“Why do you [insert question]?”
I've been asked many a variation of the above question. From the seemingly innocuous “Why do you do that?” to the outright belligerent “why do you hate us?”
The “you” in that question is usually in reference to one of the layers of my identity; the ones that precede the hyphen... Muslim-, Palestinian-, Arab-, Immigrant-American.
The question, usually accompanied by an accusatory undertone and a “this is weird” air about it, presupposes that I speak on behalf of that entire hyphenated population. As if my choices in life or the way I express certain things, which are influenced mainly by how, not where, I was brought up, are representative of “them.” The “them” I purportedly represent is seen by the questioner as a monolithic group that does not mesh with, or is antagonistic to, the American way of life.


It is asked, as you may have figured, by someone who does not belong to the group inquired about. Someone who is typically of the majority.
And, unfortunately, it happens way too often.
In my experiences, the above-mentioned questions surrounding my hyphen are frequently employed by those who consider the “other” less than or unworthy. I have witnessed it used, often systemically, to place minorities – such as African-American, Hispanic-American, Asian-American or Arab-Americans – at an arm's length from being just American.
Don't get me wrong, I fully embrace the multiple components of my identity and appreciate their complex intersectionality, but I wholeheartedly reject the use of the hyphen to denote a “less than” status of American. Unfortunately there are more than we would like to admit of those who will always view me, and others like me, as less than, but they are not where I choose to expend my energy. Trying to convince them otherwise is an exercise in futility as their questions are not asked to seek understanding but rather to express their opinion about me.
Now, I understand and fully appreciate the fact that we as human beings are naturally curious. The unfamiliar intrigues us and we seek to understand it. Therefore, I would rather engage those who have questions but are unsure how to ask them. Those who doubt the inflammatory rhetoric they see on traditional and social media. The ones who reject the pressure to fit into an “us” box despite it being tempting and relatively easy for it can be validated and reinforced by their echo chambers.
I'd rather expend my energy on those who refuse what is being peddled and seek truth through understanding.
But we as a society seem to have lost the art of simple, civil conversation. We avoid asking the questions that may expand our understanding in fear of coming across as offensive. We choose not to engage in heated discussions for fear of coming across as defensive. We dance around meaningful conversations to spare ourselves the inconvenience of hurt feelings.
It seems we have bolted down the doors to our silos and replaced intrigue, curiosity and interest with suspicion, anxiousness and fear. And no, you can't hang this on “political correctness” or the “oversensitivity” of people. This is nothing but the product of replacing genuine curiosity and intrigue with crippling, mostly unfounded, fear of the unknown. And that falls squarely on the shoulders of those who choose to stick only with one side of the hyphen over the other.
To better the relationships among our various communities, to enhance the beauty of the mosaic that is the American society, we need to overcome disinformation, hype and unfounded fear. That cannot be accomplished without deep and honest conversations.
Such conversations cannot take place without trust, and trust cannot be established without developing friendships, and friendships do not form when each of us is behind closed doors.
Go out there, assume well of each other, reach across and embrace the beauty of our diversity.

​this article first appeared in the journal gazette 08/26/2019 http://www.journalgazette.net/opinion/columns/20190826/preconceptions-set-by-hyphen-limit-diversity-discussion

Two quick teachings from prophet Mohamed that I’d like to share with you this morning in light of events from the past 72 hours since the New Zealand shootings

First
“One who is not thankful to people is not thankful to Allah “
“لا يشكر الله من لا يشكر الناس”

Sincere thanks to everyone who has showed up or reached out since the news broke out. From local police department sending police cars to patrol our mosques, to local religious leaders sending “we are here for you” emails, to “I’m thinking of you” texts from friends and to everyone who showed up last night at the interfaith vigil to show solidarity. Thank you. Your love and support helped ease the pain of our local Muslim community and reassured us all of the reason we call Fort Wayne home.

Second

Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Whoever amongst you sees an evil, he must change it with his hand; if he is unable to do so, then with his tongue; and if he is unable to do so, then with his heart; and that is the weakest form of Faith".

عن أبي سعيد الخدري رضي الله عنه قال‏:‏ سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول‏:‏ ‏ "‏من رأى منكم منكرًا فليغيره بيده ، فإن لم يستطع فبلسانه، فإن لم يستطع فبقلبه وذلك أضعف الإيمان‏"‏ ‏(‏‏(‏رواه مسلم‏)‏‏)‏‏

Thoughts, prayers, signs of solidarity send the message that we all are thinking of each other and that we care. But we can’t stop there as that is the weakest form of faith and knowing my Fort Wayne community, our collective faith is much stronger. So we must speak, write and act to change the tides of bigotry and hate. This is not a Muslim specific issue. This is an all of us issue.

