WASHINGTON — I am sorry.
Its time you heard that from an ordinary American, not a senior official or spokesperson who has, let’s face it, next to no credibility. I’m certainly not perfect, but I never promised a “road map” and then failed to deliver; I never called myself an “honest broker” and then sold out the Palestinians; I never said I was listening when you pleaded with me to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and then told you the answer to your problems was removing Saddam Hussein; I never let my close friends and associates spread lies about you in the press, leading Americans to believe that you are the enemy. In fact, I was never stupid enough to have such friends in the first place. And I never used fear as the centerpiece of a campaign for re-election.
I am not an Arab-American, despite the last name. I am just one of tens of millions of non-Arab, non-Muslim Americans who felt shame and revulsion at the acts of humiliation, abuse and torture inflicted by some of our troops on Iraqis and Afghanis in their custody. I am weary of the deceit that led my country into war. I no longer know if we are fighting “terrorists” or “insurgents” or both. I worry that my country has lost its moral footing, that our proud revolutionary past is forgotten as we preach democracy and crush opposition. Worse still, the video catalog of brutality brings us new images daily, excruciating scenes of violence, depravity and even murder. The true extent of the crimes committed against the peoples we are occupying as well as all those held in Guantanamo Bay have yet to be revealed. So far, according to US military reports, the cause of death of 24 prisoners is under investigation, and four — two in Iraq, two in Afghanistan — are already labeled “homocides.”
I am firmly opposed to those in my country and in yours who scoff at the idea that American acts of torture could in any way compare with Saddam’s. There is no sliding scale of inhumanity. Dictators rationalize injustice, not democrats. This is, in part, what distinguishes one from the other. When those very people shouting loudly about democracy and human rights abuse both in the name of “national security”, “counterterrorism”, and “intelligence gathering” then they are no better than the individuals and institutions they replaced. The State Department was right to suspend the release of the annual human rights reports. Sadly, if such a report were compiled on American domestic and international actions, it would undoubtedly bear a striking resemblance to Israel’s. Not the carefully sanitized report that is the end result of a laborious US government vetting process but one that more closely resembles the language found in B’tselem, the Israeli human rights group’s reports or International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) statements.
Please join me in applauding the actions of these groups. The individuals behind these organizations stake their reputations and often their lives on the struggle to illuminate the dark world of state-sanctioned brutality and inhumanity. In exposing acts of torture, abuse and depravity they give a precious commodity to those most in need of it: Hope. They also lend their voice to those who have don’t have one.
But as you applaud, think of all the places in the region where human rights groups or activists are denied entry. It’s a long list. In fact, many of the same senior Arab officials who currently champion the work of the ICRC, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch in exposing the crimes of American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have opposed allowing these groups into sites in their own countries. The same prisoner “shell game” that occurred in Abu Ghraib, where names were not recorded and prisoners were hidden from the Red Cross, goes on in countries across the region, as well as elsewhere in the world.
Even more appalling is the fact that the Bush administration has so badly tarnished core democratic principles that I feel rather hypocritical pointing out excesses in the region at a time when we have committed our own, both at home and abroad.
I am, however, still very proud to be an American. I am proud of my country’s democracy. I am proud that I can speak freely and oppose the Bush administration without fear of losing more than a dinner invitation to Dick Cheney’s house.
Your faith in us should also persevere. I worry that the actions of some has tainted your perspective of all Americans. If I could and did say on Sept. 12, 2001 that our enemy was not “Saudis” or “Arabs” or “Muslims”, but a few committed extremists had hijacked both the Palestinian cause and Islam to suit their own purposes, then I can ask you to show the same consideration for my people, my country and my religion.
Please do be critical of us. You can see clearly our transgressions, sins and weaknesses because we invite you to do so. Our style of democracy is a bit like political voyeurism. Public hearings offer up officials who are held responsible and accountable for their actions, and the actions of subordinates. We even invite outsiders to watch us air our dirty laundry. You could watch Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld wither during more than three hours of Congressional testimony live on Al-Arabiya and Al-Jazeera. He faced off against Congress just two days after CBS’ “60 Minutes” first broke the story. There is much more to come. Have you ever seen such a spectacle in your country?
Undoubtedly, conspiracy theorists are already conjuring up various wicked and diabolical plots that the Pentagon will use to distract the US and the rest of the world from the grim specter of American abuses. But even if they are scheming, I can count on “whistle-blowers” to foil their plans. In fact, I can promise you that there will always be brave Americans willing to protect our democracy and our freedoms by exposing those who would endanger both.
In the Vietnam War it was Daniel Ellsburg. an ex-Marine and Pentagon analyst who in 1971 leaked the “Pentagon Papers” which made the American public, already divided on the Vietnam War, even more disillusioned.
Finally, there is Army Specialist Joseph Darby, the 24-year-old who, after seeing the pictures taken by members of his own 372 nd Military Policy Company, reported their actions to his commanding officer. It takes guts to turn in your own unit, especially in the midst of a violent conflict. But Darby did, slipping an unsigned note under his commanding officer’s door that revealed the nature and extent of the Abu Ghraib abuse.
As I write this, Rumsfeld is in Iraq for another surprise visit. Ironically, he may become the best friend the Geneva Conventions has ever had. According to media sources, Pentagon lawyers have advised him not to release any more of the photos due to Geneva strictures against “presenting images of prisoners that could be construed as degrading.” You might be tempted to scream, “cover-up”. But then, remember what I promised you. — Maggie Mitchell Salem is a public affairs and media consultant in Washington D.C. ([email protected])
