Dr. Showkat Ali, President, BA for Obama

Rashidul Bari, Secretary, BA for Obama  

"Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least"                                                                                    ~Goethe                                                                                                          

                  LETTER TO BA FOR OBAMA

Dear BA for Obama:

Our journey has begun in October 2007 when we found Bengali American for Obama. We spent months in a campaign making sure that every Bengali American had a chance to vote. On November 04, we too became part of the history by helping to put Barack Obama in the White House.

We have campaigned and voted for Obama because we know that his leadership will be abides by the ideology of Bengali poet Nazrul, " Come Brother Hindu, come Muslim, come Buddhist, come Jewish and Christian--let us transcend all barriers, let us foresake forever all smallness, all lies, all selfishness and let us call brothers as brothers. We shall quarrel no more".

When I first met Obama in a New York Hilton hotel, I saw an image of Gandhi inside him.  Today, on Capitol Hill, I heard the very message of Nazrul in his inaugural speech, "We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus--and nonbelievers...we are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this earth."  When I arrived home from Washington D.C., I saw tears fall from Baba's eyes.  "I have never thought white folks would let a black man become the president of the United States",

Like BA for Obama, thousands of grassroots organizations and millions of Americans have campaigned tirelessly to put Barack Obama in the White House.  Now, once again, we have to work tirelessly to put poverty in the museum and terrorists in the dustbin of  history.

May God bless you and bless the 44th President of the United States.

                                                                                       Sincerely

                                                                                        Secretary

                                                                                       BA for Obama

Today, 20th January 2009, is a historic day. On January 20th, 2009, Barack H. Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States of America - the first African-American ever to hold the office of U.S. Commander-in-Chief. The event was witnessed by well over one million attendees in chilly Washington D.C., including Dr. Showkat Ali, President of BA for Obama & Rashidul Bari, the Secretary.

                        Welcome to  56th  Inauguration

The Capital Hill is illuminated in the early morning hours before the inauguration of Barack H. Obama, the 44th President of the United States.

Rashidul Bari is seen in front of Capitol Hill. The BA for Obama President  & Secretary have arrived there very early in the morning  

President elect Obama takes the oath of the office   

At least two million people were behind Rashidul Bari. (Although they were separated by lake, they look like they could sprint from one end of Pennsylvania Avenue to the other. Optimism generates that kind of energy.)

Rashidul Bari just walked into the VIP area and walk down to the reserve seats 

Dr. Showkat Ali, BA for Obama President, unleashing his emotion upon witnessing history, "I feel like I am a thousand feet off the ground—flying like a skylark” he said

It is estimated that about Three million people  attended the Inauguration Ceremony, "I have never seen 3 million people at one time in my life (you can see them behind) although I am from Bangladesh" Bari said

  Obama is taking oath, the history has made.

 Rashidul Bari is watching the man who will  make a peaceful world, while rebuilding a more hopeful America, "I saw a black man, a tall, proud black man, stand before Chief Justice Robert, & repeat every word he said, words taht only white men had ever said before" said Bari

       Saying farewell to 43rd, " I thank President Bush for his service to our nation..." said 44th

Will Bush eventually receive a Truman-like vindication? 

 

It was a happy ending. A happy ending usually polish up blunders and eventually give vindication.  All well that ends well” writes Shakespeare in First Folio. We wish the 43rd well.

Inauguration Gala. President Obama with First Lady Michelle Obama

Inauguration Gala. Vice President Biden & Mrs. Biden   

 Obama can make a peaceful world, while rebuilding a more hopeful America.  Obama's mentor, 16th President Abraham Lincoln, once called on Americans who were divided to stand together, where common hopes and common dreams still lived, in order to create a better world. Some 150 years later, Obama placed his hand, under oath on the same Holy-book that Lincoln used in 1861, called to Americans, "...Startingtoday, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America..." I was right in front of Obama and felt he was saying, "You are going to fix this world and I am going to be your leader.

