FrontPageMagazine.com | December 23, 2002
disappointed and almost scared after watching your presentation about Islam.
One of the reasons I fled to the United States of America was to escape the
oppressive regime of Islam in the Middle East. From a former Moslem, these
people are in the US to Islamize America and have a scary agenda. They
audaciously buy churches and convert them into mosques!
I think your show was insensitive to the Judeo-Christian community of the
United States. Islam is cruel, anti-women, anti-religious freedom and
anti-personal freedom in general. How could you sympathize with a religion
that kills adulterers, homosexuals and people who convert out of Islam? How
could you present Islam with such affection? I am sorry that PBS failed to
represent the oppression, fear and the straight jacket I had to endure when
I lived under that crazy regime.
In the show, you stressed how the West should understand Islam. Why is
America responsible for understanding every little and big culture and
religion around the World, failing which we are branded bigots and racists?
How about asking the Moslems if they could open their minds and hearts and
understand the West? Perhaps they will slow down their terrorism, burning
our flags and hijacking airplanes. Unfortunately, the Middle East has no
clue about the American culture and they only judge us by Hollywood! How
about US media educating Moslems about US culture and the virtues of our
Constitution? Did that ever occur to you?
When I married a Christian man in my home country twenty-five years ago, I
could have been killed by Moslems for daring to do so. I was questioned
about my husband's religion even by Moslem workers at the US embassy, who
asked me point blank if he converted to Islam, implicitly threatening to
report me to Moslem authorities! I personally know Moslem women who were
circumcised against their will! How could you defend a religion that
declares a "fatwa", or death sentence, to anyone who is critical of the
religion? How could you defend a religion that inspired 9/11? Of course
not all Moslems are terrorists, but unfortunately, the majority of
�moderate� Moslems respect the fundamentalists as �true� Moslems and even
feel guilty toward them. If this were not true we should be seeing massive
displays of support for the US, strong denouncements of radical Islam by the
moderates. This has not happened. Instead, the most vocal Islamic groups
in the West are taking a confrontational stance, complaining of
discriminatory treatment, taking their cue from liberal civil-rights groups.
The liberal media is only too eager to egg them on.
I now write articles critical of Islam and speak to many groups about the
Middle East but have to use a pseudonym so I do not get killed by some of
your Moslem friends in the US mosques you were interviewing! They have no
shame to be complaining of discrimination after 9/11, thanks to Media
outlets like you who gave them a voice. The US goes out of its way to
protect them. What discrimination? Are you kidding? These mosques in the US
are financed by Saudi money and have an agenda and they scare people like me
who want to write and speak freely. Scared and oppressed former Moslems like
me could be killed by these Moslem extremists in US mosques. There are many
moderate Moslems and former Moslems like me who feel intimidated by some US
Moslem extremists. Former Moslems have to be given a voice on why they
escaped Islam. People like me and oppressed Christians and Jews in the
Moslem World had no say on your show. That is very sad. I wish you had
defended my right to choose or reject Islam without getting killed.
Is Islam now the "in" thing to defend to sabotage America, or did Saudi
money corrupt you?!
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Ms. Darwish is an American of Arab/Moslem origin and a former editor and
translator. Her e-mail is [email protected]
