Countdown

An Asterisk For Inclusion?

By AAI Countdown
Volume 9, No. 15
Posted on Thursday June 26, 2008

An Asterisk For Inclusion?
Tony Norman explained in the Pittsburg Post-Gazette that the ‘snub’ of two Muslim ladies at a Michigan rally last week signaled "the soft bigotry of Islamophobia was finally ready for its close-up in the Obama campaign." The remedy? Beyond a personal apology from the senator (which he reportedly furnished), a seat for the ladies within camera-shot of the candidate at a future event. And "while he’s at it," Norman added, "Mr. Obama should also find a place on the stage for Jews wearing yarmulkes, Sikhs wearing turbans and atheists wearing evolution lapel pins, because they’re all part of his grand coalition, too." Watch the backdrop of Senator Obama’s next stump speech for ‘change to believe in.’  

The Highest Honor
President George W. Bush presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Donna Shalala, who served as Secretary of Health and Human Services during both terms of the Clinton Administration. Shalala, an Arab American who currently serves as President of the University of Miami, also received the highest honor available to an American civilian for her ongoing role as co-chair of the bipartisan Commission on Care for America’s Returning Wounded Warriors alongside former Senator Bob Dole (R-KS). At the ceremony, President Bush acknowledged Shalala’s deep belief that "our nation has no more important responsibility than to make sure that we provide our veterans with all the love and care and support they deserve" and commended her "efforts to help more Americans live lives of purpose and dignity."

Principle Over Politics
In an act of political courage (so rare in June of an election year) Congressman Darrell Issa (R-CA) abandoned partisanship for principle and joined his Democratic colleagues on the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties in mandating testimony from former Undersecretary of Defense Douglas Feith. The Subcommittee wants to hear from Mr. Feith about his role in crafting interrogation guidelines, but he has failed to voluntarily appear for questioning. (Surprise, surprise.) When asked why Congressman Issa voted in favor of using subpoena power to push the testimony, a spokesman explained it was "because he did not feel that Mr. Feith’s situation warranted a delay." Good answer.   

Beyond Tolerance
Progress towards peaceful coexistence between Arab and Jewish citizens of Israel might best be measured by conditions of allophilia, the positive feelings of "kinship, comfort, affection, engagement and enthusiasm for those who are different" instead of just a "neutral state of tolerance," according to a recent Harvard University study. While the report states "that Arab citizens and Jewish citizens both underestimate their communities’ liking of the ‘other’," it also found "support for coexistence between communities [to be] overwhelming." As associate professor and founder of the Allophilia Project Todd Pittinsky notes, "Improving the equality and constructive engagement of Israel’s Jewish and Arab citizens may help create a ripple effect that will spread, changing the course of relations not only between Jews and Arabs in Israel, but the Middle East more broadly."