My Experiences with Islam

So this post is not in reaction to anything, but is just something I feel I need to say.  I realize it’s not my most eloquent writing, but I kind of took a stream of consciousness approach while writing this.

            Back in the U.S., I lived in a wonderful and amazing state that I love.  Despite Colorado’s incredible beer, scenery, and people, it definitely lacks racial and religious diversity compared to other places.  There was a reason we called my hometown “Vanilla Valley.”  Granted, that is changing, but it’s still predominantly white and fairly Christian.  I was raised Catholic and am quite possibly one of the whitest people you’ll ever meet, as I literally glow in the dark, sunburn far too easily, and have no dancing skills to speak of.

            With that bit of background, I’m sure it won’t come as much of a surprise that there weren’t many Muslims in Fort Collins.  I know there were a few students who came through my elementary school who were Muslim, but there weren’t many.  Then my family moved to Berlin, Germany.

            Berlin has a large Turkish population, the majority of whom are Muslim.  Turks run many kebab places in the city, so when we became regulars at a small place by the S-Bahn, we got to know the employees decently well.  Especially during our first week in Berlin, we ate at the Döner kebab place probably 3 or 4 times (we were clueless as to where to go for food, as we were nervous being in a foreign country for the first time).  All the men who worked there were extremely friendly and often gave us free tea or fries or other extras.  They were some of the most welcoming people when we were scared and unsure in Germany.  Once we moved into our apartment, the man who ran a little newspaper stand by the bus stop came from Iraq and was also Muslim.  He quickly befriended my father, and told his story of being a journalist who fled Iraq because he’d printed things that the government didn’t approve of.  He was a really nice guy and it was sad to think that he couldn’t return home.

            Up to that point in my life, these were some of the biggest interactions I had with people of a different religion.  I was only 13 and was just starting to discover a lot of the world.  These people were kind and wonderful and I wasn’t really aware of their differing religious views.

            While we were in Berlin, 11 September happened.  We all know that there was quite the panic about Islam and Arabs in the U.S.  The unknown was scary for many people, and I feel that a lot of the American Muslim population was treated poorly post 9/11.  However, Muslims were some of the kindest and most supportive people we interacted with; from helping my family and me when we arrived in a new country so we could eat good food, extending the hands of friendship, or helping us with directions, the people’s religion didn’t affect the fact that they were simply wonderful people (the directions thing was funny.  We were in a small French village after dark in the pouring rain and couldn’t find our way to our hotel.  My mom went into a kebab shop run by Turks, tried her high school French plus lots of miming, and eventually one of the workers took pity on us and walked my mom through the pouring rain to the hotel).  It was sad for us to hear about how so many American Muslims and American Arabs suffered extreme prejudice as a result of fear of the unknown.

*I realize that the United States is not the only place where these kinds of issues are common.  However, as an American citizen, I am speaking of my personal experiences, which are limited to the U.S. and Europe*

When I returned the U.S., I was very happy to be back home, but missed the delicious Turkish kebabs that I’d come to love, and all of the wonderful people who’d become my friends while in Germany.  The next few years I had few interactions with religions other than Christianity and Judaism.  However, during my college study abroad, I took advantage of an opportunity to visit a former teacher in Tunisia.  Sandy had taught at my German-American school in Berlin, and had continued hopping around the globe to teach at various international schools (I’m hoping my life can end up kind of like hers).  When I returned to Germany, she was living in Carthage in the northern African country of Tunisia (as many people know, this would later be the spark of the Arab Spring, as the result of a fruit seller setting himself on fire in protest of the government’s oppression).  Visiting Tunisia was an amazing trip.  I loved it.  I got to immerse myself in history, which was of course a delight (um, hello?  Carthage ruins!!  And the largest coliseum outside of Rome, in which I walked where prisoners and beasts were held prior to their fights!  It was history dork heaven!).  While there, I also was able to learn a great deal about Tunisian culture.  Sandy had been living in Tunisia long enough to answer many of my questions about the country.

            The president of Tunisia had been in power for decades.  I actually saw his palace in Tunis, and some guards came across the street and told us to continue moving, that we couldn’t stay standing and looking at it.  I hung out with Sandy’s maid, who was a little woman who spoke no English, and only a little bit of French.  She and I stumbled through communicating with each other, but ended up spending an entire day together, during which we drank tea, went to the market and made couscous.  Though I had an amazing trip in general, getting to go around the market with her was fantastic and was one of the highlights of my trip.  I was the lone white girl, holding the shopping basket, staring happily at the piles of fruits, vegetables and spices while the Tunisian woman laughed with her vender friends.  I guess that was one of the first occasions in which I was the complete minority in every way: racially, religiously, height wise...seriously, I towered over all the women in the place.  But it was also fun.  During the trip, Sandy and some of her teacher friends and I went to a small village in the countryside.  While there, we discovered that it was a holiday, the celebration of Muhammad’s birth.  The call to prayer went off often, people were dressed in their best, and families were happily spending together.

