Dear Mr. Obama: You lied

I am a Western-educated Muslim who now lives in the Middle East. I am, to put it simply, one of the people who is disaffected by America. In fact, I tend to loathe American policies towards much in the world, including towards Americans. Naturally, American policy towards the Muslim world falls under that same adjective– that was loathe, if you missed it.

I’ll leave all else aside for now and just say this: Barack Obama’s outreach towards Muslims in nothing short of half-assed, hypocritical hogwash.

Consider the following three major points of evidence:

Exhibit A: One month before Obama took office, Israel attacked Gaza and killed 1400 civilians, further strangling and brutalizing an occupied land. Obama never condemned the attack, before or after he took office. This decision remains despite a majority of the world branding Israel’s actions as state sponsored terrorism.

Exhibit B: After taking office, Obama was to make a speech to the Muslim world- a speech that many hoped would heal the wounds that had been deepening since 2001. Obama end up making the speech, but it was a slap to the intelligence of Muslims everywhere. It was not as much about the content as the manner in which it was held. Rather than choosing an appropriate location to reach out to the Muslim world, Obama found it auspicious to speak to the Muslims from Cairo, standing next to the worst dictator in the Muslim world, President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt. It was, in effect, a message to all Muslims that their democratic strides and democracies hold no value; that America will continue to prop up illegal leaders who support its crony actions; and that more progressive Muslim countries like Turkey, Malaysia, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, are not looked upon as a way to the future– instead America intends to continue to support illegal dictators. Thank you for reaching out to us, Mr. Obama.

Exhibit C: Its been 5 days since Israel attacked a peaceful group of humanitarian activist trying to break a 3-year old Gaza blockade. 9 people were killed, including a dual US-Turkish citizen who was shot 5 times from a distance of less than 45cm– FOUR times in the head, and once in the chest. America has not condemned Israel’s actions. If it doesn’t even care about its own Muslim citizens, how will America care for its Muslim allies and neighbors.

These three events are clear evidence that Mr. Obama’s rhetoric of reaching out to the Muslim world is just that, rhetoric. It holds no water when push comes to shove. It is just well-pronounced words strung together in sweet-sounding phrases which in retrospect have stung Muslims even more than the actions of his predecessors. At least Bush and Clinton and Bush Sr. and Reagan never promised the Muslim world that they would make things right, they just went about their way upsetting all notions of normality held dear by Muslims everywhere; but this man, Obama, he had the audacity to look us in the eye not once but again and again, and in the end, he has cowardly walked away from every promise he has made to Muslims everywhere.