I look forward to seeing how we will make the world a better place for our children.

In peace and love.

God bless

#NewZealand

Chickpeas soaked overnight, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and salt mixed and prepared the right way make a delicious plate known across the globe as hummus (To my fellow Americans, please note that pumpkin spice is not in any way, shape or form part of the ingredients).
 
Hummus, a staple dish in almost every Middle Eastern household, has been claimed by many nations as “their” dish. People will tell you, with a wide smile, that “their” delectable dish of hummus, is prepared using recipes that were handed down for generations. They will stake their claim of original ownership as they share a plateful of it with you, but they will never share their secret ingredient (again, never pumpkin spice). This mostly friendly feud over ownership of a food that is really owned by none has become a playful “food wars” quip. Take for example this video trailer of Hummus!The movie 
​

Here is the description as posted by the Israel Film Festival in Singapore on YouTube 
 
“In Hummus! The Movie we are introduced to three main characters – a hard working Muslim woman, an ever-smiling Jew and a young Christian Arab, who despite their historical and cultural differences, have one thing in common… a passionate love of Hummus!” 
 
Sounds playful and fun right? A fresh breath of air in this Arab-Israeli “conflict”
 
But this seemingly innocuous, friendly feud over a dish is not really all that innocent. While some may get worked up about others culturally appropriating what they feel is rightfully theirs, most miss the more insidious effect of such acts of propaganda.  
 
The video is very calculated and well produced to give the viewer the impression, under the guise of a seemingly harmless cultural/religious feud, that Israel is a pluralistic, democratic society. It’s saying, “Look we have Jews, Christians and Muslims living alongside each other and having a fun, friendly dispute over food” Meanwhile every 30 seconds you get a flash of this
 
​

A map with the word Israel in bold over a region that even extends past the boundaries of current day Israel (Israel’s actual land aspirations are a subject of another article).

In the video, the mention of Palestinians is incidental and unremarkable (the gentleman saying he is Israeli, but his roots are Palestinian) and they are referred to as Arab. Arabic is nothing but white noise in the background as even the Muslim Arab woman is speaking Hebrew.

My issue is not appropriation of hummus, my issue is that the movie continues with a narrative that is untrue and, unfortunately, widely accepted in western societies. A narrative that portrays Israel as a beacon of democracy in the Middle East. Meanwhile Israeli bulldozers are razing Palestinian homes to make room for settlements and Israeli forces, supported with a $3.9 Billion annual aid from the US, are beating peaceful protestors for simply demanding freedom.

Such hasbara (a form of propaganda aimed at an international audience, primarily, but not exclusively, in western countries. It is meant to influence the conversation in a way that positively portrays Israeli political moves and policies, including actions undertaken by Israel in the past. Often, Hasbara efforts includes a negative portrayal of the Arabs and especially of Palestinians) is not limited to the world of food. Israel lately has been riding the coattails of interfaith activities and initiatives to further promote its fictitious image of tolerance and coexistence.

Take for example the latest event making the rounds in the United Sates. A supposed “multicultural women’s empowerment program” where 12 Israeli women (notice Israeli) Jewish, Muslim and Christian share how they “discovered they have much more in common” living in western Galilee. This is yet another attempt at diverting attention from the realities of Israel’s atrocities on the grounds. A government that subjects millions of Palestinians, original inhabitants of the land, to the daily humiliation of military checkpoints and random curfews. The same government that often prevents congregants from attending weekly Friday prayers at Al-Aqsa mosque. The same government that has killed thousands and injured many more.

This faithwashing of the occupation is intended to dupe us into believing a deceptive image of interfaith coexistence on the same land the Israeli government has driven its original inhabitants, who truly coexisted peacefully, from. An elaborate scheme that unfortunately many Muslims have fallen prey to (The event that took place in my town was co-sponsored by a local Muslim organization that did not do their due diligence).

Israel’s occupation of the mind is far more dangerous than its usurping of land. Their conflation of Judaism and Zionism and their constant, tireless barrage of a skewed narrative is nothing but a ploy to cover up and an attempt scrub all the blood it’s spilled, and continues to spill, over the past 70 years. Israel is an apartheid, colonialist, expansionist government that is aided and abetted by our US government’s unwavering monetary, military and diplomatic support. This intentional sanitization of an ugly occupation further victimizes its victims and we cannot, must not stay silent in the face of such injustice.
​

My latest article published in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette 
http://www.journalgazette.net/opinion/columns/20181009/race-unavoidable

“I'm color blind.”

