Endelig

Endelig! I weekendavisen kan man læse, at en gruppe danske muslimer inspireret af Naser Khader, vil skabe et netværk, der skal søge at skabe et mere billede af danske muslimer end det der typisk gengives i danske medier. Altså et opgør med Abu Laban, Wahid Petersen og alle de andre kvart, halv eller hel fundamentalister, som normalt får lov til at tegne danske muslimer i offentligheden. Der er et skrigende behov for sådanne initiativer i Europa, og det bliver forhåbentligt et godt eksempel på hvorledes nogle få menneskers initiativ kan føre positive forandringer med sig.

Det er interessant at notere sig at initiativet er blevet forbigået i tavshed på Uriasposten, Filtrat og Minut. Det gør det jo unægtelig lidt svært at tage den daglige forargelse disse blogs (nogle gange med rette) udgyder over ensidigheden af mediernes dækning af Islam og udlændingepolitikken alvorligt.

To politikere ved navn Khan

I forlængelse af mit debatindlæg i JP og debatten på Punditokraterne om konsekvenserne af indvandring i hhv USA og Europa er følgende lille historie meget betegnende. I Danmark har vi en muslimsk indvandrerpolitiker ved Navn Wallaith Khan. Udover at være særdeles illoyal har han tillige givet udtryk for sympati overfor ekstremistiske muslimske organisationer.

I U.S.A. har man også en muslimsk politiker ved navn (Arif) Khan. Khan er rent faktisk det Libertarianske partis kandidat til senator for Wisconsin. Khans politiske budskaber kan læses ud af følgende interview:

“It is time to reign the government back within the confines of the
Constitution,”
Although public funds are available for candidates, Khan has
refused to make use of them, something that both major-party candidates have
readily done. He emphasizes the grass-roots element of his campaign, in
contrast to those of his opponents. “One of the things that we are trying
to do is to not be like everyone else,” Khan says. “We are not going to
pander to special interests or be beholden to anyone who gave us money.”
Khan believes that the government is too large, and thinks that America
needs to look inward, rather than outward, in order to get back to what the
writers of the Constitution had intended. “It takes 67 percent of the
national budget just to run the government, its so big” he says. “This is
why the deficit is so high.”

He cites the removal of U.S. troops from stations abroad as his first
order of business, should he be elected. “I would foster cordial
relationships with other countries, not tangling alliances,” he says of his
foreign policy. “We are not responsible for the rest of the world.
My allegiance is to defend the United States, not to police other
countries.”
Khan also emphasizes his desire to repeal the PATRIOT Act, a law
that he views as “totally unconstitutional.” Furthermore, he would improve
education in the country, noting that the United States has fallen to 29th in
the world ranking in science among students, from first in the 1960’s, and that
young people’s command of language has decreased as well. “[Students]
don’t know the difference between verbs and adverbs,” Khan says.

Khan offers voters an option of change from what he sees as a trend of
war and deficit spending.
“They are going to continue to tax us more and pass
unconstitutional laws,” Khan says. “If this is what you want, vote for my
opponents.”

I modsætning til Wallaith Khan har Arif Khan ikke brug for to tunger, en til sit pakistanske bagland og en til den brede offentlighed. Her kan læses om et møde mellem Khan og muslimske forretningsfolk i Wisconsin, hvor af det bla. fremgår, at:

“The members of the Muslim Professional Association, who have yet to endorse a
candidate for U.S. senator or president, enjoyed hearing from the Libertarian
candidates.
"I just recently became a U.S. citizen and I can't wait to make
my first vote Libertarian," said Umar Akram, a college student whose family
moved from Pakistan to the United States in 1997.
Akram was one of the more
than 25 attendees who requested more information regarding the Libertarian Party
and its candidates.
Libertarian National Committee member Jeremy Keil said he
was amazed at the excitement the Libertarian candidates generated.
"The
Muslim professionals I spoke with have a deep love for this country and a deep
love of freedom," he said. "But they want their voice heard. They were excited
that the Libertarians are reaching out to their community and feel that we may
become their voice in politics.
"If we as a party can help empower the Muslim
community through the political process, we can build a foundation for reaching
out to other constituencies, such as small business owners, that are politically
active and believe in Libertarian ideals."
Richard Campagna said he was
delighted to spend the afternoon campaigning with Khan.
"As a Muslim small
businessman, Arif Khan knows that government is often at odds with both Muslims
and small business owners," he said. "His campaign for Senate will reach out to
these constituencies and be their voice in the political arena. I look forward
to more campaign trips to Wisconsin as we reach out to communities that agree
with the Libertarian Party and are willing to help build a party that will
empower them."
The Libertarian Party could be Muslim Americans' ticket to
changing the way they are viewed in America, Khan said.
"It is incumbent upon
all Muslims to dispel the myth that we are all terrorists and war mongers and
butchers as portrayed by the media," he said. "I think the only party capable of
doing that is the Libertarian Party, since we are the only ones actually willing
to listen and pay attention and then do the sensible thing."

I det muslimske miljø er der således ikke bare opbakning til U.S.As grundlæggende værdier om individual frihed, hersker der tilsyneladende også en følelse af, at hver enkelt muslim har ansvar for at lægge afstand til fundamentalisme og tyranni. Holdninger der desværre står i grel kontrast til den indadvendthed og offermentalitet der præger mange europæiske muslimer.
Mon ikke situationen i Europa ville være sammenlignelig hvis vi gik mere op i frihed end tryghed?