate. T h e y moreover demanded that building minarets be prohibited for they symbolized Muslims' sertlcment and the 'arrogance of their colonization" contradicting the "Christian essence" of Swiss culture,

19, But w h o was also, ic is generally overlooked, a Muslim judge (yiîtJî) as well as a fcrveiii worshiper,

20, This is what the philosopher and medievalist Alain de Libera has been doing in b o o k after book: see in particular his seminal Penser au Moyen Âge.

liH Notes

21. See my hook. Radical Refonn: IsUimiC Ethics and Liberation. ZZ. This was a pun as I argued for chc need "to foresee the four Cs." 2.'5. "The Quest for Meaning, a Philosophy of Plumiism." 24. One must also denounce the hypocrisy of Arab states, which after all

bear the m a i n responsibility for letting d o w n the Palestinians and for their current disarray.

25. That is the idea underlying the Charter for Cimpassion initiated by Karen Armstrong, which develops that idea that the realm of the heait is neces-sar}' to the finality of Justice, T h e Croup of Sages, to which I be long , m e t in February 2009 in G e n e v a to finalize chc t erms o f the Charter*, about which the public has b e e n imi-ted to m i t e and react.

26. That is the, title o f my late.st book: The Quest for Meaning, a Philosophy of Plurali-im.

27. The project was precisely entit led Giving Europe a Soul. 28. This IS what I have called the three "Ls," which Muslim citizens have

n o w acquired: mastering the national language, respecting the law, and (even) maintaining critical loyalty to their society.

29. Including those ment ioned earlier intended to test their loyalty, o f the type' who are you primarily?

30. To the notable and paradoxical exception of language acquisition: it s eems that the nature of requiremenLs as to mastering the language (on the job market) is higher even as the yoLmg are becoming aware of the difficulties that are awaiting thejiim finding work.'I'hect)mbined phenomena of high requirements and disafiection wtiuld, the report goes, seem to explain this regression, which nevertheless is not confirmed in all cotuitries. The report is in Dutch and is soon to be published in English (wholly or in part).

31. See Appendix 11: Manifesto for a N e w "We." 32. O n e should also nient ion here the wrirings o f the n e w "terrorism

experts," w h o k e e p fos ter ing suspicion and feeding rumors a b o u t possible connect ions , w i thout ever providing evidence of their hypo­thetical conclusions, That enables the.m to go on giving "expert opin­ions" about "terrorist networks" and thereby earning some money.

33. A prominent msritution as far as rhe memor}' and pi indples of French secularism arc concerned,

34. 'I'he l erm 'judeo-Christ!an" is a recent one. It would have been impos­sible to put it this way during the Second World War, This is an a poste­riori idoological reconstruction, ,

35. See the websi te m\'\v, pale stine global resistance, info that sets forth the m o v e m e n t ' s phi losophy and the characteristics o f the synergies that should be established.

36- This is what John J. Mearsheimcr and Stephen M, Walt have shown in a recent study; The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy (New York: Farrar,

Straus and Giroux, 2007), 37, After I waited for t w o years and initiated a lawsuit t o find out the reason

m y visa h a d b e e n revoked, rhe D e p a r t m e n t o f H o m e l a n d Security c laimed that 1 had given m o n e y ttj a Palestinian organization wh i l e 1 "should reasonably have k n o w n " that this organisation ' bad links with the terrorist movement H a m a s , Y e t . not only is this organization not blacklisted —to this day- -anywhere in Europe (where 1 live), but 1 gave about 700 euros 10 this organization be tween 1998 and aooi , a year before it w a s blacklisted in the Utiit.cd States. Thus I "should reasonably have known" a year before the Departinent of Hom.eland Security itself that it was go ing to be suspected! This is all the rnore ludicrous w h e n one learns that such ridiculous and arbLlraiy deds ions are retroactive! It should be added that 80 percent o f the questions 1 had to answer during my t w o interviews at the U.S. emba.'fsy in Switzerland were about m y positions over the war in Iraq and the Palestinian resistance, I repeated that such resistance is legitimate even though I disagree with the means used (killing innocents cannot be justified),

38, C o n c u r r i n g ev idence s h o w s t h a t the A m e r i c a n i n t e r v e n t i o n in

Afighanistan had already b e e n planned before the September ri, l o o i ,

terrorist attacks, 39, It muse be stressed here that s o m e supposedly "liberal" Muslims have no

qualms about supporting dictators: be ing religious "liberals" d o c s not mean be ing political "demotTats." T h e Western public is often misled over this issue: for instance, m a n y Tunisian intellectuals claim 10 be liberals as far as religion is concerned but they side with dictatorship concerning politics. Examples abound,

40, Their having an "exotic" n a m e is not enough: chose persons m a y verj^ well still be long co the same "universe o f reference."