It's a statement employed by many to convey that they see everyone equally and that race plays no factor in how they treat others. They assume, and I believe with good intention, that by doing so, they are helping improve race relations and that, by looking beyond someone's skin color, they are combating some of the divisive race issues that continue to plague our country.

Although such an approach can be viewed as admirable and, as stated above, most likely stems from a well-intended place, I believe it to be harmful and, to an extent, selfish.

It's harmful because it perpetuates the fallacy that we're a post-racial society – that race is a thing of the past and plays no factor in how people are currently viewed and treated. This simply flies into the face of current reality for many.

If we're a post-racial society, then why do we still peddle the false notion that black people are inherently more violent and disproportionately attack white people, while data from the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics report shows that the “vast majority of most crimes are committed by a person of the same race as the victim”?

Or that immigrants, especially those with darker skin, are more likely to commit crime than citizens while, according to an article in the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Criminology, “quantitative research has consistently shown that being foreign born is negatively associated with crime overall and is not significantly associated with committing either violent or property crime”?

If we are truly a post-racial society, then why is race still a real and palpable concern for many walking our streets? I've witnessed it with friends who have to think about when and where they are because of what their skin color, accent, language or religious garb may invoke.

The most sobering and honestly most heartbreaking account of such a thought process is a story I heard on the radio. In an interview on NPR, a self-described 6-foot-plus black Ivy League law professor said that many times, when he's alone in public, he intentionally whistles songs from “Frozen,” the Disney movie, so others would know that he has children and not perceive him as a threat! Just imagine the effort it takes to just be, and ask yourself, are we really a post-racial society?

According to current age distribution in the U.S., at least 25 percent of the population was alive and at an age that comprehended, or lived in a household that was actively engaged in, the civil rights movement in one way or another (i.e., for or against). We can't, in our celebrations of the successes of the civil rights movement, neglect the major percentage of the population that was actively against it.

I don't think that enacting a few laws simply made those who were vehemently and often violently against it change their mind. We need to stop sanitizing history and address these issues head on. It will take hard work over a couple of generations to clean that stain in order for us to truly become a post-racial society.

“I'm color blind” is also selfish because, in a way, one is saying “I don't see color, I don't contribute to these issues, therefore this is not my problem.” History, however, does not stop and start with you, and you can't detach yourself from society. If you're blessed enough to not experience what the marginalized experience, then it is your duty as a member of society to help actively reduce factors leading to their marginalization.

Race is a social construct. It has no biological bases. If we can Frankenstein it into what it is now, then we can just as well deconstruct it and put it to better use. You can't simply be complacent, because if you're complacent, then you're complicit.

Not seeing someone's color, and how that color is perceived, viewed and treated, will not make the problems associated with it magically go away. You need to see the full spectrum of color and all that that entails; you need to acknowledge all of it; and you need to address it. Each and everyone of us has to work, in our own capacity, to contain such evil that continues to plague our society.

That is done in many ways, but the best way is the way in which you feel most able. It can be by denouncing the use of the N word when you're with a group of non-black friends, or by telling your story, which would negate a negative propagandistic stereotype about “your people,” or by simply upholding yourself to the highest moral of “treating others as you wish to be treated.”

You need to see me, and in full color, because if you don't see me, then I don't exist.

My latest article. Published by The Journal Gazette on May 20, 2018 http://journalgazette.net/opinion/columns/20180520/us-world-continuing-to-ignore-historic-injustice-against-a-people


US, world continuing to ignore historic injustice against a peopleAhmed Abdelmageed
“So that if the nations of the world say that the Jewish people don't own the land of Israel, they would point to the fact that God created the world and gave it to them.”
– David Friedman, U.S. ambassador to Israel,May 14, 2018

Ever since I could formulate my own thoughts, I was acutely aware of what it means to be Palestinian.

