By Chad Dally

Hundreds of people who attended a teach-in at MSU Sept. 20 were urged to consider all possible ways to resolve differences with anti-American forces in the wake of the terrorism attack.

"It is important that we open our minds to alternative perspectives of the truth, and the right way to solve this conflict," said June Thomas, MSU Urban and Regional Planning, the event’s facilitator.

A panel organized by Citizens for a Peaceful Response sought to dispel myths about Arab-Americans and the relation of Islam to the attacks, as well as share different perspectives on the correct path for the United States to follow with regard to retaliation against those responsible for the attacks.

Panelists first spoke about the tremendous effect that the media has on the way Americans view Arab nations, the Islamic religion and the mentality of Arab-Americans. There are many misconceptions about Arabic people and their religions. For example, a fact sheet passed out at the teach-in said that Arabs make up 15 percent of the total number of Muslims worldwide. Also, almost 50 percent of Arab-Americans are Christian. So if the perceptions of Arabic culture, many of which are false, can be dealt with honestly, then it may have some positive affect on the views shared by people in other countries about the United States.

Rose Hassoun, an assistant adjunct professor of anthropology at MSU, who is also Arab-American, spoke about the problems of incomplete media coverage in the United States. "It’s difficult to get correct information because so many know so little, both about this situation, and about Arabs and Arab-Americans in general. The ‘experts,’ because of their frequent misinformation, do not comfort Arab-Americans. This affects the American view of those who trust those same experts," she said. Hassoun also called on the audience to recognize the diversity of Arabic people. "There’s a danger of something we haven’t seen since World War II, and that’s a term called ‘Orientalism,’ which is the lumping of people together and assuming they all share the same beliefs," she said.

The teach-in featured representatives of the Islamic faith who hoped to shed light on the truth about their religion. "The term ‘Islamic terrorism’ does not exist," said Mahmoud Mousa, president of the Islamic Center of East Lansing, 920 S. Harrison. "A true Muslim would never have the courage to hurt other people, and has equal respect for all people and religions." Mousa also said that killing people out of hatred only creates more hatred, and that it is time to look beyond violent response and seek alternative solutions to these problems that recur all over the world.

David Knaggs, a specialist in the Social Work department at MSU, reiterated Mousa’s feeling that the United States needs to break away from violent response to attacks on our country. In a piece of literature handed out at the teach-in, he said: "If our only substantive approach is to attack our perceived enemies the result will, as it always has, eventually make us victims of our own acts. We will continue to be victims of history, our future forever dependent on our past."

Other members of the panel agreed that the United States may be rushing into a military response, and felt that it would be beneficial to at least explore other non-violent options. Peter Daugherty of the Michigan Peace Team spoke about the importance of creative solutions to the violence that we inflict upon other countries, and how it is reciprocated on us. "We need to adhere to our true democracy and establish an open dialogue not only with other countries, but with our own citizens to find solutions to the problems that we face—problems that recur despite our mentality that war will solve them. It is important that we act from vision, not from fear," he said.