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142 Index Index 145

Department of Homeland Security,

i39n37 Descartes, 12 dialectical approach, 29 dictators, 8. 23,30,39, 40, 89 .107-8 ,

I 3 9 n 3 9

dissimilation (taqiyyah). 19 diversity, 42

challenges of, 13-14 cultural, 42 of Islam. 41 managing, 90-91

dogmatic secularists, 97-99 double hearing, 20 doublespeak, 14-16, 20 Dufresne, Pierre, 10

economic needs

cultural resistances contradicting,

as Muslim exile, 27-28

education, 32, .18, 87-89, m 'dUtn (private mtoring with

scholar), 12 civic. 131-32 islamization of, 126 as preventive measure. 93 private schools, 54 promoting, 8 shared commitment for, 94,131,

H6ni2-13 Egypt, 107

ban from, 15 trip to, 12

empathy, 10.88 equal treatment, 52-53, 69-70, 129

Erasmus University Rotterdam, 92 ethics, o f citizenship. 116 Etzinger, Han, 9 2 European roots, 80-84 European Union, 2 3 , 77 Evangelical Christian Zionists, 106 excision, 32, 64 ex-Muslims, 108-11 extremis: networks, 26,32

feilure, 126-27 faith community (ummah), 3 9 , 41,

I 3 5 n 8

faithfulne.ss, 39. 4 8 - 4 9 - 56-58, t36n9 faqih (Muslim jurist), 6 3

al-Farabi. 83 far right populists, 99-100 ^(wii (legal opinion], 56 fear, z6. 28-29, 53-54

deconstructing without disconnecting. 126-27

exploiting, 127-29,135n4 handling, 125-27 as public mind-set, 123 of religious and cultural

pluralism, 82 feminist trends, 100-102 films, anti-Islamic, 9 3

(adaptations o f Islamic law and jurisprudence), 13, 48, 56, 85

forced marriages, 31. 64 foreign lands, 30 four Cs theory, 86 France

ban from, 15

seculansm law, 97-98

freedom, 31,65-66 fi^edom of conscience. 52 freedom of worship, 52 French Muslims, 32 fundamentalists, 50 fundamentals o f Islamic law and

jurisprudence (usui al-fiqk),

48,85

Gaza strip, 105 generational differences, cultural,

43-44 Geneva, 8-9 genocide. 131 al-Chazali. .^bù H i m i d , 63, 83 Giving Europea Soul, i38n25, i38n27 globalization, 25, 26, 132 Global Movement o f Non-Violent

Resistance, 105 Group of Sages, I 3 8 n 2 5

halal meat, 34

Hamas, 139137 headscarf controversy. See Islamic

headscarf controversy Hegel, 12 Helping Hand Cooperative

(Cooperation Coup de Main), 11 Hirsi Ali, Ayan, 93 homosexual groups. 102-4 honor crimes, 64 human interchange, 131 human rights, 56. 92, 98,108,131,

Sec also Islamic headscarf controversy

contradictions to, 108

judged in light of, 76 measured in society, 129 standing up for, 132 of women, 98

humility. 22 Huntington. Samuel. 11 Hussein, Saddam, 30 hypocrisy, i3Sn24

'ibaddt (practice). 41. 47 Ibn Khaldiln, 83 Ibn Sina, 83 identity, t27, i35n7

defining through roots, 81-83 multidimensionalism of,

35-38 self-confidence and, 38

identity crisis, 35-40 loyalty tdat ing to. 36 traditional landmarks weakened.

o f W e s t e m societies, 24-25 ijiihAd (reasoning). 47, 56, 85 immigration, 25, 68

challenges of new, 60- 61 economic survival and, 90 managing, 132 moral flexibility tested, 128 of Muslims, 18 racism and. 76 social psychology influenced

by, 26 infidel (fea/ir), 50 in Red, tn the Mar^H (Ramadan). 9 insti lutionalization.ofM usiim

presence, 54-55, 72

144 Index

incegraiion. 13,25­26. See also post integration approach

integrity, 130 intellectual, controversial, 15 intercultural dialogues, 131 interfaith dialogues, 131 International Sym]x>siuin of

Francophone Muslims (CIMEF). 86

intimacies, integration of, 67 Islam, See aho de­Islamization; Sufi;

Western Islam books about, 54

as diversionary taa ic , 128

as European issue, 45 explaining, 12. 33 homosexuality and, 102­4 inlerpretaiion differences, 42 issues regarding, 11 nobleness of, 22­23

objectives of, 57 spirituality of, 33 unity and diversity of, 41 w o m e n and raismterpreiadons

of, 62­66, 100­102 Islamic feminism, 100­102 Islamic headscarf controversy, 11,

28. 97, 9S­99. lor, 102 Islamist International, 109 Islamizing problems, 74­76,126 Is la mo­leftism, 105 islamophobia, 58­59 isolation, 30

