I still remember the first time I encountered Bernard Lewis's writing. As a freshman I'd taken a class on Islam at Willamette, and my professor cautioned me about putting too much stock in Lewis. He didn't discourage me from reading it, only suggested that I keep in mind the man's view of a world defined by a clash of civilizations. He was right on. I have a hard time taking Lewis (or any one who cites him to support their own arguments) seriously. I've spent the rest of me education generally ignoring him, which has always made me slightly uncomfortable. I've always wondered if I do this simply because he doesn't agree with me, and if this is a hallmark of my own ideological entrenchment and even academic laziness.
Lewis seems to want to spare me the concern, however, as he's lately been stating rather plainly that Arabs aren't ready for democracy.
I love this argument. I really do. I'm in awe of the moral and academic acrobatics it must take to convince yourself that you can say one way or another about entire nations being ready for or capable of Democracy. That kind of arrogance is really something we should all stop and appreciate for a moment.
Americans (not even professors from Princeton) aren't actually the authority on who can or cannot govern themselves. We've done well for ourselves since 1776, but our Democracy is yet imperfect. Our nation came from genocide and slavery, from oppression and violence. We have made mistakes, we have faced domestic and foreign strife, we have almost come apart in civil war. Let's not pretend this makes us the ultimate authority on democracy-building. There are a number of things that are great about this country, and I wouldn't want to be a citizen anywhere else, but we're not perfect either. We certainly don't get to say that our way is the only way.
Self-determination ought to be a right for any human on this planet. Lewis and his like-minded ilk can sit down and shut up. Their brand of orientalism has controlled the narrative long enough. If the people of Egypt and Libya and Yemen and Bahrain can overthrow dictators (often ones we imposed or propped up anyway), if they can give their lives and their safety for the hope of a freer tomorrow, we can all take a moment and remind ourselves that democracy is not our privilege to bestow only upon those we deem worthy.
"We've done well for ourselves since 1776, but our Democracy is yet imperfect. Our nation came from genocide and slavery, from oppression and violence. We have made mistakes, we have faced domestic and foreign strife, we have almost come apart in civil war. Let's not pretend this makes us the ultimate authority on democracy-building."
ReplyDeleteBut actually, isn't that exactly what makes us the ultimate authority on democracy building? We're not the perfect democracy, true, but we've built one better, and through more, than anyone else. The problem comes when we fail to take into account all that we've learned, and assume that because we're where we are today, others can be as well, without all the hard work we put in.
But who are we to judge "all the hard work" others have put in? Particularly when we've worked for decades to keep them from Democracy even as we proclaim ourselves authorities on it. My problem with Lewis is that he claims Arabs and Arab states aren't ready for democracy as though there is some test one must past to prove readiness, that people must prove themselves worthy of Democracy. It is a challenging system it does require work and education and responsibility but no one is in a position to deny it to a country with some paternalistic BS about knowing what's best. There is nothing about the people of Egypt that make them any less worthy of Democracy than we are and if Tahrir Square didn't demonstrate that I don't know what else we can possibly expect as far as proof.
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