Maof

 As an American of Arabic ancestry, I have been critical of the "Arab-Americans" who so often appear on U.S. television as apologists and rationalizers of terrorism and hatred in the Muslim world.
 
 Today, I want to introduce you to a hero – or, should I say, a courageous Arab-American heroine.
 
 Her name is Wafa Sultan. She came to the U.S. about 15 years ago to escape the oppression of the Muslim world. A psychologist, she has not been content to sit back and simply enjoy the new life she has made for herself in the West. Instead, she has literally put her life on the line to condemn, in no uncertain terms, the ugliness, the vileness, the murder and the violence of the world she fled.
 
 And she has done it not on the relative safety of U.S. television, but in heated, face-to-face, live broadcast debates on Al-Jazeera.
 
 Do you want to be inspired?
 
 Would you like to see the face of courage?
 
 Would you like to see a woman leave Islamic radicals virtually speechless with the power of truth?

 http://switch5.castup.net/frames/20041020_MemriTV_Popup/video_480x360.asp? ai=214&ar=1050wmv&ak=null
 
 Here are some dazzling excerpts – certainly no substitute for seeing her deliver these words to the Muslim world on television, most recently Feb. 21:
 
 "The clash we are witnessing around the world is not a clash of religions, or a clash of civilizations," she said. "It is a clash between two opposites, between two eras. It is a clash between a mentality that belongs to the Middle Ages and another mentality that belongs to the 21st century. It is a clash between civilization and backwardness, between the civilized and the primitive, between barbarity and rationality. It is a clash between freedom and oppression, between democracy and dictatorship. It is a clash between human rights, on the one hand, and the violation  of these rights, on other hand. It is a clash between those who treat women like beasts, and those who treat them like human beings. What we see today is not a clash of civilizations. Civilizations do not clash, but compete."
 
 The host then asks: "I understand from your words that what is happening today is a clash between the culture of the West, and the backwardness and ignorance of the Muslims?"
 
 "Yes, that is what I mean," she responds.
 
 The host baits her again: "Who came up with the concept of a clash of civilizations? Was it not Samuel Huntington? It was not bin Laden. I would like to discuss this issue, if you don't mind. ..."
 
 She replies: "The Muslims are the ones who began using this expression. The Muslims are the ones who began the clash of civilizations. The Prophet of Islam said: 'I was ordered to fight the people until they believe in Allah and His Messenger.' When the Muslims divided the people into Muslims and non-Muslims, and called to fight the others until they believe in what they themselves believe, they started this clash, and began this war. In order to start this war, they must re-examine their Islamic books and curricula, which are full of calls for takfir and fighting the infidels."
 
 She goes on to praise Jews.
 
 "The Jews have come from the tragedy (of the Holocaust), and forced the world to respect them, with their knowledge, not with their terror, with their work, not their crying and yelling," she says. "Humanity owes most of the discoveries and science of the 19th and 20th centuries to Jewish scientists. Fifteen million people, scattered throughout the world, united and won their rights through work and knowledge. We have not seen a single Jew blow himself up in a German restaurant. We have not seen a single Jew destroy a church. We have not seen a single Jew protest by killing people. The Muslims have turned three Buddha statues into rubble. We have not seen a single Buddhist burn down a Mosque, kill a Muslim, or burn down an embassy. Only the Muslims defend their beliefs by burning down churches, killing people, and destroying embassies. This path will not yield any results. The Muslims must ask themselves what they can do for humankind, before they demand that humankind respect them."
 
 I am encouraged by the example of Wafa Sultan.
 
 If only Christians and Jews in the West were as forthright and outspoken. If only more Arab-Americans would tell the world why they came here and what they have found. If only our elected leaders would call a spade a spade like this and make the case for freedom.
 
 God bless you, Wafa Sultan.
 
 Joseph Farah is founder, editor and CEO of WND and a nationally syndicated columnist with Creators Syndicate. His latest book is "Taking America Back." He also edits the weekly online intelligence newsletter Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin, in which he utilizes his sources developed over 30 years in the news business.
 
March 4, 2006
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