Even though I was born in Qatar to refugees who fled the brutal Israeli occupation of their homeland in June of 1948, my Palestinian culture has always been a central part of my identity. Growing up among Palestinian family and friends who suffered the same fate – along with periodic, spotty at best, phone calls to my mother's parents in Rafah's refugee camp – reinforced and strengthened my sense of belonging to a country from which I was forbidden. I came to know Palestine via stories about the land my father played on while watching his father cultivate it, my grandparents' house in their hometown of Yebna, and the heroism of those who refused to yield to oppression.
But perhaps my fondest memory of a palpable sense of what it means to be Palestinian is a picture of the Dome of the Rock mosque in Jerusalem with the Al-Aqsa mosque perched a couple of hundred yards behind it. Both are situated inside a 35-acre compound referred to as al-Haram al-Sharif, or the Noble Sanctuary, by Muslims, and as the Temple Mount by Jews.
That picture hung in the main hallway of our house in Qatar, and I used to stare at it and ache to visit such a beautiful place.
The feeling was mixed with a sense of bafflement as to how the entire world could become apathetic to the plight of my people. How a site that is holy to all three Abrahamic faiths has been rendered unholy by injustice and bloodshed.
I used to feel sad and frustrated by the situation, yet supported by my network of dispossessed Palestinians and non-Palestinian sympathizers. That sense of support was rapidly replaced by a disorienting sense of being under attack after moving to the western world (Canada and then the U.S.) following my high school graduation.
I felt, and continue to feel, that my Palestinian identity is fought, discredited, delegitimized and dehumanized.
If I, as a victim, am to defend the rights of my people in light of the atrocities of a political regime that has killed, and continues to kill, scores upon scores of them, I am labeled an anti-Semite. If I am to discuss the flagrant violations of human rights and U.N. treaties by the Israeli government, I am met with an indifferent “it's complicated.” I am to sit and watch media, religious and educational institutions erase me and my people from existence.
I am to live with the fact that, as an American, my ambassador used God to justify the expulsions and ethnic cleansing of my people. That some of my tax money goes right into the hands of the Israeli military as part of an annual $3.8 billion in aid to a regime that has proved to be nothing but an apartheid, colonialist, expansionist regime.
I am to sit and watch my greedy American government, drunk on its power and deluded by its own grandiose sense of democratic superiority, act with callous disregard to more than 60 people killed, including six children, and 2,000 injured less than 60 miles from where the celebration of the American embassy's move to Jerusalem took place. A move that cements America's standing on the international stage as fully biased toward Israel and discredits any claim it may have toward being an honest broker in any peace negotiations.
Jerusalem may be the latest sound bite filling your traditional and social media feeds, but it is not the sole issue. The issue is modern history's longest-standing occupation and our country's unabashed support for it through military aid, financial aid and veto power.
Jerusalem is just the tip of a mountain of injustice that we choose to ignore.
​
Ahmed Abdelmageed is Manchester University's College of Pharmacy assistant dean of experiential education and community engagement and a board member with the Indiana Center for Middle East Peace.

My latest article published 09/20/2017 
​http://www.journalgazette.net/opinion/columns/20170920/sept-11---plus-16 

Sept. 11 - plus 16
Time to re-evaluate global antiterror strategy
Sixteen years ago, I was a pharmacy student in Big Rapids, Michigan. I was in the office of one of my professors, having a general conversation, when his phone rang. He became visibly shaken and looked pale as he hung up the phone. “My wife says planes crashed into the World Trade Center,” he managed to mutter and, to be honest, it did not quite register with me. I thought it was an accident – a small-engine plane that lost its course and hit one of the buildings.
I excused myself from the office of my visibly distraught professor and walked down to my lecture room. It was about 30 minutes before the start of class and, as I walked in, the footage of the plane crashing into the World Trade Center was on full display on the big screens. My heart sank as I watched the details start to unfold.
I, along with every other American, made the promise never to forget that fateful day.
Never forget the beautiful lives cut short but this heinous act of aggression.
Never forget the feeling of being attacked on your own soil while doing nothing other than going about your day-to-day business.
Never forget the emotional toll this has taken on us individually and on our country collectively.
Since that day we always remember, as well we should, where we were and how we felt at the particular moment when we fully realized what had just happened.
But what do we do with that memory and where did – more importantly where will – this emotional energy take us?
Let's forgo talking about the monetary cost of the War on Terror we launched after the attacks of 9/11 because no amount of money will do a human life justice. But where is the justice in the incalculable scores of civilian lives lost since then? Staggering numbers ranging in the hundreds of thousands are related to this Global War on Terror. How many orphans, single parents and dismantled families has this war created?
What about the never-ending psychological spiral of bitterness and resentment we have created in those we invaded? Do we not realize that never forget is not an exclusive American sentiment? That the generations growing up in the parts of the world we bomb will grow up never forgetting that it was American planes that dropped American bombs that destroyed their homes? Will they never forget that it was an American soldier with an American weapon who killed their loved ones? What will they do with such memories and, more importantly, where will this emotional energy take them?
What about our friends and neighbors who swore to protect us? Men and women giving the ultimate sacrifice, doing as directed without hesitation to ensure our safety? Shouldn't our elected officials hesitate before sending them into such never-ending battles?
I intentionally pose these questions days after Sept. 11 in hopes that in the wake of our emotional state, we get past feelings of anger, resentment and revenge and reflect upon where we are since that day. Pause to truly think about our response to Sept. 11 and whether our response has helped us heal or made us feel safe.
So I ask of our officials and of you who elect them, what is our final goal? What is our deliverable of these never-ending wars? You can't kill an idea. You can't kill a feeling. You can't bomb hate.
I believe it is high time for re-evaluating our failed strategies and repositioning our status as a peacekeeping nation and a leader of democracy.