                     Obama Will Create a More Perfect World

                                                             Rashidul Bari

       In October of 2007, Bengali Americans formed an organization call BA for Obama, on behalf of the then junior senator of Illinois.  However, when I decided to serve as a secretary of this organization, many of my family members opposed my decision.  "Make sure you know what you are getting yourself into." said my father (Baba).  I accepted the post despite his disagreement. His attitude toward Obama dramatically changed on November 4^th, when Obama won the election. As we watched television, I saw tears fall from Baba's eyes.  "I have never thought white folks would let a black man become the president of the United States", he cried out loud. He even threw a party, spending the night eating, drinking, singing, and dancing. I, on the other hand, remained quiet.

       Two months later, I received an invitation letter from then President-elect Obama to attend the inauguration and post inauguration gala on Capitol Hill. Baba was thrilled upon reading what Obama had written on the letter, attached to the invitation card. He rose from his chair at the opposite side of the table, reached toward me and said "...happy for you son...I feel like I am a thousand feet off the ground—flying like a skylark”.  Once again, I remained quiet. 

         "What has happened? Are you alright?" Baba asked. "Maybe I haven't been quite clear, Baba”, I said gently.  "I have not campaigned for Obama for my personal interest, nor did I campaign for him because his father was Muslim or he is black. I campaigned for him in a hope that he will dedicate himself to creating a more perfect world by abolishing terrorism and eradicating poverty.” Baba looked puzzled, as did the rest of my family. I realized Baba had been too busy with his own life for him to realize how much half of the world's population suffers.

        Any conscious citizen of the world who takes a closer look at today's international relations must be struck by the fact that it has two main ideologies: good and bad.  The good treat the world the way a mother treats her child and the bad behave the way Hitler behaved with the Jews.  While the good sing, "A thing of beauty and equality is a joy forever.”, the bad believe in hegemony, and only hegemony, as a joy forever. America is not only the richest nation, but also consumes most of the wealth of the earth, "...we enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect" said Obama during his inauguration speech. But what have we done since 2001? During the past eight years, every time a foreign nation has looked to America as a leader, we have failed to respond rationally. Our government forgot the responsibility of privilege. As a result, America has become a symbol of evil to the rest of the world, especially the Muslim World.

        This question goes to the root of the problem, September 11th, 2001.  That was the day followers of Osama bin Laden hijacked airplanes, hoping they could destroy the United States by hitting a few buildings. They killed 5000 innocent people, including women and children. However, the Bush administration failed to respond to this terror attack effectively because they treated bin Laden as a Muslim terrorist.

        Laden is very ambitious. He knows there are more than 1.3 billion Muslims (most of whom are illiterate) comprising one quarter of the total population of the earth.  He has been trying to become a global leader for a long time, but could not quite make it, despite his  help defeating the USSR in Afghanistan on behalf of the United States.  So, he set a new goal by creating Al-Qaeda, an ambitious, ruthless, and technically proficient organization filled with religious zealots; its suicide recruits are convinced they are waging a holy war. These recruits are mostly poor and illiterate. It is worth noting that bin Laden is very popular among these uneducated youths, who think Allah speaks through bin Laden! This is why they do not hesitate to carry bombs on their bodies, killing women and children. They call it Jihad! They think they shall destroy America and go to heaven. They think the happiest moment for God was the morning of September 11^th, believing that on the afternoon of September 11^th, God was dancing with an ocean of joy because the Twin Towers came down under the leadership of ‘bin Laden the Jihadist’. Bin Laden knows how to use religion to convince these illiterate and poor Muslim youths, but the Bush administration did not know how to treat terrorists who use religion as a tool.

