Controversy over Islam stirs useful conversation
By KELLY WENTWORTH
Published on: 12/04/07When the British teacher Gillian Gibbons was arrested for crimes against Islam in Sudan following a creative writing assignment in which her students named a teddy bear Muhammad, my mother called.
As she related the details to me, I was as stunned as she was. While I had spent some time teaching in Yemen, which is in close proximity in geography, and in many ways, in culture, to Sudan, I had never heard of such an issue. Being a Muslim myself, I finally understood my mother was calling to find out why naming a bear Muhammad was a crime against Islam. I had no answers for her and assured her the incident was not indicative of what Muslims believe.
Kelly Wentworth of Smyrna is the co-director for the American Islamic Fellowship whose values include encouraging inter-faith dialogue and cooperation.
That same night, I playfully related the story to my husband. The idea that a teddy bear's name could be an insult to our religion was a completely ridiculous concept to me. As I spoke, my normally conversational husband suddenly said he did not understand how I could be so ignorant of the situation. I tried to understand what he meant, but he dismissed me. I was very shocked at this behavior. My husband and I often have very different ideas about our beliefs, but he had never interrupted me, no matter how much he disagreed. I pressed the issue, and he finally explained that it is insulting to name inanimate objects and animals after prophets and other respected people in Islam. Confused, I reminded him that I had named my cat after the prophet, King Solomon, in honor of the man. In my family, naming inanimate objects and animals after respected people is a tribute to them rather than an insult. We suddenly realized that we had stumbled upon a cultural issue and were able to continue the discussion without hurt feelings or interruption.
The teddy bear situation reminded me of my own experience as an English teacher in my husband's native country of Yemen. I had two things that should have been to my advantage when teaching: a husband very familiar with the nuances of the culture and a shared religious background with a majority of the citizens. Yet, I encountered a similar, though not as explosive, issue while teaching.
My students were learning the concept of "If ... then." As an assignment, I asked them to write an essay entitled, "If I were the president, then I would ..."
I believed it to be a very creative assignment and looked forward to the answers. My students did not share my beliefs. The students did not say anything at first out of respect, but did not turn in the assignment. I asked what the issue was and was told that the students were not allowed to lie. I did not understand. The students finally explained to me that they could not complete the assignment because it required them to "lie" and say they were president and then make pronouncements for him.
In Yemen, perspective writing, even on an "innocent" school assignment, if put in the wrong hands, could land a person in jail. As an American citizen who enjoys freedom of expression, the concept was very difficult for me to grasp. I had to change the assignment. Thinking back, I was lucky to be teaching in a secular classroom, because I could have easily substituted Muhammad or God for the president.
Gibbons has now been given a presidential pardon and was on her way to Britain. I am both very relieved and very worried for the educator. I hope she arrives home safely. The situation is unfortunate because the woman, from what I have read, truly respected the culture and religion of those she was teaching. I believe many similarly talented and adventurous teachers will now hesitate even more to venture into places such as Sudan where teacher shortages have been a constant problem, even for the most affluent schools. Perhaps Gibbons will be able to pen a memoir to share both her positive and negative experiences in the Sudan.
Cultural perceptions are a large bump on a long road as the world opens up and grows ever smaller in the information age. Respect is important when dealing with each others' cultures, but questioning and understanding is far more significant.
As Americans, we must use the power of our freedoms inside our country to open dialogue between cultural, religious and ethnic groups. Ingrid Mattson, the president of the Islamic Society of North America, addressed this very issue in her speech at the Islamic Speakers' Bureau awards dinner here in Atlanta only a few weeks ago. She reminded us of the imperative of open discussion. She posed the theological question, "Why has God chosen for us to be here, now, in this time?" Painful questions inside our own beliefs will have to be addressed, but I believe we have an amazing gift in our freedoms to start our awareness here. Rumi, a world-renowned Islamic thinker, once said, "God turns you from one feeling to another and teaches by means of opposites, so that you will have two wings to fly, not one."
I hope Americans continually strive for two wings.
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