Reflections

During the semester, one lecture I found particularly interesting was that of Peter Motavalli, who educated us on the global food insecurity crisis. I found his lecture to be very emotionally and ethically appealing, and he supplemented his presentation with the perfect balance of moving photographs and informative charts and statistics. He presented the food insecurity crisis in such a way that seemed to frame it as an critical problem, but with a viable solution. His lecture lead me to reconsider my own consumption habits, as well as think about what actions the United States could take in order to address the problem of hunger in developing countries. His lecture tugged at our moral responsibility to provide for our brothers and sisters across the world, and ensure that their basic human rights were being met.

          (Image retrieved from http://cdn.phys.org/newman/gfx/news/hires/2012/globalhunger.jpg)

I am just starting to gain a semblance of an understanding of the vastness of our world and its peoples and cultures. Studying the country of Iran throughout the semester has revealed to me just how different citizens of the world can be, due to a delicate balance of culture, religion, and geographic location. Iran remains an enigma that has yet to be solved by not only me, but the entire Western world. I have studied the fragile relationship that exists between Iran and the United States; I believe there is much work to be done and progress to be made in terms of peace and understanding. As Americans, I believe it is of critical importance for us to seek understanding and possess a willingness to learn about cultures that are different from our own. The average American's perception of Iran is shrouded in fear and misconceptions about Islam and their culture. It is imperative for both countries to close the gap in miscommunication and strive to work together as two world powers. If this doesn't occur, I foresee trouble on the horizon.

Insight into Morrocco & Guest Lecture

           In my opinion, the lecture that was most informative and inspiring was the Global connection and religion presentation by Deborah Mason. In the Middle East, the religious restrictions are much higher than they are here, and a lot of times we really don't think about that. As I have pointed out in several previous blog posts, we as Americans have an extremely hard time understanding other places and cultures. With all of the current events surrounding the terrorist attacks and problems our country has been facing that are tied to certain groups, such as ISIS, we forget that it isn't necessarily an entire religion at blame.

Facing online backlash about religious officials is a problem that our world may not ever be able to completely dissolve. We struggle so highly with crossing the line between freedom of speech, and hate speech. The stories happening in today's news have been chewed up, tossed around, and spit out by people on social media sites who think they completely understand what is going on and who is at blame. 


              In studying Morocco, I learned one of the most valuable lessons I could possibly develop, and that doesn't stem from just one simple idea. I gained insight into another culture, in a fully 360 point of view. The most valuable thing I learned from studying Morocco is to always be greatful for what I have as a woman living in America. Many times I forget how much privilege I have to be living in a society that doesn't put so many restrictions on being a woman and having a job and my own voice.
             "In conservative Morocco, the reality is that even women may be reluctant to challenge Islamic traditions that discriminate against them. “Women are very attached to the book and it is very clear on inheritance,” said Sonia Terrab, a Moroccan novelist, referring to the Quran. “If given the choice, they will reject reform. There needs to be a strong state that imposes it until it becomes a solid gain in two or three generations.” (NY TIMES)
   
     Islamic traditions in Morocco require strict laws on women's rights that are governed by both the religion and the law. Many women are not allowed to completely speak their minds and have the same rights as Islamic men. Studying places like these always remind me to be thankful of my freedom and rights as w woman in America.

Insight into Syria

The guest lecture I found most informative, inspiring, and/or challenging was the lecture on globalization and agriculture by Peter Motavelli. The discussion that occurred in class was very intriguing. It made clear to me how important global food shortages are, and how challenging the problem is to tackle. It also made it clear how the problem must be approached from many different angles and places if it is to be solved at all.

This semester, I’ve been doing research on the Syrian Arab Republic. I chose this country as the one I would focus on mainly because it is commonly in the news, and I felt I would have many sources of information to utilize when writing my blog posts. When the class began, I didn’t know much about Syria in general, other than some basic details about the civil war currently going on in the nation. In order to write the blog posts required throughout the semester, I had to do lots of reading about different topics related to Syria. From this process, I have learned a lot about the country.