          Frankly, bin Laden is not a Muslim terrorist, like Billy Wright or Baruch KappelGoldstein; he is a terrorist who has no affiliation with the Islamic right.  There are simply no Muslim terrorists, no Christian terrorists, no Jewish terrorists or Hindu terrorists. There are united terrorists, under the leadership of bin Laden, who use religion as a cover. Hence, we should not accuse Islam, just as we do not accuse Christianity for the terrorist acts of the Ku Klux Klan, Army of God, Aryan Nations (George Habash, Mark David Uhl, August Kreis, Clifford Peeples, or Billy Wright), or Judaism for the terrorist acts of Baruch Kappel Goldstein or Hinduismfor destroying the 1600 century BabriMosque.  However, Bush accused Islam for terrorists like bin Laden. Hence, his war on terror has become the war on Islam. Bush simply failed to understand that terrorists use religion (to quote Prophet Muhammad, the ink of scholar is more sacred than the blood of martyr.”) as a way to accomplish their own agenda. This is why developing effective responses to terrorism has been difficult and why America appears to be an evil empire to the Muslim world. We have campaigned for Obama to restore the American image. In his inaugural address, Obama showed us the hope we have desired for years.  In approximately 18 minutes, he criticized Bush’s false choices and failed policies. “On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.  On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas that for far too long have strangled our politics." I didn't even mind the cold wind that slapped me in the face and feet and numbed my fingers, because Obama uttered those desired words right in front of me on the Capitol Hill.

         Obama believes that abolishing terrorism requires more than a preemptive war. He would argue that America is losing the war on terror mainly because we are alone. In today’s world, a threat to one is a threat to all.  In today's world, all religions are vulnerable to terrorists like bin Laden, Billy Wright and Baruch Goldstein.  If we allow people such as bin Laden to use Islam for a reason, we open the door for other potential terrorists to use their respective religion to execute their own agenda. We have to separate terrorism from religion, because it belongs to none. We have campaigned for Obama because we know that  his leadership will abide by the ideology of Bengali poet Nazrul, "Come Brother Hindu, come Muslim, come Buddhist, come Jewish and Christian--let us transcend all barriers, let us foresake forever all smallness, all lies, all selfishness and let us call brothers as brothers. We shall quarrel no more."  Today, during his inaugural address, Obama demonstrated that if there is a heaven somewhere, it needs to be brought down by our efforts to where we are.  "We are friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity.”  With Mr. Bush looking on, he told the Muslim world that he wants “…a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect.”

         Bush may react by criticizing Obama as too idealistic and say that his ideology has no connection with the real world because Muslims are simply terrorists.   What kind of world do we live in?  Bush would say we are living in a very dangerous world. In his eyes, Islamic fanatics are the threat to peace.  Jihadists are funded and supported by our enemy countries.  We must get them, and we must kill them before they hit us.  However, Obama’s sense of the world is more optimistic.  The danger is real but he would say terrorists represent no religions, no nationality.  Obama will blame bin Laden, al-Qaeda and its affiliated groups, rather than Islam or Muslim countries.  America's role, to Obama, is to restore its image, which was seriously hurt by the Bush administration.  Unlike Bush, Obama will stay calm, because in overreacting to danger, we often cause new problems.  To label Islam as a fanatical religion is to misguide the real threat. I have campaigned for Obama in the hope that his policy will abide by the principles of Gandhi, "Yes, I am a Hindu, but I am also a Muslim, a Christian, a Jewish and a Buddhist." 

        In his autobiography My Experiment with Truth, Gandhi writes “An eye for an eye only makes the whole world blind.”  We have learned from Gandhi that without eradicating poverty and winning the hearts and minds of terrorists, we really cannot win the war on terror.  We must address the basic issue of terrorism and solve it in a human way, addressing issues and solving them one by one, piece by piece.  Muhammad Yunus said it could be done: “If there’s a frustration among Muslim people for something, either an economic frustration or a political frustration, or some sense of deprivation that we are not being listened to, terrorism will be a good breeding ground for terrorism.” This is why war cannot stop terrorism. It only puts terrorism underground for awhile. It will come back in a more frightening way. Obama understands these factors.  This is why, unlike Bush, instead of trying to conquer it through war, Obama will use diplomacy to solve this problem.  Obama already gave us a signal, by recruiting Hillary Clinton as his Secretary of State, that he is serious about ending terrorism and poverty.

