Muslims Have to Change for Themselves

Whatever one might have been hoping for from the speech of President Obama to the Muslim World, it's clear that any change will have to come from within the region and on its own terms. For now, the words, and more importantly the actions, of an American president are critically important for that internal initiative to emerge and succeed.

To me, as a Muslim from Sudan, this dependency on external actors is part of the problem, signifying a neocolonial state of mind among Muslims, thereby perpetuating ourselves as the subjects of empire, rather than self-determining persons and communities. I wish this was not the case, but since it is, we have to start somewhere, and Obama's speech can be a good start.

What Obama said in Cairo was the best I could have hoped for, in view of his political limitations at home and abroad. He was positive and empathetic about Islam and Muslims, and wise to avoid giving any reasonable cause for suspicions of "cultural imperialism". Unreasonable voices, like that of Ayatollah Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, have already tried to undermine the prospects of a positive outcome of Obama's message. But I expect that most Muslims will probably welcome that message, though many of them would want to wait for deeds. The limited but important question I am raising here is: what difference can the words and actions of an American president make for whatever objective or outcome?

Obama's primary concern, understandably, is improving the relationship of the United States with the Muslim world. But that goal cannot be achieved in isolation of how Muslims behave among and for themselves. As the Qur'an affirms, nothing changes for a people until they are changed in themselves. This renders Obama's limited objective contingent on much more substantial and sustained change within Muslims and among their communities.

Obama started by thanking his two hosts in Cairo, al-Azhar University and Cairo University, noting the significance of this as representing partnership of tradition and modernity. As I see it, the core of the problem is what it takes to reconcile these two dimensions in the lives of Muslims, for themselves and not in response to the needs of western interests.

There are many aspects to this process, but Islam is probably integral to a lot of them. The reconciliation of tradition and modernity requires a paradigm shift in the nature and relevance of Sharia (Islamic law). The challenge is personal and psychological for every Muslim, as well as political and social for societies at large. An American president can help to the extent he can change the imperial posture of the United States, and challenge its client regimes in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and elsewhere to ensure freedom of internal debate and change. Improvement in Muslim-American relations or any other objective is untenable while American imperialism continues, but imperialism ends in the minds and hearts of its subjects, not the vision and charisma of western leaders, though that can help.