Back in April, after Trump ordered airstrikes on Syria, the Indiana Center for Middle East Peace, Inc. hosted a panel discussion/conversation about the escalation. Michael Spath was a wonderful moderator as always and Sam Jarjour had some great insight to share. I had a few words, and many hand gestures, to share (starting at the 37th minute and going on for about 10 minutes). Dr. Ammar Ghanem was able to make it and share some of his insight (minute 67) as well.
Many thanks to Terry Doran and his friend Tracy who filmed the event.

Click here for video

Jim Banks starts off a May 3 column by stating, “Like many Hoosiers, I had questions about Donald Trump's views on foreign policy, his temperament and his view of America's role in the world.” This gives the reader the impression that he, too, was somewhat skeptical of the reality TV mogul's transition into politics and subsequent presence on the world stage.
Such skepticism was apparently quickly dissipated as Banks hails our president for his leadership, citing examples from the president's hundred-and-some-odd days' tenure in the oval office. In particular, the 3rd District representative mentions bombing Syria's Assad regime and escalating the fight against Islamic State terrorism. Banks concludes our president is off to a strong start in what seems to be an arduous journey of undoing eight years of foreign policy failures.
While I do somewhat agree with Banks' statement on the previous administration's foreign policy failures, I strongly disagree with his assessment of President Trump's actions.
I am one of those Hoosiers who had questions about Trump but, unlike our congressman, my concerns are not allayed by his actions; rather, they have become much more heightened.
The strike on Syria's Assad regime that Banks uses as an example of Trump's decisiveness on key national security issues is bewildering, to say the least. The war in Syria is now a threat to our national security? When did it become so? That certainly wasn't the case according to many of Trump's contradicting statements about Syria. Going from a “we should stay the hell out of Syria” position to dropping 59 missiles without any plan, heeding of consequences or a “what's next” strategy is not “an appropriate but measured response to a global humanitarian crisis,” but rather a cause of alarm to us all.
Is Trump all of a sudden motivated by the humanitarian crisis? “No child of God should ever suffer such horror,” said the president in his statement after the U.S. bombing, but aren't those the same children he said he had “absolutely no problem looking them in the face” and telling them to go home when they come to our country escaping such horror? I find the use of the words “humanitarian” and “God” as mockery to the faithful and to humanitarian activists.
Was it the use of chemical weapons? If that's the case, then why is the method of killing more important than the killing itself? Shouldn't killing be abhorred whether by chemical weapons or a thousand cuts? Our outrage/action should be about what's happening, regardless of method. And what if the bombing killed Russians or Iranians (our country claims both support the Assad regime)? Have we thought of the potential war that might ensue from such haphazard action?
And what early promising results of our intensified fight against terrorism is Banks speaking of? I am all for eradicating terrorism, but have we not learned that greater force and intensity does not scare away terrorists, rather it reinforces the narrative of “the West is at war with us” espoused by such groups? You can't bomb away such an ideology.
War is not the only answer to fight this elusive “terrorism,” so how about a strategy that's beyond dropping more bombs instead?
There is a lot more criticism that can be leveled against Trump's actions, but my main criticism is of those who surround him and the role they play. A blanketed, unabashed praise of any president and cheerleading him without any critical analysis of his actions or their consequences only enables him further. Enabling can also be done by being silent when truth needs to be spoken, by being complacent, by shirking your responsibilities as a representative of your community.
Our congressmen and -women and our senators are not elected to sing the praises of the one who occupies the Oval Office. Our system of checks and balances fails if neither takes place.

post originally published by the Journal Gazzette  05/15/2017 
​http://www.journalgazette.net/opinion/columns/20170515/more-questions-not-fewer