Before starting my research, I basically knew that Syria was currently in a civil war, and that ISIS was somehow involved. I did not know what started the war, who was involved, or any of the details about the war, other than some involvement of chemical weapons had occurred. After reading numerous articles, journals, and security reports, I’ve learned much more about the situation in Syria. My research gave me insight into how the war started, with protests during the Arab Spring that turned violent when the Assad regime opened fire on protestors in March of 2011. I learned that climate change caused a long lasting drought in the region that caused many rural farmers to lose their livelihoods and added to the initial tension in the country. I learned about the Assad regime’s use of chemical weapons, particularly sarin gas, on civilian populations that nearly led to full scale US involvement in the country. But one of the topics that was most interesting to me was the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. With this faction being in the news so often in recent times, and with the recent attacks in Paris and across the world, gaining more insight into this terror organization was very helpful in my understanding of the situation in Syria. I learned about their evolution from an al-Qaeda splinter cell to the self-proclaimed “caliphate” that al-Qaeda has severed ties with that they are today. I’ve also learned about the other factions involved in the Syrian Civil War, how convoluted the war is, and how there is no real end to the conflict in sight.

But perhaps one of the most important issues I’ve gained insight on is the Syrian refugee crisis. With so many people fleeing the fighting in Syria, it was inevitable that this issue would become as important as it is now. Immigration is an issue in nearly every country, and the issue is made much larger when there are hundreds of thousands of refugees seeking asylum in nearby countries in Europe. After the attacks in Paris, the issue became one of national security, and politicians, especially in the US, were quick to jump to the conclusion that we should not allow any Syrian refugees into the country for risk of them being undercover members of ISIL. However, a proper understanding of the situation in Syria, as well as the sheer numbers of the refugee crisis, show that there are over four million people seeking asylum, and the US was slated to accept only 0.25% of those refugees. The statistical chance of even one of them being a stow-away terrorist is so miniscule it does not warrant the refusal of thousands of men, women, and children who are legitimately seeking a better life.

Overall, I was glad I chose the Syrian Arab Republic as my nation of focus for this class. I’ve learned a lot about the country and the region in general. My understanding is now much better than the average person, and this allows me to objectively view the developing news stories that come from the nation. Without this class, and my focus on Syria, I believe my view on these issues may be much different than it is now.

Guest lecture and insight

The guest lecture that I found most informative, inspiring, and/ or challenging was Debra Mason on digital religion in global landscape. I thought this was real informative considering all the issues we are having with ISIS and the Syrian Muslim refugees crisis.


As stated by the First Amendment "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." Unfortunately the world does not really work like that. In recent times with the 911 and Paris attacks by Muslims everyone has a biased against that religion and thinks everyone that is Muslim is a terrorist. As Debra showed in her presentation that religion restrictions in the Middle East and Asia are at a much greater level than America and it evident as bloggers have been killed for just speaking their mind. Many are blaming the whole religion and some don't feel safe with Syrian refugees. It's hard to control hate speech especially with the growing digital world. The digital world makes us a much smaller world with connections that also means that people's opinions can be spread much more and that there is more hate evident. I thought this presentation was really on point with the times today. As our Human Rights we have the right to believe in what we want and say what we feel, but many get punished for doing so. Our perception have been so distorted simply by what we see and hear that we apply it to an entire religion, an entire race and it is only increasing the division and the hate speech. It's a challenging subject because everyone wants to express themselves, but won't accept others form of expression. 

The insight that I gained doing research in Egypt is that they are having some major issues politically and along with climate issues. The continual issue of global warming is causing the rise of sea level and Egypt being a costal county it is trouble of losing land and income. I learned that 95% Egypt's population lives along the Nile River, which means most of Egypt is not habitable. Being the biggest Arabian country they still have many issues to fix regarding Human right, women equality and after the removal of their past president there is some tension with the Brotherhood. There is much fear that the Brotherhood will turn into a terrorism group, if they don't already have issues with ISIS. Being born in Ethiopia the only thing I really knew about Egypt was that we shared the Nile, but there is a lot more to this country than I thought. I have a whole new perspective for this country along with gaining much insight on their issues. 

Politics of the Veil

 Mossuz-Lavau starts off saying how when she sees a women in the streets she feels "a pang of emotion" because the veil designated a women as a "source of sin and "as a potential whore." The crux of her argument is that the law to ban headscarves will not “liberate” Muslim women. She feels like women are getting their sexual freedom taken away.  Sexual liberation could only come free modern day ideas and educated women. "The only ones who transgressed [Islamic] norms and who had sexual relations before marriage were students and managers with advanced degrees” (163) She doesn't think that women need to wear head scarfs. She argues that women that are educated can make more of their own choices and women that are not educated, do not have as much as sexual freedom. She believes that women need to be hidden away for their husbands, or their future husbands. It has been a topic of discussion where women feel that western society women are whores because they don't cover themselves up.

