ABSTRACT
In the Egyptian capital on June 4, 2009, President Barack Obama made a widely anticipated speech in which he attempted to begin rebuilding the bridges to the Muslim world that had, in the opinion of many, been badly damaged under the George W. Bush administration. Indeed, the official title of the speech is “A New Beginning.” In the speech, Obama strikes a conciliatory note by outlining the historic contributions of Muslim civilization to Western culture and the contemporary contributions of American Muslims to the United States. He cites his personal experiences as the son of an African Muslim and as one who lived his early years in Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation. He then addresses seven primary sources of tension that must be addressed with mutual respect and cooperation. (1) He declares that America shares with Muslims and the rest of the world an imperative to combat violent extremism, which is irreconcilable with human rights and, in fact, with Islam. (2) He reiterates the US endorsement of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian issue, calls on Hamas to end violence and recognize Israel, and pronounces continued Israeli settlements in occupied territories to be illegitimate. (3) He asserts that Iran should have the right to peaceful nuclear power so long as it abides by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. (4) He recognizes that there is no one path to democracy but affirms America’s support for elected, peaceful governments that govern with respect for all their people. (5) He urges religious tolerance, not just between Muslims and non-Muslims but between Sunni and Shiite Muslims as well. (6) While noting that the Muslim countries of Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Indonesia have already elected women as leaders, he pledges that the United States will partner with any Muslim-majority country to further support women’s education, which he considers a key to women’s equality. (7) He also promises partnerships with Muslim countries to promote education and economic and technological development. The speech met with mixed reactions. While many felt that it was positive and constructive, others felt that it was lacking in the specifics that would truly define a new era in US–Middle East relations. Others were even more harsh. Some Palestinian spokesmen, for example, decried the president’s failure to criticize Israeli violence and asserted that the speech outlined nothing different from Bush’s policies. Some Israelis objected to Obama’s juxtaposing of Jewish suffering in the Holocaust with Palestinian affliction as justification for a Palestinian state. Ten days later, 68Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel delivered a speech at Bar Ilan University in which he countered Obama’s mention of Palestinian suffering but also, for the first time, proclaimed his support for a two-state solution.
