I have certain concerns about moving to Kuwait. If you've been following my blogs, this would not be news to you. The thing is, recently I have had new concerns come to light... and they are ones of a personal nature rather than external.
The main one I would have to say is my faith.
A practicing Muslim is something I never was. Having been born in Australia, and spending a big part of my life in the West, aside from 10 yrs in Morocco, I grew up with huge misconceptions of my faith, and very little understanding of it. I thought I knew it, but the truth is, I had a Western view of my faith, and a very critical one at that... who could blame me for not wanting to practice something I knew little of, and what little I knew was completely off the charts?
It was not until about a year ago that I had somehow gravitated towards it. 9-11 came and went, and I listened to and watched the undercurrent stories of the FBI conducting sweeping raids and mass arrests of (innocent) Arab-Muslims, then having them deported to 'Gitmo with no due process, only to be tortured for crimes not committed. The wars being waged on Muslims was clearly evident... Afghanistan, Iraq.. more to follow. The anti-Islamic/anti-non-white sentiment growing in the US could not be ignored or avoided. Something in me was jolted into the reality of what was going on around me, as well as within myself.
During a demonstration march, I had gotten into a discussion with some white Muslim converts about women's rights in Islam, and I, thinking myself so knowledgable, started spewing my ignorance forth in argument, until I was told that a lot of what I said was not Quranically-based. I stopped short of further argument, because I was lucid enough to know that indeed, I was not as Islamically read as they were, and truly deep down did not know my religion as much as I ought to... I wanted to know more, so that I could argue my cases better, and possibly show some of them that there are some inhumane things about Islam... so I started studying, and reading, and discussing, and debating, and anything else about Islam.
The Quran became one of the books in the top 10 best seller's list in the US, after 9-11. Americans had a need to understand Islam and its followers, and so did I.
I met a Bolivian-American filmmaker while living in Los Angeles who was a convert herself. We became steadfast friends, and through her I had gained a clearer understanding of Islam. She herself had acquired a Masters in Islamic Jurisprudence and was able to explain much of the laws surrounding Islam, and the reasoning behind them. I also befriended a group of women who were Muslim hippies. All of them converts. Through them I shared my love of environmental causes, and exchanged a great deal with them.
I was discovering that all the issues I had passion for had a platform in Islam. My love of solidarity for the opressed and justice was present in Islam, my love of the environment, kindness to animals and healthy living was present in Islam, my natural tendency to go against the grain of popular thinking was present in Islam, my love of art was present in Islam through a group Muslim Artists I had joined (by way of my Bolivian friend)... I had found myself.
This is a rough description of how I came into it.
Going to back to why I am concerned... lately I have come across some individuals (who I know cannot represent the whole of Kuwait), whose disdain for Islam has been expressed. It is not so much them I am worried over, but the environment they live in which has installed this disdain within them.
This environment is somehow alien to me as a Muslim, because I feel that they (Muslims in Arab countries) have a somewhat off-key approach towards Islam, and are extremely dogmatic. I have spent 2 yrs in Kuwait, and I remember feeling that there always seemed to be some kind of Islamic guilt imposed on people. Also, in comparison to American Muslims, Muslims living in Arab countries seem more jaded towards Islam, and do not share the enthusiasm of having it that myself and many American Muslims share. Nor is the spirituality the same... I find American Muslims more in touch with it, open to sharing, are guilt-free, are more patient and understanding towards others.
I am blessed to have come into Islam in the US. I have gotten to meet Muslims from every walk of life while here. Asian Muslims, Caucasian Muslims, Latino Muslims, African-American Muslims, Europeans, Russian, and of course Arab:-)
Non-judgemental, and open, and accepting, and kind people.
I hope to bring a little piece of that with me when I move to Kuwait, I hope there are others there who share my mentality.
