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Why is Jesse Jackson Doing Our Legwork for Us?
By Ali Asadullah
28/09/2001
In times of tragedy, it always interesting to observe where various organizations and public figures stand in the early hours of the crisis and to then observe how their positions develop over time.
In the case of the U.S. government, saber-rattling commenced almost as soon as the World Trade Center towers collapsed on September 11. Since then, due in large part to the persistent level-headed diplomacy of Secretary of State Colin Powell, many swords have been temporarily sheathed while cooler minds explore various strategic options.
As for the media, shock and outrage marked the early moments of this crisis with no shortage of so-called experts and commentators making the rounds at the various broadcast news outlets, calling for the heads of Osama Bin Laden and his evil "Islamic fundamentalist" henchmen. No sooner did a government source feed them a tidbit of information, the media were off to the races jockeying for the all-important pole position that goes to the outlet that breaks the news first, often times landing themselves on the same wild goose-chase as the government. In the wake of this rush to judgment, things have cooled bit at the networks and objectivity has slowly crept back into their repertoires, though the emphasis must be placed on "slowly".
Generally speaking, initial reactions across the nation skewed heavily towards anger, condolence, outrage, sadness and fear - and rightly so. Thus it is interesting to note the few dissenting reactions that made it to the public in those early days of the crisis. One such notable reaction came from the Reverend Jesse Jackson, who issued a statement on September 11. It was a short
press release
that condemned the attacks and called for a national day of prayer and fasting. However, in addition, Jackson made the following observation:
We do not yet know enough about who did this, to be stereotyping or scapegoating. While we could not stop the attacks, we can and should stop the stereotyping. After the Pearl Harbor attack, we turned on each other in fear - today, let us turn to each other in hope. Not only is profiling by race or religion morally wrong, it distracts us from bringing the perpetrators to
justice.
In a later press release, dated September 21, Jackson took his initial line of thinking to the next logical level, saying in part:
President Bush is right to marshal our resources to seek to end the scourge of terrorism. But on this journey, we must define what we mean by the word "terrorism" - all of our allies must agree on this - and then apply one set of rules around the
world.
Then, in the same release, commenting on the news of a meeting of Afghani Imams in which their stance with reference to Osama Bin Laden was discussed, Jackson made one of the most strident, objective statements of the post-tragedy period:
We must appreciate the power of the clergy in this region of the world. Their statement was a ray of hope. They did not turn their backs on us with anti-American slogans, but rather they raised an American principle: evidence and action must go hand in hand. In the commitment to long-term alliances in our struggle to end terrorism, religious leaders in Afghanistan can be strategic
allies.
Change a few words, and drop the attribution to Jackson, and Muslims might be inclined to think that an Islamic organization or Muslim leader issued the aforementioned statement. Yet since September 11, no American Muslim organization or leader with broad appeal and visibility has been quite so forward in calling for justice, objectivity and due process. The exception might be Minister Louis Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam; however his appeal is largely limited to the African American community, and many American Muslims do not recognize him as a credible voice for the broader family of Islam in the United States.
For the most part, American Muslims have played a well thought out game of duck and cover, jabbing back occasionally at sensational media reports. Thanks to the hard work of several Islamic organizations, Muslims have been successful in raising awareness of issues related to racial and ethnic targeting and stereotyping and hate crimes. Additionally, the foundation laid by various politically oriented Muslim groups over the past decade has resulted in the ability for members of the American Muslim leadership to dialog at this critical time with important government officials, including the president himself.
However, while all this progress is well and good, one has to recognize that not every Muslim leader and organization should be dashing about informing all who might listen that Muslims are peaceful, Muslims are good citizens, Muslims aren't all terrorists, Islam does not condone acts of violence, etc. At some point, such ovations become gratuitous.
What the Muslim community needed at the beginning of this crisis and continues to need as America moves closer to military action, was and is a number of figures like Jackson, who can not only convey the condolences and make reassurances of loyalty, but also make the critical analysis that is so vital to making sure reaction to such a tragedy is appropriate and just.
The cold, hard truth in all of this is that America is often given to excess. This can be seen in everyday American life. But when it comes to war, that goes double. The hawks of the American military machine are not typically given to restraint, making catastrophic loss of life a real possibility.
Additionally, America has not always had the best domestic and international human rights policies. From slavery to segregation and from despots to dictators and death squads, the United States has consistently turned up on the wrong side of morality in its policy-making.
But, what has always been true of America is that people have the right, and some would say the responsibility, to stand up and be unpopular during times when irrational exuberance is driving the country pell-mell towards injustice. It happened with Apartheid. It happened with women's suffrage. It happened with civil rights. It's happening with the environment, immigration, Palestine and host of other critical issues.
Do some people have to go to jail for their causes? Sometimes. Are some leaders of organizations assassinated? Sometimes. But, at some point, someone has stand up to be heard. Jesse Jackson knows this because he was standing on the balcony of that Memphis hotel that April morning when Martin Luther King, Jr. was gunned down next to him. Jamil Al-Amin understands this, because he lost Black Panther compatriots to trigger happy police in the early 1970s. Nelson Mandela understands this because he spent the prime of his life locked behind bars.
With reference to Jackson, it no doubt must be recognized that he has been scrambling to repair his image since the revelation of his marital infidelities hit newsstands earlier this year. However, the truth of his words stand on their own. Not to mention he took quite some heat from the media for his statements, with Fox News' Brit Hume even calling Jackson's words "un-American".
A little criticism never hurt anyone, however. In fact, criticism often leads to greater media exposure. And Muslims must bring to the wider American audience the message that Muslims are concerned that there is more at stake in this crisis then the ability to practice Islam free from harassment and assault.
Muslims have to ask then, why should Jackson be doing the legwork for them. Why should he potentially head a delegation to Pakistan? Why isn't there a coalition of American Muslim leaders taking on that task, acting as voices of reason on the ground where it arguably counts most right now? Why isn't the American Muslim PR machine up and running to the point that it is a given that several Muslim leaders will make the rounds on broadcast news shows throughout such a crisis?
Sure it was nice to see Hamza Yusuf and Muzammil Siddiqi on CNN. Sure it was nice to hear Fouad Ajami go back and forth with Charlie Rose on consecutive nights. But, the fact still remains that the critical voice Jackson brought to the airwaves is still largely missing from Muslim organizations and leadership.
It is not too late for Muslims to bring more issues to the table with reference to how U.S. policy moves forward, both domestically and internationally. However, more voices will need to be clearly heard if any strides are to be made. And Muslims must understand that America is not so much the land of the free and the home of the brave, but rather the land of the free for those brave enough to stand up and struggle.
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