While Hubs was in training, I was responsible for entertaining myself, which usually meant shopping, as you will read in a future blog dedicated to shopping in its entirity. But there were a couple days that I was able to attend a cultural presentation given Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding. I cannot say enough good things about this organization. I participated in three activities, a cultural breakfast, lunch and tour of the Jumeirah Mosque.
I had the same presenter for the two meals and he was wonderful. I guess I was expecting something a little more formal and stringent to some type of rules and appropriate behavior, but he did an excellent job of creating a comfortable atmosphere and all but begged us to ask the questions, PC or not. He mostly focused on dress, food/hospitality and the treatment of women and his facts were based in large part on his own experience in the UAE with his own family and were told with a pleasant blend of honesty and humor which made us all a little more comfortable. 
The thing that really hit home throughout the presentations is how we have our ideas about Islam and Muslims that encompass an entire population and can be less than positive to say the least. Certainly, I understand that we have troops risking their lives in what extremist Muslim groups lable a jihad, and it turns my stomach to think of the how women are treated in parts of the world in the name of Islam, but we have to also remember that they are extremist groups. Kind of like how I wouldn't want to be lumped in the same group as women who wear too much mascara and cry on tv, only to be caught stealing money from the organization. Nor would I want anyone to assume that I dress in white robes and burn crosses at night in the name of "Protestant Christian values". To us, as Americans, the association seems ridiculous. We see a variety of groups and co-exist with the exception of an occasional riot or clinic burning. But unfortunately, our views of Islam and Muslim people immediately conjur thoughts of oppression, suicide bombings and women's oppression. 
If you really look at the Five Pilars of Islam, and Q'uran text, Islam is a very peaceful religion. It's turned into a small project of mine to really dig into it more and debunk the stereotypes that we have created and continue to feed. This may be a reoccurring subject in future blogs.
The theme of each presentation seemed to be that people are people. It's such a great thought that instead of being intimidated by the local dress and see it as a threat when women or men cover their head, we should instead see it as a way of creating equality. In worship, they stand shoulder to shoulder, all age, rank and status and just pray. You would never know by position in the mosque or by dress who was a prince and who was beggar on the street corner. It really is the way it should be, right? We live in an age of status and appearance. How refreshing to see it not be a priority.
As far as women's rights are concerned, I was very impressed. Women in the UAE drive, work and are allowed the same luxuries as men. (This is not the case in some Muslim countries, such as Saudi Arabia) And their clothing is steeped in tradition based on the writings in the Q'uran and needs based on climate. It really did make sense. And did you know that when getting married, the dowry is actually given from the husband to the wife? He actually pays his bride and is not allowed to touch it. The man is expected to provide, so whatever his wife makes is hers, he isn't supposed to touch it without her permission.
It was at this point that I asked a question about resources for women if there is domestic violence in the home. I mean, any group can say that they are peaceful and respectful towards women, but there are bad apples everywhere. Our presenter responded by saying that there are no shelters in the area. That the women will call their family, who will in turn protect her from her husband if he is hurting her. He said that he has actually gotten a call from his sister at 3am and made it to her house at 3:05am to tell her husband that he would seriously regret laying a finger on her. After the family is through with the batterer, he is then convicted in court. (Hubs is an adamant supporter of this way of doing things...)
Negative facts are everywhere, you don't need to look far if you want to argue these things. But why waste time? I only talk about this experience to say that we should be aware that the crime is not in the dress. It's not in the prayers. It's not in Ramadan. It's not a pilgrimage to Mecca. The crime should not be every follower of Islam's burden to bear. It is hearbreaking to see the mass chaos and killing at the hands of Islam extremist groups, but it's not the end of the story. The cultural center emphasizes "Open doors. Open minds" and I applaud them for that. Through their efforts, people are better able to understand the good.
At the end of the presentation, I asked our presenter what I could do. Here we had just eaten a delicious meal, been given in some cases a story completely different than the one we had been told previously, we can't just leave it at that. I wanted to know what the center really wanted to accomplish, what they needed. I started with, "Hi, my name is Sarah and I'm from America, but I live in Moscow and I'm here for my husband for two more weeks. What can I do?" He said, "Write." No joke! I didn't tell him I have a blog or I love to write, he said thats what they need. So this is me doing something. Something that they hope everyone who attends these presentations does. Pretty crazy how things work like that.
Cheers to people who spread the good. We could all learn a lesson.
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