Love Or Hate America

What does the word “America” mean to you when heard without context? And what, in truth, is the political, cultural, and human relationship between Arabs and America, free from external influences?

Is it war, domination, support for Israel, Western imperialism, scientific advancement, democracy, personal freedom, job opportunities, the Crusades, disbelief, moral decay, Hollywood and pornography, global supremacy, or the events of 9/11? Or is it all of this combined that truly defines America and shapes Arab-American relations?

America is a broad concept. Each person approaches it from the side they either love or fear.

America as the World’s Library

Imagine America as a vast library, the only one in a city. This library holds books on religion, medicine, magic, technology, sexuality, literature, law, crime—everything good and evil. It is the sole source of knowledge for the city. From it, people learn life skills and success strategies, while criminals and wrongdoers also exploit it for darker purposes.

The library is managed by an old, wise man. He built it up to what it is today, with unmatched knowledge and experience. If anyone tried to change how he runs it, he would likely quit, for no one else could do the job as he does.

The library is the world. The librarian is America. We are the city’s people.

So how should we deal with this librarian? We have three choices:

1. Remove him by force, killing or expelling him. This would eliminate the bad, but also the good. The city would suffer greatly. This is one extreme.
2. Fully agree with him and accept everything he does. Good remains, but so does unchecked evil. This is the other extreme.
3. Take thoughtful, practical steps. Promote the good and resist the bad, as much as we can, with wisdom, education, and public awareness. This is the balanced path.

Now let us return from metaphor to reality.

Good and Evil in America

If we set aside certain U.S. political and military decisions that clash with Arab and Islamic causes—such as wars, cultural imperialism, and support for Israel—

And if we put aside the ideas of certain Western thinkers like Fukuyama, with his “end of history” thesis, or Huntington, with his “clash of civilizations” and belief in Anglo-Protestant supremacy—

If we set all this aside, what remains?

A lot remains.

We are left with hundreds of millions of people who neither hate nor love us, and many who know little or nothing about us, our religion, or our cultures.

We are left with hundreds of research centers, universities, and labs that produce medicine, technology, and scientific breakthroughs.

We are left with hundreds of courts and civil institutions that protect people’s rights and promote justice.

We are left with millions of innocent children, exhausted elders, and immigrants searching for safety and livelihood.

We are left with millions of Muslims and Arabs like us, and dozens of mosques, schools, and Islamic organizations.

We are left with much good, peace, and civilization. All of this is also America. All of this strengthens rather than harms Arab-American relations.

So where are all these good people when we view America only as a land of evil worthy of destruction?

Death to America?

Some of us feel disgust or even rage when learning that a person is American or that a company seeking investment is based in the U.S. The image of America as “the enemy” is quickly summoned in our minds, reinforced by Huntington’s theory of civilizational conflict.

This is unfair prejudice. It results from mental conditioning and one-sided narratives.

Such hostility is shallow and emotional. It may serve as propaganda or crowd-pleasing slogans, but it lacks substance.

In truth, deeper feelings lie within us—feelings that often contradict this blind hatred. We have unconscious emotional layers that reveal themselves in our actions.

Our Hidden Admiration for America

Let’s be honest. Many of us have shared stories about the power of an American passport and how its holders are treated with special respect.

We eagerly send our children to U.S. universities and proudly declare: “He graduated from America.”

We carry psychological complexes: the Western superiority complex, the Stockholm syndrome, self-blame, and cultural surrender.

We openly admire America’s leadership in industry, media, art, technology, and democracy—even if we deny it publicly.

What If a Muslim Country Were the Superpower?

Let us ask: What if a Muslim country, like our current ones (not the ideal of the Rightly Guided Caliphate), suddenly became the world’s superpower, just like America?

How would it treat weaker or culturally different nations?

Would its Islamic label alone guarantee peace, love, and justice? Or would it fall short?

Would it invade weaker countries in the name of jihad to gain power and wealth?

Would it conquer its religious or cultural enemies under the banner of Islamic expansion?

In short, how different would it be from the America we now criticize for its global actions?

America’s Clarity

Let us be honest. America has not fought wars under the banner of attacking Islam or Arab identity. It has been clear: it fears radical or political Islam and fights it for various reasons.

America is led by a system that is neither Eastern, Arab, nor Islamic. It is open about what it opposes and does not pretend otherwise.

We cannot blame Americans for fighting us in war or politics. That is expected. The real blame falls on our own leaders who pretend to fight for our causes while secretly doing everything to protect their thrones—even if that costs us our lives.