Yeah...I'd like to be removed from the list as well...thank you.
Faiza Shirazi <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >can someone please remove me from this list? i've >tried myself but it has not worked. > >--- "Khelan S. B." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >--------------------------------- > >Dear All: > >I enjoyed that last article from HT. �It seems like we >have developed quite an affinity for R. Thapar. >Perhaps we could invite her to speak one evening for >us in Chicago? �Of course I have a few comments to >share: > >"Both Hindu and Muslim religious nationalisms emerged >in the early 20th >century and became a counterpart to anti-colonial >nationalism. Where the >latter was inclusive and tried to bring together the >segments of Indian >society, the former divided Indian society into a >supposedly >irreconcilable dichotomy - Hindu and Muslim, and the >one excluded the other." > >First of all, in India's case there is no such thing >as 'religious nationalism.' �We all recognize, >understand, and support the fact that India came into >existence as a secular democracy. �The nationalism was >one of a Free India capable of following the course of >her own destiny, not the one written by the Queen of >England. �The freedom fighters of Hindu-origin >(Gandhiji, Nehru, Patel, et al) never promoted the >idea of a Hindu-only India. �On the other hand, Jinnah >and the Muslim League espoused the idea of an Islamic >State for Muslims only (how many Hindus live in >Pakistan or Bangladesh versus the hundreds of millions >of Muslims freely practicing their faith in India). >Its only fair to note that Jinnah did not always feel >that way. �Initially he was fully supportive of a >single, free, secular India. �Why he changed his mind >at the eleventh hour I'll leave you to ponder. > >"Sanskrit is projected not only as unique but >ancestral to all Indo-European languages; thus Aryan >culture went out from India. Other historians have >argued that such theories are unsupported by the >evidence from archaeology and linguistics..." > >There are many holes here. �However lets just touch >upon a few blatant ones, shall we? �Is so-called Aryan >culture analogous to Sanskrit? �What is Aryan culture >anyways? �Terms such as Vedic, Aryan, Sanatan Dharma, >Hindu, are just buzzwords for most today. �I agree >that it seems highly unlikely (although not >impossible) given the evidence today that Sanskrit >came out of present-day India. �However, the India we >see on the trusty Rand-McNally is not the India of >yore. �Historically, the borders of a single "India" >are blurred. �Her wings are said to have spanned from >the Iranian mouintains well past present-day Mayanmar. > Indeed the world's largest "Hindu" temple (I say >Hindu for lack of a more precise term) is Ankor Wat, >in Cambodia. �Can we say Aryans lived in the Khmer in >the 12th Century? �Did they speak Sanskrit? �R. Thapar >claims that the forces of Hindutva (yet another term >that needs a good definition) !are twisting history >for their own evil ends. �Sadly, some individuals are >indeed bending history for political gain. �In fact >this is not a new phenomenon (refrence the early >Church, Communist Russia and China, Southern Baptists, >and many, many others). �However when the history is >not yet clear, and the research is still ongoing, how >can anyone claim the one, true history? �What the >reformers are doing in India is not a rewriting of >history, but a reinterpretation along traditional >lines. �This textbook revision is a welcome change, >because it gives students in India a fresh perspective >on stagnant topics. > >Please do not mistake pride and resurgence as >exclusion and hate. > >Lastly, I'd like to comment on the overall tone of >these SAPAC emails. �According to the SAPAC website: >http://www.sapacchicago.org/ the Organization's >mission statement is as follows: > >SAPAC Mission Statement > >As South Asians of the Diaspora we condemn the way in >which racism, sexism, classism, homophobia, and other >forms of oppression manifest themselves in the United >States and abroad. At this time we are specifically >concerned about: > >1) U.S. military interventions abroad > >2) The government exploitation and condonement of >communal violence and violence against women in South >Asia > >3) Economic colonialism and its role in increasing >economic inequalities, labor and human rights >violations, environmental degradation, and the >systematic disempowerment of women globally > >4) The obstruction of civil liberties through racial >profiling, illegal detainment, denial of due process, >and surveillance of dissenting groups in the U.S., >escalating in the current political atmosphere > >Our goal is to use open artistic expression, public >education, media outreach, community dialogues and >other tools to create a forum for the discussion of >these and other issues both within the South Asian >community and between ourselves and others. > >It seems that a disproportionate amount of energy goes >into #2. �What about the other Missions? �As >Asian-Americans, which of these are more relevant, >more pertinent to us? �Its important to hear more than >just what S. Azmi's PR schedule is for the next week, >what M. Sarabai had for breakfast, or what F.U.D. R. >Thapar is spewing again. �How about discussions on the >foreign policy of Kerry or Edwards? �These two >individuals may have a far greater impact on our lives >than Romila ever will. > >-Khelan Bhatt > > > > >--------------------------------- > Say �good-bye� to spam, viruses and pop-ups with MSN >Premium -- free trial offer! >------------------------------------------------visit >http://www.geocities.com/sapacchicagoemail >[EMAIL PROTECTED] with"unsubscribe sapac" >in msg body to unsubscribe > > >__________________________________ >Do you Yahoo!? >Get better spam protection with Yahoo! Mail. >http://antispam.yahoo.com/tools >------------------------------------------------ >visit http://www.geocities.com/sapacchicago >email [EMAIL PROTECTED] with >"unsubscribe sapac" in msg body to unsubscribe > > ------------------------------------------------ visit http://www.geocities.com/sapacchicago email [EMAIL PROTECTED] with "unsubscribe sapac" in msg body to unsubscribe