       Secretary Clinton understands the consequences of poverty. Hence, she has become an advocate of the Grameen movement. About ten years ago, she traveled to Bangladesh to meet with Yunus and many of those who participate in Grameen's programs and heard stories of the ways in which these loans have transformed their lives.  In her autobiography, Living History, she writes, "...through micro-credit programs, the world's poorest people are leading their families, their communities and their countries to a better future - a future that Dr. Yunus has been instrumental in creating."  But Yunus cannot create a world without poverty alone, due to income inequality.  Research shows that the richest 1 percent of adults - most of whom live in Europe or the United States - own 40 percent of global assets. By contrast, the bottom 50 percent of the world's adult population own barely 1 percent of the world's wealth. We cannot make a terrorism-free world until we change the lives of this half of the world population, “…an expansion of economic opportunities can decreases terrorism….” writes Secretary Clinton.  I know Obama will dedicate himself to eradicating poverty not only because he appointed Clinton, but also because he is the son of a microcredit pioneer.  His mother, Dr. Stanley Ann Dunham Soetoro, was a white woman from the Midwest who was more comfortable in Indonesia; her most lasting professional legacy was to help build the micro-credit program in Indonesia to reduce poverty.  She worked from 1988 to 1992, before the practice of granting tiny loans to credit-poor entrepreneurs was an established success story.  Thanks to Dr. Soetoro, today Indonesia's microfinance program is number one in the world in terms of savers, with 31 million members.  In an interview, Obama referred to his mother as "The dominant figure in my formative years... The values she taught me continue to be my touchstone when it comes to how I go about the world of politics."

         It is true that the international system is based on anarchy.  It's a self-help system.  There is no “9-1-1” in the international system, meaning there is no one on the other line to respond in the time of crisis.  Ban Ki Moon is too weak to do anything.  Many Republicans thinks that the United States is the “9-1-1”, but I disagree.  The United States only responds when it sees a strategic benefit.  For example, in 1991, Kuwait called “9-1-1”, and the United States responded. However, when Darfur called “9-1-1”, the United States did not help.  America must show its responsibility, regardless of any benefit or lack of benefit.  I campaigned for Obama with the belief that he will respond to everybody, even leaders such as Hugo Shaves, Ahmedenajad, or even Kim Jong Il.  Obama will establish America as an international “9-1-1” and respond to whoever is on the other side of the line, whether it is Israel or Palestine.

         Obama can make a peaceful world, while rebuilding a more hopeful America.  Obama's mentor, 16th President Abraham Lincoln, once called on Americans who were divided to stand together, where common hopes and common dreams still lived, in order to create a better world. Some 150 years later, Obama placed his hand, under oath on the same Holy-book that Lincoln used in 1861, called to Americans, "...Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America..." I was right in front of Obama and felt he was saying, "You are going to fix this world and I am going to be your leader."  He also called to use to help abolish poverty, "To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry..." Now, we all need to help Obama abolish poverty and terrorism, the way our forefathers helped Abraham Lincoln abolish slavery. Some might say abolishing poverty and terrorism just is not possible.  Let’s not forget that fifty years ago, it was unthinkable to many Americans to elect a black president.

         Even in the beginning of 2008, many people were doubtful and raised questions.  “Is it to be thought that people of America, so proud of their color, so jealous of their religion, will give up their all, will surrender both the sword and purse to a black man whose father was not only from Kenya but also a Muslim?", Baba (my father) wondered aloud.  

        However, Obama somehow won the hearts and minds of white people and became the 44th President of the United States, in a landslide victory.   We need another miracle to eliminate terrorism and poverty.  As Warren Burger remarked, “Miracles do not occur at random.”  In fact, every miracle has its provenance, every miracle has been prayed for. Like BA for Obama, thousands of grassroots organizations and millions of Americans have campaigned tirelessly to put Barack Obama in the White House.  Now, once again, we have to work tirelessly to put poverty in the museum and terrorists in the dustbin of  history.

        When I first met Obama in a New York Hilton hotel, I saw an image of Gandhi inside him.  Today, on Capitol Hill, I heard the very message of Nazrul in his inaugural speech, "We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus--and nonbelievers...we are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this earth."  When I arrived home from Washington D.C., Baba embraced me.  "We saw you on television.  I have never been this excited in my life.” He said this as tears came from his eyes.  This time, I was not quiet.  "Baba,” I said, “I believe that the 44th president will be able to create a more perfect world.”

Rashidul Bari, Secretary of BA for Obama, is a biographer of Muhammad Yunus. His website is: http://www.bangladeshiamericanforobama.com/