Before her address last night, Nonie Darwish sat down with the Daily to discuss the role young people can play in mitigating the conflict in the Middle East.
Darwish said she is impressed by American college students' knowledge of the conflict and of the region.
In contrast, throughout the Middle East, she sees "the radicalizing of young people," she said. "You can't escape it."
"It's in mosques, it's in movies, cartoons, newspapers. Terrorists are portrayed as heroic. Many are told that the terrorists are not bad," she said.
Her background, she said, gives her insight into the debate. "Because I came from there, I understand the problems," she said. "On my side, there is a lot of pride involved, and a resistance to admitting a problem on our [the Arab] side."
"America's current problem of terrorism is not a problem of the United States," she said. "If [terrorists] don't like America, they have other ways of expressing their displeasure."
A solution to the problem might be found in education, but "we don't have access to the minds and hearts of the Arabs streets," she said. Rulers, she said, "don't want to let go of control of the Arab mind."
In the meantime, students should "work towards dialogue - it's a two-way street," she said. "The two partners must be ready. Not everybody's ready."
Asked what most can be done for personal development, she urged students to "put yourself in the other person's shoes."
"Most of us fail doing that," she said. "You must look at things from the other person's point of view."
- by Kat Schmidt
