Obamas Speech at Cairo University - Essay Example

Commentary on Obama's Speech at Cairo As some one who is very interested in the fields of politics and American foreign relations, I was fascinated by your speech, which was very well-written and marvelously presented. After carefully monitoring the Arabic news channels and talk shows that were discussing your speech, I found out that people are really charmed by your speech and your personality. I hear people saying, "We envy the Americans for having such a person to lead them." I am and was always proud to be an American. I am glad I had the opportunity to come to the United States of America and to be part of the greatest nation on earth. Now I am even prouder. I am so proud of my fellow Americans that trusted you and voted for you to be our President and our Commander-in-Chief. The statement "Obama, we love you" was shouted three times while you were giving the speech. You received over thirty rounds of applause and a standing ovation at the end of your speech, a show of appreciation of and acceptance for you and your speech from a large swath of people. Your audience included religious leaders like the grand Imam of al-Azhar and Pope Shenouda III, scholars, politicians, actors, civil organizations, non-governmental leaders, and people that have influence over many people. Also, you had college students and youth in the audience, the people who will lead and shape the future of this region of the world, and they all liked what you were bringing to them. I was not sure that it was possible for us to make those people like and understand us after what they saw from the previous Administration. For eight years, they received continuous messages from Washington that we (the Americans) are against them (the Muslim and Arab world). They received the message that they (the Americans) are against us so there is no way that we can get together and work together against common enemies. The previous Administration acted and used terminologies that made us look like we (the Americans) are in a religious war against the Arab world and against Islam. The previous Administration sent a message that anybody who was not with us in our "Crusade" in the war on terror is against us. We gave the extremists reasons and chances to drag other people in coalitions against us. They used our former President's own words to explain to their followers how and why they are in a "religious war" against America and the West. How do we make these people stop hating us The previous Administration spent so much time thinking about what we should do to stop the majority of Muslims from hating us and hating our nation. They also spent millions and even billions of our money to repair our damaged image on an international scale. These policies were not working because for every reason we gave them to like us, we gave them tons of other gestures and signals that they should not trust us. The previous Administration didn't know that it is very simple how to make these people stop hating us. Just reaching out to them, letting them know that we want to open a new page with them, and telling them that we care about their future and their well-being as fellow citizens of earth would have been enough. President Obama, you told them that you understand that building trust will take time. You told them, "No single speech can eradicate years of mistrust."1 They understood that you are not planning to deceive them. They know you are willing to work with them on building trust. You told them that your speech is just an opening for our new relations. You also made it clear that you are not promising to change all the U.S. policies in Middle East. However, you made it clear that Israel is the biggest American ally in the region, and that the protection of the Jewish state is a constant obligation of the United States. However, the Palestinians have the right to their own stable homeland. The two-state solution is the American vision to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. You approached this subject in the speech with delicateness, not giving the Arab world a feeling that they were the weaker party, yet emphasizing the point that we still are and will remain the greatest and strongest country on the face of the earth. At the same time, though, you were able to connote how we understand and appreciate the great history and the great contributions to the Arab and Muslim world. We Americans as well as the rest of the world appreciate the contributions of the Arabic and the Islamic worlds in the fields of science, mathematics and technology. You also told them that Islam is a part of our nation and that Muslim Americans and Arab Americans play a big role in our country. They knew that we want to gain their trust, and on the other hand they also should work with us. The governments should prove that the religious minorities in the Islamic World will not be oppressed. Women and girls should not be deprived of their rights to education and a better future. You called for democracy, which showed the people of the Islamic and the Arabic worlds that America cares about their basic rights in choosing who leads them, and in having freedom of speech, press and religion. You approached them with a well-crafted speech. I have been hearing schools and politicians comparing your speech at Cairo University to President Anwar Sadat's famous speech at the Israeli Knesset on November 20th, 1977. That speech brought peace between Egypt and Israel after years of wars and conflicts. I believe your speech heralds the beginning of a new era of relations between the U.S. and the Middle East. The quotation from the Holy Qur'an showed that you understand Islam as well as the viewpoint of the Muslim world. Also, the connection between the Holy Bible, the Holy Qur'an and the Talmud in calling mankind to peacemaking was a wise and well-executed move. You enveloped your speech in the context of God's words and showed that God himself is on the side of peace, not war. You, Mr. President, told the Muslim world that Americans are not their enemies, and that the "cycle of suspicion and discord must end."2 Mr. President, when you spoke, they listened; they believed you; and they believed in you. They believed that the American President Obama is totally different from the American President Bush. They felt that they can trust you and trust America. Moreover, they trust that America can be a successful leader of the free world. REFERENCES White House Web Site. Remarks By the President on a New Beginning. Retrieved 7 June 2009. http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Remarks by-the-President-at-Cairo-University-6-04-09/. Read More