SOME PERSONAL THOUGHTS ON #FAITHWASHING, #MLI AND LEADERSHIP IN THE MUSLIM COMMUNITY I know many of the people going on this trip and know them to be good people, but am not sure I understand the value of a project such as this. After it has been made clear what the funding mechanisms are of this trip in addition to the implications of actually going, I dont personally see the benefit. It would be great if those who are going could offer some clarity as, from the outside looking in, it doesnt really seem to make sense. For those who are unaware of the issue, you can check out this article written by Ali Abu Nimah electronicintifada.net/blogs/ali-abunimah/islamophobia-bankroller-behind-organizer-israel-junket-us-muslim-leaders and/or Sana Saeed thecooltable.org/2015/01/02/and-the-faithwashing-continues-second-cohort-of-muslim-leadership-initiative-participants-leave-for-israel/ I comment here because I personally benefitted from voices that helped me to understand better things that I just didnt know. I am all for dialogue and discussion, but have seen that faithwashing is a real thing and how my own involvement in certain places under the banner of interfaith can be tokenized and in turn lead to no real benefit at all or actual detriment. I dont think its fair to be dismissive of peoples criticisms, even those who dont voice them in ways that seem helpful. To say someone is only upset because they are Palestinian is problematic, given the realities of this conflict and the loss that has been suffered. Were only months away from a devastating siege that took the lives of 2,200 people in Gaza, including more than 500 children and lives have been lost since and many before then. There is validity in peoples emotions and I think it has to be considered strongly in the decisions that are made. A few people have asked if I am going on this trip or went last year. I am not and have no plans on going. As a disclaimer for the organizers, I was never invited to begin with. I have participated in events in the past that in the moment I felt my presence would have been beneficial, but in retrospect found that it didnt really do too much at all other than leave some wondering why I would have gone in the first place. For that, I apologize. That doesnt mean that I will stop engaging in multifaith work all together, but the mediums and mechanism through which I will do so inshallah will take into consideration many variables that I am still learning as I go through my own development and growth and I will be sure to do a better job at getting advice and consultation from those who may be directly or indirectly impacted. Lastly, I would say there is a large gap in our leadership in the Muslim community, and I am wondering when we will begin to fill it. I have written about this before and want to revisit some of those thoughts here. Organized evil will always triumph over disorganized righteousness. This is truth, whether we choose to accept it or not. We can have good intentions all we want. If we have no plan, we will continue to be mistreated, our civil rights will be non-existent, and we will find ourselves sitting at dinners where we are verbally slapped in the face by the hosts and will have no real recourse other than to fight with each other afterwards on social media. Congrats -- you won the war on Twitter. How about we sit down and figure out collectively how to win the war that is being waged against us in the real world? Unlike most minority groups living in the United States, the Muslim community has no federation or established systems of networks of any kind. On a local, state, or national level, there is virtually no communication or strategy being employed whatsoever. Moving aside from building coalitions external to the broader Muslim community, the development of intra-community coalitions is necessary. I wouldnt undermine ones resolve to be at the table with other groups. But it shouldnt come at the expense of us sitting at the table with each other and it very much so is starting to. We are divided in every possible way that we can be. Racial, ethnic, cultural, gender-based, socioeconomic, and political divides are just the tip of the iceberg in the very little it takes for us to justify not sitting at the table with those who differ with us in perspective or to be dismissive and delegitimize each others leadership. A Muslim can be a woman and be a leader. A Muslim can be black and be a leader. A Muslim can have an accent and be a leader. If you think otherwise, you are foolish and need to be silent. We have to build a strategy and empower leaders of all kinds to become transformational in their leadership rather than simply being reactive. If our communitys biggest victory this year is not getting parking tickets on Eid because of the fire hazard that is our parking lot that has been expanded five times already and cost millions of dollars, then we are selling ourselves short. Start locally. Bring together leaders of local community centers, mosques, businesses, and non-profits to strategize on how you want to grow. If you dont know how to do it, put in the money to bring in consultants to help and provide similar financial support to communities that might not be as wealthy so that they can do the same. Come to a consensus and then honor what is agreed to, even if you disagree with it. If people dont want to think bigger than their own egos, then move on without them. This is not about any one individual -- its much bigger than that. Religious authority and scholarship should be at this table, but not alone and not necessarily as the final say. We have a silent majority that is not being tapped into that can help shape a vision of growth for our community and we need to be able to bring them up and give them a platform. We also have to be strong enough to break precedent that places people in roles of decision-making that they are not on their own qualified to undertake. When was the last time there was a plenary session of any kind at any of the major national Muslim conferences that take place in the United States? I speak at many of these conferences and nothing really builds up with a strategy year-to-year. Rather its the same thing being talked about every year by the same people. There is no introduction of ideas or initiatives that can be replicated in local community. Inspiration takes the place of substance and were left with the only measure of success being how many people attended. We can use the opportunity in front of us to come together rather than to be further divided. Spend some time building a real plan and strategy for your community. Map out who is who and what they are doing and be the one to invite them to the table in hopes of breaking down barriers that are keeping us from moving forward as a community. Indeed, God will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves. ~ The Holy Quran, 13:11 Be the change that you wish to see. Its time for us to be better.
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 14:05:14 +0000
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