2008 Woodie Awards
Racism links to war
Nicole Kuba
Issue date: 1/15/07 Section: News
Media Credit: Kate MotivaRaja Halwani, Ghada Talhami, and Doug Gills were the panel speakers for the discussion on race and war in the Puerto Rican Cultural Center.
Conflicts like the war on terrorism can affect certain ethnicities more than others, according to speakers from the Chicago Peace Pledge Committee on Friday, Jan. 12. Many came to the Puerto Rican Cultural Center to discuss the relationship between race and war.
Dr. Ghada Talhami talked about how Palestine and Israel are racist against Arabs in fighting to keep Judaism the primary religion in the region. He emphasized how war is not about conquering land; it is about the racism amongst people. Talhami focused on Palestine and the division among the Jews and the Muslims. He said Palestine fears that Jews will be a group of minorities in the near future due to Muslims reproducing more rapidly.
The self-acclaimed feminist professor of politics at Lake Forest College, Dr. Raja Halwani talked about how Islam has become a phobia amongst Americans. The reason, she said, is due to the ignorance of what the religion really consists and what it means to be a Muslim. Americans are disinterested in what Islam really is due to the war taking place in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Halwani.
"Cheney and Bush designed the wonderful idea of the war of terrorism," said Halwani. She focused on bringing out the issue that is not discussed when talking about the war, the relation of racism in the history of wars. Halwani stated that humanism is brought out through war.
"Japanese were classified as short, brutal people in the time of WWII. But it was the U.S. who dropped the bomb on Hiroshima," said Halwani. She also talked about how several mosques in the U.S were attacked after Sept. 11 by young teenagers who threw rocks at the mosques, breaking windows. American children are not to be blamed for behaving in a disorderly manner, said Halwani; the bad behavior is due to the lack of education in school systems that are not giving children a well rounded education about religions in different parts of the world. Considering 1.25 billion Muslims live all over the world today, people need to understand and respect their belief.
Halwani also brought up the fact that Ronald Reagan was the first president to say that the U.S are people of Christians, Muslims and Jews. However, the statement that Reagan made still has not taken effect on the people in the United States today. Otherwise, Muslims would not be treated as a minority group when such a large number reside in the United States. It is not only the United States that has discriminated against Muslims, according to Halwani, Europe has also contributed to the discrimination. For example, in Denmark, Muslims were not allowed to have a mosque to pray.
"I'm not a Muslim, I'm a humanist, it calls on me to respect other religions," Halwani concluded.
Dr. Doug Gills, a UIC professor in community development, took on a different side of racism when he discussed how certain races are more likely to be drafted. Puerto Ricans, for example, are four times more likely to join the military than any other ethnic group living in the United States.
"War exposes the limits of democracy," said Gills.
The Chicago Peace Pledge continues to fight for peace and ending the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. In March 2003 they produced a movie, "Where We Stood," and it was nominated for a Chicago Emmy. The council also regularly sponsors rallies. The committee meets every Monday at 2502 W. Division St. from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. to address various cultural issues that arise.
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Dr. Ghada Talhami talked about how Palestine and Israel are racist against Arabs in fighting to keep Judaism the primary religion in the region. He emphasized how war is not about conquering land; it is about the racism amongst people. Talhami focused on Palestine and the division among the Jews and the Muslims. He said Palestine fears that Jews will be a group of minorities in the near future due to Muslims reproducing more rapidly.
The self-acclaimed feminist professor of politics at Lake Forest College, Dr. Raja Halwani talked about how Islam has become a phobia amongst Americans. The reason, she said, is due to the ignorance of what the religion really consists and what it means to be a Muslim. Americans are disinterested in what Islam really is due to the war taking place in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Halwani.
"Cheney and Bush designed the wonderful idea of the war of terrorism," said Halwani. She focused on bringing out the issue that is not discussed when talking about the war, the relation of racism in the history of wars. Halwani stated that humanism is brought out through war.
"Japanese were classified as short, brutal people in the time of WWII. But it was the U.S. who dropped the bomb on Hiroshima," said Halwani. She also talked about how several mosques in the U.S were attacked after Sept. 11 by young teenagers who threw rocks at the mosques, breaking windows. American children are not to be blamed for behaving in a disorderly manner, said Halwani; the bad behavior is due to the lack of education in school systems that are not giving children a well rounded education about religions in different parts of the world. Considering 1.25 billion Muslims live all over the world today, people need to understand and respect their belief.
Halwani also brought up the fact that Ronald Reagan was the first president to say that the U.S are people of Christians, Muslims and Jews. However, the statement that Reagan made still has not taken effect on the people in the United States today. Otherwise, Muslims would not be treated as a minority group when such a large number reside in the United States. It is not only the United States that has discriminated against Muslims, according to Halwani, Europe has also contributed to the discrimination. For example, in Denmark, Muslims were not allowed to have a mosque to pray.
"I'm not a Muslim, I'm a humanist, it calls on me to respect other religions," Halwani concluded.
Dr. Doug Gills, a UIC professor in community development, took on a different side of racism when he discussed how certain races are more likely to be drafted. Puerto Ricans, for example, are four times more likely to join the military than any other ethnic group living in the United States.
"War exposes the limits of democracy," said Gills.
The Chicago Peace Pledge continues to fight for peace and ending the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. In March 2003 they produced a movie, "Where We Stood," and it was nominated for a Chicago Emmy. The council also regularly sponsors rallies. The committee meets every Monday at 2502 W. Division St. from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. to address various cultural issues that arise.
Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 4
L Brown
posted 2/01/07 @ 5:02 PM EST
I applaud Dr. Talhami's desire for peace. Racism is indeed a problem in the Middle East. If I were at the discussion, I would have pointed out that Israel is a model of anti-racism and of religious tolerance. (Continued…)
H James
posted 2/03/07 @ 9:44 AM EST
Your statement "For example, in Denmark, Muslims were not allowed to have a mosque to pray" is not true. There are some 200 mosques in Denmark, including the Grand Mosque in Copenhaven. (Continued…)
victor navidad
posted 2/04/07 @ 8:16 AM EST
You write: "For example, in Denmark, Muslims were not allowed to have a mosque to pray".....
Why do you spread such lies??? During the cartoon crisis almost all TV stations across the world sent reporters to the mosques of Copenhagen. (Continued…)
anon ymous
posted 7/23/07 @ 3:13 AM EST
Seems some correctives are due in your reporting of the panel speakers. During most of 2007 while teaching at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Raja Halwani was a self-indentified man. (Continued…)
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