The Israel i.obhy and US Foreign Policy

(Mearsheimer and Waltj, I39n36

Israel­Palestine conflict, 104­6

jihad (effort, resistance), 56. m . 114 journalism, dangers of, 78­79 Judaism, 13,100. See aho .self­hating

Jews Judeo­Christian, 80, 99,128,138n34 jurisprudence, 13,48,56,85

kâfir (negator, infidel), 50 Kant, I Ï al­Kindi, 83

landmarks, 24 language. I 3 8 n 2 8 , i38njo law. i38njB

legal exception (ntkhsa), 31 legal opinion (fatwa), 56 de Libera, Alain, i37n20 Libya, ban from, 15 Ligue française de l'enseignement, 98 Ligue française des Droits de

l 'Homme (French H u m a n Rights League), 98

hneage, attack of, 1 literalist trends, 49­50 local level, participation for change,

70­72, 93­94,130­33 loyalty, 29, 129, T32,1381128

identity relating to, 36 needing to prove, 35 ­38

Manifest for a New " We, " 94 marriages, forced, 32.64 Marx, Karl, 1 2

Mauritius. 38. 50

Index 145

• lcarsheimer,JohnJ,. 1391136 media, 9 9 , 102, 1 1 7

Arab Slates and, 107

dangers of. 7 8 - 7 9

distorted mirror of, 44, 9 2 - 9 3

homophobia spread through,

102­3 journalism protagonist of

pluralism, 78 optical illusion of, 5 0

o w n agenda of, 18, 2 8 . 3 2 , 3 3 , 46.

49 presenting Muslims as

problematic, 5 2

mediation, 14 mental ghettos, 1 1 5

migration. 2 5

minonty status, 5 7 - 5 8

moderate Muslims, 1 0 9

Modood, Tariq, 1 3

Morineau, Michel, 98 mosques, 5 4

mu 'dmaiat (social affairs), 4 2

multicultural citizenship, 1 3 , 2 6 - 2 7

multicultural sociery, 1 3

multiple identities. 3 6 - 3 7

murtad (apostate), 5 0

Muslim Brotherhood, 1 9

Muslim intellectual, 17­19,112­13 Muslim judge {q&dt}, I 3 7 n i 9

Mu.slim jurist (faqih), 63 Muslims, 1 0 9 . See also ex­Muslims;

Western Muslims; Young Muslims

Bntish. 32 commitment as, 1 3

community needs of, 54­55 confidence increasing in, 125 converts, 44 fighting against policies, 128­29 identity, 135П7 identity cri.sis of, 27 intellectual revolution of, 48 law­abiding nature of, 92 mind­set differences, 42 misunderstanding of, 47 moderate, 109

not recognizing Western laws. 32 participating in country culiure, 60 racisTn o f far right, 99­100 religious affiliation of, 47­48 secular relation.ship of, 31 seen as minority, 57­58 society interaction changes of, 53 stigmatization of, 28 taking responsibility, 123­24 Western and, 2 0 Western presence of, 24. 3i ­3 i

Muslim scholars Cutama), 31, 47. 48, 56,63

Muslims in the Secular State {Les

musulmans dans la laícíté)

(Ramadan), 21 ,67

national identity, 24­26 national level, participation for

change, 130­33 negator (kafir), 50 neocunservative circles, 104­6 new anti­Semitism, 104­6 new "We," 6,94.123­33 Nietzsche, 12

¡46 Index

Ninzsche as a Historian of Philosophy (Ramadan), i i

9/11 attacks, 21, 123, 139038 niqab (veil covering face}, loi 71« Notion of Suffering in Sietziche's

Philosophy (Ramadan), 12 Notre Dame University, 106

Obama, Barack, 68, 76 openness, 115 Orhan Kaya. 71 outreach, 60 overcoming, 9

Palestinian repression. 88 Papandreou, George, 37 paternalism, 102 patience, 11 patriotism, 39 pedagogy of solidarity, 10­11 Penserau ­Vloyen Age (de Liberaj. ij^iaa pen^eptions

changing, 58 popular, 74

Pierre, Abbé, 10 pillars of faith ( 'aqidah), 41, 47 Plato, II pluralism, 83,94,116­17,127,130

core of, 80 fear of religious and cultural. 82, guarantee of religious, 52 journalistn protagonist of, 78 philosophy of, 90 viability of cultural, 26­27

