The Objectivist Center Holds Forum on Islam in America

On November 13, 2003, The Objectivist Center held a policy forum at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., entitled "Islam in America and American Value: Are They Compatible?" Moderator Edward Hudgins, TOC's Washington director, observed that immigrants have come to America from countries with many different cultures and religions and that most, in the end, have adopted the value of toleration and have contributed to America's pluralistic society through the pursuit of their own prosperity. But Muslim immigrants and those from Middle East countries are under suspicion because the political disease of radical Islam originates from that region and spreads terror in the name of Islam.

David Kelley, the center's executive director, observed that America's fundamental values arose from the Enlightenment's culture, which prized reason, individualism, human achievement, and freedom. A consequence of these values, separation of church and state, means that government does not take sides in religious matters and that every individual is free to practice the religion of his choice or not to practice one at all. This open culture explains why the children and grandchildren of immigrants often change their religion and intermarry with individual from other groups.

But toleration does not mean acceptance, Kelley said. Every creed and idea is subject to discussion, examination, and even ridicule in the marketplace of ideas. He also stressed the moral distinction between sympathy that immigrants may feel for the plight of ethnic or religious kin overseas and support for terrorist groups like al-Qaeda, Hamas, or Hezbollah.

Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad of the Minaret for Freedom Institute maintained that Islam supports free exchange, private property, and tolerance. He also regretted that in past centuries Islam has substituted learning by rote for critical thinking and he called for a return to the tradition of reason. Stephen Schwartz, author of The Two Faces of Islam, regretted the influence of the radical Wahhabi Muslims, backed by Saudi Arabia, in the American community. Khaled Saffuri, president of the Islamic Free Market Institute, noted the diversity of the Arab and Islamic community in America—only 15 percent of Arab-Americans are Muslims, he said. He acknowledged legitimate security concerns about some immigrants while warning of civil liberty abuses. During the question period Kelley pointed out that freedom cannot be defended based on interpretations of millennia-old religious texts but only on the basis of reason.