However, cultural diplomacy and initiatives such as “Muslim Voices” can open the door to the reality of the Muslim world as a rich space for world-class artistic production. That, in turn, can encourage an interest in addressing the harder political issues with respect and a sense of equity.
For too long, the differences between the US and the Muslim world have been framed not in terms of diversity, but as the foundations of a permanent global conflict. But when people participate in an aesthetic experience that both addresses and transcends a particular culture, perceptions are bound to change.
The US has reached a pivotal moment in its national and global history, with new hopes for intercultural exchange, dialogue and mutual understanding. Obama and US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton say that theirs will be an age of “smart power” that will effectively use all tools of diplomacy at their disposal, including cultural diplomacy.
The US must focus once again on the arts as a meaningful way to promote stronger cultural engagement and, ultimately, to find new channels of communication with the Muslim world.
Doing so will show that relations need not be defined only through political conflict. Rather, there is now an opportunity to define connections between the US and the Muslim world by sharing the richness and complexity of Muslim artistic expressions — as a vital step in finding grounds for mutual respect.
Vishakha Desai is president of the Asia Society; Karen Brooks Hopkins is president of the Brooklyn Academy of Music; and Mustapha Tlili is founder and director of the Center for Dialogues: Islamic World-US-The West at New York University.
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