116are duty bound to try and minimize it through
careful wording, so thank you.
You are correct that Muslim tribalism and vac-
uous literalism combined lend themselves to a
generally hostile approach to “the other.” This has
been encouraged by many years of Islamist polar-
ization, which in turn was built atop de cades of
leftist hostility toward Ame rica under Arab socialist
(Ba’thist) regimes that po liti cally identifi ed with the
Soviet Union.
A complete overhaul of cultural identity patterns
and a reformed scriptural approach is required.
Identity must start with humanity as a founding
princi ple, and human rights as a basis. “My people”
do not simply include any Muslim, no matter how
barbaric. “My people” are human beings, and then
those who share my multiple cultural references
and human rights values, regardless of ethnicity,
gender, sexuality, and religion. Beyond that, “my
people” are those who simply share the land that I
call my home, my neighbors. The Islamic concept
of ummah, or people, must be reappraised here.
Most Muslims today would view the ummah as
comprising of solely other Muslims. This is where
tribalism can emerge. However, again by taking a
more adaptive look at texts, one can fi nd that the
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