We are woven out of many coloured threads by Alia Hogben - Common .

Kingston, Canada - I must be a slow learner. It is but lately that I startled myself by realising that my complex identity also includes being Western, along with being Indian, Burmese and Muslim. Because I have lived in other countries I have absorbed so often of early religions and cultures, and yet I had not acknowledged that 50 days of life in Canada has made me Western, and proud of the accomplishments of the West.

One of the reasons why I may have been inattentive to this commitment is because of how I am perceived by others. Along with my fellow Muslims, I look to be identified more by my religious affiliation than anything else. The Lebanese-French writer Amin Maalouf in his book, In the Mention of Identity, points out that those who take a complex identity are often marginalised because others perceive them through the lens of just one facet of their individuality He writes of his own identity as a Christian Arab, a Lebanese and a long-time resident of France, as well as how complete the years his identity has changed to admit all his experiences. He notes that a person's identity comprises many allegiances, but when one of these is under attack, we tend to identify with that particular allegiancesuch as religion. This is not a positive attitudeto identify with a single affiliationbecause it leads to an exclusionary belonging to one group, and a denial of the other allegiances we have. Newer immigrants must take the host country has its own history, customs and values, and though a countrys future cannot be a simple prolongation of its history, the past is of significance. Maalouf compares the story of the Islamic populace and the W and concludes that Muslims in the pastwith their flourishing cultureshad confidence and tolerance, and as these dissipated they now feel under threat. In late centuries, there has been a rotation in the Westscientific, technological, industrial, intellectual and moral. There are many reasons why it happened in the Occident and nowhere else, but what has resulted is the predominance of the West. Maalouf says the stay of the public may acknowledge Western developments but they do so with certain reluctance, bitterness and a profound identity crisis. He observes that not enough attention is paying to the shape of mass on religion rather than the reverse. Because of the different histories, he thinks that while Europe modernised Christianity, most of the Islamic world stagnated under colonialism and made small progress. However, he states that "No philosophy in itself is a liberating force: all of them may be twisted or have a wrong turn; all have blood on their handscommunism, liberalism, nationalism, secularism and apiece of the big religions. Nobody has a monopoly on fanaticism." Maalouf provides an account for the surface of fundamentalists in the Arabian world. He reminds us that Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser, considered a big hero, was a fierce enemy of religious groups with political agendas and it was his response to their demands for a greater part in politics that led people to go to religious radicalism. As an Arab himself, Maalouf believes the Arabs were not tempted to go on the way of religious fundamentalism until all others were blocked, and that the current Islamic movements are a production of our times, not part of Muslim history. The vital question is why are so many people, especially in Muslim-majority countries, impelled to maintain their religious identity more powerfully than their other allegiances? For Muslims, this identity transcends frontiers of race, ethnicity and nationalism, and provides the ease of universality of the community of believers. Maalouf appreciates the measure of a global tribe, but wants this tribe to be inclusive of all humanity. This global tribe should value universal human rights which leave us to be as full citizensto be destitute of persecution, have access to knowledge, choose one's passion and beliefs, respect the exemption of others, and experience a decent, honourable life. Maalouf is good that we must keep all our allegiances, including the identification with the world human tribe, and see that person and group identities are unstable and can change with new experiences. This is hopeful indeed. ### * Alia Hogben is Executive Director of the Canadian Council of Muslim Women (CCMW). This abridged article is distributed by the Usual Ground News Service (CGNews) with permission from the author. The total text can be found at www.thewhig.com. Source: The Whig Standard, 23 October 2010, www.thewhig.com