HeldUp
Aug 3rd, 2005, 11:54 AM
Note: this article was written by a close friend who has given me the permission to post. It was also published in the San Francisco Examine (URL below).
Muslim American 'Fatwa': What took so long? (http://www.sfexaminer.com/articles/2005/08/03//opinion//20050803_op03_view.txt)
By Omar Ricci
San Francisco Examiner, 8/3/05
Thursday, more than 145 Muslim American organizations did something their fellow Americans had been looking for since Sept. 11 — they issued a fatwa against extremism, terrorism and suicide bombing. The logical question that comes to mind is, "What took so long?" The answer is not simple. It deals with issues of breaking scholarly taboos, form over substance, understanding the American psyche and the national media.
To clarify, the term "fatwa" means a nonbinding Islamic religious opinion rooted in sources of Islamic law — the Quran and the authentic sayings and actions of the Prophet Muhammad (or "Sunnah").
The use of this term by al-Qaida and the like to psychologically conscript ill-guided followers has also led Americans to view a fatwa as a binding Islamic edict; much like the Vatican issues binding edicts to its followers. To lay Americans, the issuance of a fatwa, from any corner of the Muslim world, implied a force majeure in the lives of all ordinary Muslims and therefore a cause for concern.
But to Muslims in America and around the world, a fatwa is not viewed with any binding force and is in many respects similar to a legal opinion without being law. So when Osama bin Laden issued his fatwa in 2002 calling upon Muslim Americans to fight in the west, it was shrugged off because Muslims did not agree. Moreover, they viewed bin Laden as a criminal and not a religious scholar.
Since Sept. 11, Muslim American organizations have been tirelessly engaged in counter-terrorism and counter-ideology efforts, all of which are directly sourced in the Quran and Sunnah. But why have these organizations not labeled any anti-terrorism effort a fatwa? The answer stems primarily from a deeply rooted scholarly desire not to cheapen the meaning or spirit of the term, and not stoop to the level of al-Qaida in how they have demeaned the use of a fatwa. Besides, leaders of these organizations thought, the Quranic basis from which anti-terrorism efforts emanated clearly refutes the ideological beliefs of al-Qaida. Why is it, then, that America isn't getting the message? Why are Muslim American organizations having a monumental PR crisis at such a critical time?
The answer to this question lies both at the doorstep of Muslim American organizations as well as the national media. For Muslim American organizations, there was a gross failure to recognize the co-opting of the term fatwa by Muslim terrorist groups. There was also a failure to recognize the psychological impact the term fatwa had on fellow Americans. These failures cost Muslim Americans dearly. It allowed right-wing media pundits, with their politically motivated ignorance of Islam, to put form over substance and pin an entire community as not having done enough to condemn terrorism. Their current dominance of the national microphone influenced those who didn't hear any counterweight.
The national media, the modern day mountaintops from which to shout, are also culpable. Muslim Americans have been doing, and continue to do, their share to protect the nation. But it is frustrating that such efforts are analogous to a tree falling in the forest, either because of issues of style over substance, or the lack of reporting by national media.
Omar Ricci is vice chairman of the Muslim Public Affairs Council.
Muslim American 'Fatwa': What took so long? (http://www.sfexaminer.com/articles/2005/08/03//opinion//20050803_op03_view.txt)
By Omar Ricci
San Francisco Examiner, 8/3/05
Thursday, more than 145 Muslim American organizations did something their fellow Americans had been looking for since Sept. 11 — they issued a fatwa against extremism, terrorism and suicide bombing. The logical question that comes to mind is, "What took so long?" The answer is not simple. It deals with issues of breaking scholarly taboos, form over substance, understanding the American psyche and the national media.
To clarify, the term "fatwa" means a nonbinding Islamic religious opinion rooted in sources of Islamic law — the Quran and the authentic sayings and actions of the Prophet Muhammad (or "Sunnah").
The use of this term by al-Qaida and the like to psychologically conscript ill-guided followers has also led Americans to view a fatwa as a binding Islamic edict; much like the Vatican issues binding edicts to its followers. To lay Americans, the issuance of a fatwa, from any corner of the Muslim world, implied a force majeure in the lives of all ordinary Muslims and therefore a cause for concern.
But to Muslims in America and around the world, a fatwa is not viewed with any binding force and is in many respects similar to a legal opinion without being law. So when Osama bin Laden issued his fatwa in 2002 calling upon Muslim Americans to fight in the west, it was shrugged off because Muslims did not agree. Moreover, they viewed bin Laden as a criminal and not a religious scholar.
Since Sept. 11, Muslim American organizations have been tirelessly engaged in counter-terrorism and counter-ideology efforts, all of which are directly sourced in the Quran and Sunnah. But why have these organizations not labeled any anti-terrorism effort a fatwa? The answer stems primarily from a deeply rooted scholarly desire not to cheapen the meaning or spirit of the term, and not stoop to the level of al-Qaida in how they have demeaned the use of a fatwa. Besides, leaders of these organizations thought, the Quranic basis from which anti-terrorism efforts emanated clearly refutes the ideological beliefs of al-Qaida. Why is it, then, that America isn't getting the message? Why are Muslim American organizations having a monumental PR crisis at such a critical time?
The answer to this question lies both at the doorstep of Muslim American organizations as well as the national media. For Muslim American organizations, there was a gross failure to recognize the co-opting of the term fatwa by Muslim terrorist groups. There was also a failure to recognize the psychological impact the term fatwa had on fellow Americans. These failures cost Muslim Americans dearly. It allowed right-wing media pundits, with their politically motivated ignorance of Islam, to put form over substance and pin an entire community as not having done enough to condemn terrorism. Their current dominance of the national microphone influenced those who didn't hear any counterweight.
The national media, the modern day mountaintops from which to shout, are also culpable. Muslim Americans have been doing, and continue to do, their share to protect the nation. But it is frustrating that such efforts are analogous to a tree falling in the forest, either because of issues of style over substance, or the lack of reporting by national media.
Omar Ricci is vice chairman of the Muslim Public Affairs Council.