political integrity. 73 politics, 74­79, 127­38,132­33

popular perceptions, 74 post­integration approach, 67­73 Poulat, Emile, 98

practice ("ibflijdt), 41 •• • private schools. 54 pro­lsraeU circles, 104­6

qiMt (Muslim judge). I37ni9 Quran, 48

racism, 58­60, 68, 75. i i8 , Hi. See alio anti­Semitism

radical reform. 85­89 Radical Reform: Islamic Ethics and

Liberation (Ramadan), 136 Ratzinger (Cardinal), See Benedict

XVI (Pope) reactive identities, 35­36 reasoning (ijtihàd). 47, 85 reconciliation, 1 2 9 - 3 0 , 1 3 2

reductiw approach, 83 reform, 2­3, 46­50. 56,136

creative transformational, 85 • radical, 85­89 w o m e n and, 63

reformist trend, 2 - 3 , 4 6 - 5 0 , 8 5 - 8

Regensburg, address of Pope, 80, 8 2

regional ideniLties, 25 religion

confusion over, 31 culture relating to, 41­45 homosexuality condemned by, 102 legal framework for, i36nir opposition to, 31 repressing. 31 Western Islam culture and, 41­45

Index 147

'. Iigiousness. contradictions and

ambiguities of, 22­13 religious neutrality, 30­31 religious problems, defining, 126 religious training. 12* repression, 31. 88 respect, 22, 103­4, 130 roots, of Europe and West, 80­84 rukhsa (legal exception), 31 Rushdie affair, 11. 28

salafi (faithfulness). 48­49.108­11. i36n9

Sankara, 10 Sarkozy, Nicolas. 77 Saudi Arabia, 15, 40,107 Schopenhauer, 12 Second World War, 18, 39, 99,

138034 secularism. 30­31, 97­99. Í 3 5 n 3 ,

r38n33 self­confidence, 38, 87,114, Sec also

confidence sclf­Critirism. 14, 88,124.135n8 self­definition, 35­36 self examination, of Western

society, 90-95 self­hating j ews , 106 self­knowledge, 88 self­marginalizalion, 135 n5 self­re flection, of West, 90­95,

116­17 Sen, Amartya, 37 seven Cs, 86­89 shahid (witness), 87 Shi'a, 41,42

slavery, unacknowledged, 92.

131 social aifairs (mu 'dmalAt), 42 social integration, poor, 25­26 socioeconomic challenges, 91 sociopolitical issues, 74-79 Socrates, 12 solidarity, io~ii Spinoza, 12 SPIOR, 64 spiritual tension, 33­34 The Split Hourglass (Ramadan), 9 strength, 9 Sufi. 50 Sunnah, 41, 49 Sunni. 41, 42 Syria. 1 5 . 1 0 7

Tabari, Ó3 tflWi^Jii, 4 9 Taliban, 109 tii^iyyali (dissimilation), 19 Taylor, Charles. 1 3 , 1 6 terrorism, 126-27 , 138П32, 139П37.

See also war against terror striking from within, 26 young people and, 59

testing questions, 70 Thierry (student), 9 , 1 1 9 - 2 1 ' Tibet, repression of, 88 To Be a European ­Miislim (Ramadan).

33.135П7. [35П8 Tournemue. Pierre, 98 traditional landmarks, weakening

o f 25

transmission, 60­tìi

148 Inàex

trust, development of, 93,114. 130, 131,132.

Tunisia, 15, 40,107 •'• "nirkey. 31, 43, 76-77. 82 . • • i

U D C . See Union EJémocratique du Centre

'ulama (Muslim scholars), 31, 47 .48 . 56, 63

ummah (faith community) , 39, 41, i35n8

Union Démocratique du Centre (UDC), I37ni8

United States, ban iirom, 15 usùlal-fìqh (fundamentals of Islamic

law and jurisprudence), 48, 85 "us" V. "them" feeling, 68

value.s, c o m m o n , 22 veil covering face (niqab), lo i victim feeling, 74-75.124.13i Vietnam, 39

violence, 10.26. See also 9/11; terrorism visa revocation, 15,106,139n37 visible intellectual, 18 voicing, one's needs, 14

Wahhabite, 48 Walt, Stephen M., I39n36

war against terror, 123 "We." 6, 94, «3-33 Western domination, 64-65 Western Islam, 41-45 . nr,

Western Muslims, 33-34 appeal to, 123-33 defining themselves, 46-47 reconciliation, 129-30 spiritual revival of. 33

stattis recognition demand

b y 77 Wwlem Muslims and the Future of

Islam (Ramadan), 33 Western societies, mirror of, 90-95 Western states, criticisms, 107-8 Wilders, Geert, 93 witness (shàhià). 87 witnessing, 51-52 w o m e n . 54, 62-66,127

disrespect of, 32 feminist trends, 100-102 human rights of, 98 retlecrion on situation of, 22 voiceless, 132

World War II, 18,39, 99, i38n34

xenophobic speech, 128

young Muslims, 49, 53, 54,59