How do you suppose the Revolutionary War that resulted in the United States might have looked through the lenses of facebook, twitter, phone cameras, blogs, and editorial pages worldwide? A mess! Some 80 years later this experiment in democracy endured five years of savage civil war. A look at Capitol Hill and at Wisconsin today provides evidence that the experiment continues.
Why, then, do so many in the media, and at water coolers and in coffee shops, question the appropriateness of democratic, representative government for Middle Eastern states? Why should the Egyptian people get it right immediately or not at all? Who could not thrill at the photographs from Tahrir Square as Mubarak made his long-overdue exit? Why not hope?
It is easy to present Islam and democracy as the odd couple. Yes, the merger of the rule of the people with belief in the sovereignty of Allah's commands as found in the Qu'ran poses long lists of challenges. But there are many Islamic scholars striving to find common ground for the growth of political freedom in lands saturated by the Islamic faith.
In his Islam and the Challenge of Democracy, Khaled Abou El Fadl offers testimony of this shared turf. "Muslims, for whom Islam is the authoritative frame of reference, can arrive at the conviction that democracy is an ethical good, and that the pursuit...does not require the abandonment of Islam." The Qu'ran does not advocate any one form of human government. What kind of governing philosophy has the best chance of enhancing the following Islamic values, El Fadl asks: "pursuing justice through social cooperation and mutual assistance; establishing a non-autocratic, consultative method of governance; and institutionalizing mercy and compassion in social interactions?" Is democracy not the answer?!
When Confucius traveled throughout ancient China with his devoted band of students, he answered one frequently-asked question the same way. Quick to point out the flaws of others and wanting to know how their teacher could account for human failings, Confucius' consistent response to his pupils' finger-pointing was to "look within." Another's weakness provides an opportunity for one's own soul-searching. In Confucian spirit, let's hold up a mirror to democracy in THIS country. Rather than focusing on the incompatibility of Islam and democracy, why not look in the eye the deepening chasm between rich and poor in the U.S. and question the relationship between capitalism and democracy. Salaries for K-12 teachers and corporate bonuses, local businesses and superstores...? Holding the mirror steady, let's inquire if there is evidence of the legislation of morality in THIS country. Why does the descriptor "Catholic" or "Southern Baptist" frequently accompany a politician's name? Do the religious beliefs of lawmakers in the U.S. affect their votes...sometimes? Is Islam the only religion that threatens the separation of church and state?
Revolution is risky business...everywhere. Democratic theory is really hard to put into practice...everywhere. In the March 14th issue of The New Yorker Wendell Steavenson beautifully captures the stunning developments in the Middle East: "...altogether and all at once, Arabs have lost their fear. And not just the fear of violence, imprisonment, and death...they have also lost the fear...that they, as Arabs...are inherently ill-suited to representative government." Women are participating by the millions! "Leaders" are responding to the People!
We ALL have work to do.... It's about looking within.