            Jump forward a few years, to when I joined Peace Corps.  Tanzania has two main dominant religions, Christianity and Islam.  The interior of the country is predominantly Christian, whereas the coasts and the islands of Zanzibar are mostly Muslim.  Both Christian and Muslim holidays are recognized and celebrated throughout the country, regardless of people’s personal religion.  For example schools are closed for Christmas, Idd-el-Haji, Easter, Idd-el-Fitr, even if the area is predominantly one religion. During our initial pre-service training, we had an interview where we discussed our preferences for our site placements.  I said that I wanted to be in a Muslim community.  I selfishly wanted to learn more about Islam.  But I can’t even tell you how happy I am to be in my community.  I’ve learned a lot and enjoy getting to be in a different religious culture.

            First of all, I know this comes across very lovely and idealistic and silly, but it’s been reaffirmed many times for me that people are people.  It doesn’t matter what country they are from or what their beliefs are, people care about their families, their friends, and want the best for everyone.

            There are people who jump to conclusions when they find out I live in a mostly Muslim village.  I’ve had people ask if there are any extremists in my area, if I cover my head, or if I’m treated as less because I’m a woman.  Let me break these stereotypes down for you a wee bit:

-       extremists:  I believe the individual who asked me that question meant if there are people who are very radical in their beliefs to the point of committing acts of terrorism.  The fact of the matter is that I’m in one of the most peaceful countries in Africa.  Tanzanians of all faiths take pride in how peaceful their country is compared to places like Kenya, the DRC, and Uganda.  My parents were extremely relieved to find out I would be living in someplace like Tanzania, where they would still worry about me, but less than if it were a different country.  Also, though people have very strong faith in their religion, it obviously does not mean that they agree with groups like Al Qaida.  Islam is not terrorism.  I have never had a person in their country have an issue with me based on my country of origin.  I feel safe, and enjoy winning people over with a smile and greeting in their language.

-       Tanzania is not an extremely conservative country.  Ok, that’s not completely true.  It IS conservative in some ways, such as women generally wearing skirts, and not showing bare knees or shoulders.  However, there are many Muslim women who do not cover their hair, and there are Christian women who do cover their hair.  In my area, most of the women cover their hair in some way.  I am also in a village, however, which most certainly is more conservative than more urban areas.  Whether it’s wearing a headscarf or something like a bandana, mamas and older girls will not show their hair generally.  However, if a man sees a woman’s hair, it is not really a big deal.  For example, many female students will adjust their scarves in class, and so they take it off for a little while, in the presence of male students and even male teachers.  My friend Jasmine is a Muslim (who happens to work in a liquor store owned by her family, so I find it kinda funny), but always has her hair visible and done in beautiful braids.  Within the village, the Christian girls don’t cover their heads, but shave their heads the way that female and male students need to all over the country. Around the village, there have even been a few occasions in which women will be getting their hair braided outside where lots of people (including men) pass by and can see their hair completely.  No one in my village has ever asked me to cover my hair.  Sometimes they’ll jokingly take my scarf and drape it over my hair, but I’ve never felt like I need to do so in order to respect their religion.  But I think if I covered my hair, they’d be really happy and declare that I’m even more a member of the tribe.  Maybe for Idd, beloved village, but not every day.

-       The last point about being treated less because of my gender…it’s a complicated one.  The fact of the matter is that I am treated differently than a lot of people, and differently than I would be in the U.S.  I honestly don’t think it’s because of Islam, however.  I am a white woman living in a developing African country.  Tanzanian women and men have very different roles here, which many of them stick to.  It’s a male dominated society.  The vast majority of women that I’ve gotten to know do almost all the work around the home, as well as working at shops or on the family farm.  It’s extraordinary how much they work.  Most of the men in my village sit around.  Many of them work some, but it’s far more likely I’ll see them sprawled on the grass talking or drinking chai at the shop.  I’m a teacher so many people respect me.  I’m a foreigner who chose to live in their community, and they want to make me feel welcomed and at home.  That means I get lots of people inviting me to their homes and wanting to help me.  But I’ve had comments made, like “Let me do that, because I am the man.”  Or “Women don’t drive.”  Snide comments which aren’t true, and which are incredibly annoying for a feminist like me.  I’m happy to prove them wrong on many occasions, such as the fact that I do drive (though I’ve never driven on the left side of the road, nor shifted with my left hand, so that’d be a bit hard for me), I’ve felled and chainsawed just like the men getting firewood for the community, and I can in fact carry my own stuff.  These are things that I’ve discussed with both Christians and Muslims.  I’ll emphasize it again, I don’t believe that religion is the reason women are treated as less, but it’s the male-dominated culture within Tanzania.  Within Peace Corps, we have a lot of trainings about how to encourage and support gender equality within our communities.  I encourage my students of both sexes a great deal, but emphasize to the girls that they’re smart and can do whatever they want.  Apparently the female students cheered when they found out I would be coming to the school.  Finally a female teacher!  I’d like to think that a college-educated woman can give them an example of what they can do, but I’m not positive about that.  I just know they like me, but my lasting influence has yet to be seen.

I realize that there are many rants within this post.  Pretty much the point I’m trying to make is that fear of the unknown is human nature.  Education and getting to know people can help curb that fear.  However, believing the hype and that some crazy terrorists represent the religion of millions of individuals is simply ridiculous.  Religion is important, but letting stereotypes of a religion cloud your perception of an individual is among the worst things we can do as humans.