In our political discourse these days, we constantly hear that at the base of the conflict in the Middle East is a clash of civilizations. This theory, espoused by Harvard professors Bernard Lewis and Samuel Huntington in essays and books, claims that at the heart of the conflict is the fundamental difference between eastern and western cultures and values, and of course argues for the superiority of western Civilization.
At the base of the Islamaphobic and anti-Arab speech in the media and at the center of so much of our vitriolic political discourse these days, is the emphasis of our cultural differences, and that we must dominate those inferior cultures lest they somehow take us over. It is they or we and this poisonous analysis can only lead to war and has. It is the Clash of Civilizations mantra and it is everywhere in our political discourse these days.
Our feature presentation this morning offers a different vision. However, it was given 18 years ago in 1998 by the late Columbia Professor Edward Said in a lecture at the University of Massachusetts. He challenges what he calls the Myth of The Clash of Civilizations, and if only we had listened to him and sought to emphasize the commonality of our civilizations as well as the differences.
Edward Said, perhaps the leading Palestinian intellectual of his time, died in 2003, but his prophetic voice offers special relevance in the current political scene, and that is why it is our feature presentation today.
Here is Prof. Edward Said speaking on the Myth of the so-called "Clash of Civilizations."
This Week In Palestine (a weekly part of Truth and Justice Radio) is an award-winning three-quarter-hour segment of news from Palestine and discussion of issues relevant to the Palestinians' struggle for freedom from Israel's brutal military occupation and colonization of their homeland. It speaks from the point of view of Palestinians and those who care about them. It's a regular part of Truth and Justice Radio, aired Sundays 6-10am ET on WZBC 90.3FM, Newton, MA, streaming and archived for two weeks at wzbc.org; TJR's website, truthandjusticeradio.org, has a link to This Week In Palestine archives back thru 1-6-2008; earlier editions are obtainable from radio4all.net or by navigating through our playlists. (At this important time, TJR has been airing a lot of Palestine coverage IN ADDITION to that provided by This Week In Palestine.) We hope you'll write to us at tjr@bluebottle.com if you rebroadcast our work, or have questions or comments.
This Week In Palestine 2-21-2016
Edward Said examines and debunks the "Clash of Civilizations" myth
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