WASHINGTON, Oct. 7 (UPI) -- Relations between Muslims and Americans are a growing concern for Americans, a recent survey revealed.
A study released in September by the non-partisan group Public Agenda found that "Americans see the web of issues surrounding relations with the Islamic world as the fundamental foreign policy challenge facing the nation -- but they have little idea what to do about it."
Public Agenda's Confidence in U.S. Foreign Policy Index found that public concerns are dominated by relations between Islam and the West, specifically the Iraq war, the war on terrorism and the image of the U.S. abroad. Although the survey's results showed that there was no conclusive opinion as to what U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East should be, two things were apparent.
Fifty-nine percent of those polled believed that improved communication with the Muslim world would reduce hatred of the U.S. and 64 percent believed that there should be a heavier emphasis put on economic and diplomatic methods over military efforts.
Working towards that end Jordan's King Abdullah is trying to foster better communications between Muslims, Christians and Jews. Abdullah recently met with local religious leaders of the three faiths in Washington as part of an effort to promote understanding between the faiths and to encourage the spread of a tolerant interpretation of Islam.
The initiative stems from a declaration by the International Islamic Conference, issued in Jordan this summer, which aims to end infighting between rival schools of Islamic interpretation, allowing Muslims to present a united front. Known as the 'Amman message,' the declaration unites both Sunni and Shiite Muslim leaders in condemnation of the practice of 'takfir,' the excommunication of Muslims from the faith.
The Amman message is adamant in denying the right of non-religious leaders such as Sunni extremist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi to issue religious judgments binding on his followers. "No one may issue a fatwa without the requisite qualifications which each School of (Islamic) Jurisprudence defines," says the text, aiming to ensure that the right to influence Islamic thought remains firmly rooted in the moderate mainstream.
Local leaders told Abdullah that this effort to advance recognition of Islam's moderate majority was having success at the international level. But much remained to be done at lower levels: When the king asked what he himself could do improve relations between Muslims and non-Muslims, he was told that many Muslims still felt they faced discrimination from United States immigration officials. "The U.S. still treats Muslims badly," said Ahmad Totonji, who heads the International Institute of Islamic Thought in Virginia. "It only takes one to go back to the Arab world and tell the story to cause damage."
Salameh Nematt, the Washington, D.C. bureau chief of the London-based Al-Hayat newspaper has come under fire from all sides for his criticism of U.S. foreign policies in the Middle East, the U.S. media as well as authoritarian Arabic governments.
According to another recent report 67 percent of Americans feel that Islam is a more violent religion than Judaism or Christianity. The report which was released this summer by the Pew Global Attitudes Project also found that 70 percent of Americans worry about growing Islamic extremism in the U.S.
In the post 9/11 world numerous think tanks and advocacy groups have been working in the U.S. to reconcile the image that Americanas have in the Muslim world and vice versa. The Council on American-Islamic Relations, known also as CAIR, is one of them.
One of the issues concerning CAIR is the language used by the media when describing acts of terrorism committed by individuals who are Muslims as "Islamic terrorism," Rabiah Ahmed, spokeswoman for CAIR said. "That is the most offensive thing, making an association between terrorism and Islam."
Ahmed went on to say that there was no need to mention religion at all when describing terrorist acts committed by Muslim individuals.
Azad Ejaz also feels hurt that people in the news media combine Islam with terrorism. "When one person and one group are presented as being representative of 1.2 billion Muslims in the world, that is dishonest of the media," said Ejaz, president of the Muslim Community Center in Silver Springs, Maryland.
Still Ejaz feels that there has been some improvement. "I believe that there is more understanding about each other. People have realized the importance of inter-faith dialogues," Ejaz said.