Veil restrictions

I think this argument is valid because as she conducted her own research it was evident that women that were educated partook in sexual activities before marriage. She saw the difference in a women that has a headscarf on and one that didn't wear one. She saw as one walked by the restrictions just because they had a veil on. By providing women with education, they will go a lot further in life and have their own mind set. Forbidding women from wearing headscarves is an infringement of their freedom. Education can come in handy for many reasons, women are subject to more restrictions just because of their gender and it has build a bigger gap between women and men.

Women in Islam

The idea of "Westernizing" Muslim Women is a difficult one to entirely wrap your mind around. Keeping in mind that Muslim women/women in Islam are entitled to their freedom of religion, it is a tough place to be in to suggest they change their ways.

"A woman is to be treated as God has endowed her, with rights, such as to be treated as an individual, with the right to own and dispose of her own property and earnings, enter into contracts, even after marriage. She has the right to be educated and to work outside the home if she so chooses. She has the right to inherit from her father, mother, and husband. A very interesting point to note is that in Islam, unlike any other religion, a woman can be an imam, a leader of communal prayer, for a group of women." (IW)

It is easy to understand that multiple cultures have issues with the treatment of Muslim women. Many of their practices seem completely taboo or even inhumane to cultures viewing the issues from the outside, but I believe there are many parts of the religion that are not seen in the correct light, but instead as a stereotype from the other cultures. 

"Before marriage, a woman has the right to choose her husband. Islamic law is very strict regarding the necessity of having the woman's consent for marriage. The groom gives a marriage dowry to the bride for her own personal use. She keeps her own family name, rather than taking her husband's. As a wife, a woman has the right to be supported by her husband even if she is already rich. She also has the right to seek divorce and custody of young children. She does not return the dowry, except in a few unusual situations." (IW)

A huge issue that we face today as a civilization is following the stereotypes and what we believe bro be true of others, without actually learning about people that differ from us. If we were to take the effort to understand other cultures and learn about them instead of believing preconceived notions, we would hear a much higher rate of acceptance. Tension is created when we start believing our culture has better values and norms than others.

"Despite the fact that in many places and times Muslim communities have not always adhered to all or even many of the foregoing in practice, the ideal has been there for 1,400 years, while virtually all other major civilizations did not begin to address these issues or change their negative attitudes until the 19th and 20th centuries, and there are still many contemporary civilizations which have yet to do so." (IW)

I attached a link to a very interesting Ted talk on the subject
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FETryXMpDl8You

Sources-
IslamWomen.com

Politics of the Veil

In her book, Politics of the Veil, Joan Wallach Scott explores the meanings and controversies surrounding the headdress of Muslim women in European society, specifically focusing on France. The catalyst for her book was in 2004 when the French government banned girls from wearing headscarves in public schools, which in turn spurred intense tension between Muslim women and French society.  While the law may have started as an attempt to maintain secularism in schools and assimilate Muslim girls into the norms of French society, many view it as an attack on Muslims, their religion, and culture.

Ruth O'Brien, in the book's foreword, details how the French ban of veils in schools sparked hostilities on both sides of the playing field. She writes that "80 percent of Muslims now feel harassed and discriminated against," a figure that is increasing (viii). Muslims feel as if they are under attack by the French government and society, which, as O'Brien describes, can fuel the extremist fire. Fundamentalist Muslims are using this ban to support their cause and rally their forces. As France is home to the largest Muslim population in Europe, when news of the headscarves ban spread to the East, their was a fervent outcry. The European Union subsequently issued an effort to monitor and evaluate the anti-discrimination policies in place in France and other countries to integrate Muslim women into European society. The study was titled VEIL, which stood for Values, Equality and Differences in Liberal Democracies (viii). However, O'Brien deems that this effort was loosely rooted an unhelpful, as policies that emphasized differences continued to flourish in Europe.

                         (Image courtesy of http://www.fhi.duke.edu/events/politics-veil-panel)

Politics of the Veil helps readers recognize and understand how the French law banning headscarves  exacerbated the problem of integrating Muslims into French society. Wallach Scott detailed how French government and society view the headscarf (hijab) as "the ultimate symbol of Islam's resistance to modernity" (p. 2). And while the legislation encompassed other religious items and adornments, the brunt of its weight was felt by Muslim women and girls. The law was created for the ban in French public schools, however, many French people took the law to heart, deeming it was a legal to wear a headscarf anywhere. Muslim women across France suffered discrimination from multiple entities, and were often denied services, such as naturalization or marriage (p. 179). Rather than making Muslim women feel more included in French society, the law has caused feelings of difference and discrimination. It serves as a constant reminder that their religion doesn't align with French law. Banning headscarves is interpreted as banning Muslim religion from French society, and it will continue to highlight differences and cause tensions in the country.