Prime Export: Exceptionalism, Exclusionary “Democracy”

Dr. Saied Reza Ameli’s Democracy in Question; American Exceptionalism, Eurocentrism and Otherisation of Muslim inspired by Supreme Leader’s message to European and American Youth

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ontent of Islamic Revolution Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s two letters one to the young; the other a condolence … particularly Parisians who had suffered terrorist attacks by ‘ISIL’ (or ‘Daesh’) in November of 2015

Highlighting Europe and the United States’ domination-seeking, hegemonic approaches toward others, particularly Muslims, and

Attempting to connect and redefine the  intellectual  aspects  of  the  struggle to  build  relationships  with  the West and with the rest of the world  in  an attempt to prevent more war  and the humiliation and oppression attendant to hostile military actions.

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meli’s final chapter of American Exceptionalism, Eurocentrism and Otherisation of Muslims, one reviewer observed as setting out “different intercultural relations and policies regarding social minorities to help correct current intercultural relations in the Islamic and Western world.”

The reviewer called the work “a major scholarly contribution;

a tour de force

a must read for those interested in building a new and better world; a  refreshed  humanity and a fairer civilization beyond the present destructive exploitation and domination of Western interests and polities.” 

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n July 26, 2018, PressTV’s “New Chapter” spoke with Dr. Saied Reza Ameli noting in the program promo that his book American Exceptionalism, Eurocentrism and Otherisation of Muslims

examines the major myths that have distorted views amongst non-Muslims of the practices and beliefs of the faithful”; and

brings forward suggestions on how followers of different divine religions can peacefully cohabit our planet.”

Saied Reza Ameli a biographical note 

 

Founder of the Faculty of World Studies at the University of Tehran, Dr. Saied Reza Ameli is professor of communications and vice president of Planning and Information technologies at the University of Tehran.

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rofessor Ameli is a prolific researcher and writer whose works in English include 

The British Media and Muslim Representation: The Ideology of Demonisation (2007); Reflections on Palestine, Universality of Liberation Theology: one is Equal to all are Equal to One (2009); A Critical Approach to The United States’ Virtual Colonialism: Internet Domination Policy, Tehran, Islamic World Peace Forum and Faculty of World Studies, University of Tehran (2011); Getting the Message: The Recurrence of Hate Crimes in the UK, London (2011); Bibliographical Discourse Analysis The Western Academic Perspective on Islam, Muslims and Islamic Countries (1949-2009), 4 volume of books, London, IHRC (Islamic Human Rights Commission) (2012); France and the hated society: Muslim Experiences, Saied R. Ameli, Arzu Merali, Ehsan shahghasemi, IHRC (Islamic Human Rights Commission) (2012); Once Upon a Hatred: Anti- Muslim Experiences in the USA, Saied Reza Ameli, Ebrahim Mohseni Ahooei, and Arzu Merali, London, IHRC(Islamic Human Rights Commission) (2013)

He took baccalaureate and graduate credentials at the University of Tehran (BA social sciences); University College of Dublin (MA sociology of communications); Royal Holloway University of London (PhD sociology of communications).

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rofessor Ameli’s “Democracy in question – the persecution of the believers and the imprisonment of faith”

Democracy from the Greek demos and kratos

In another place, Professor Ameli presents critical insight into “democracy” and particularly the Western subterfuge or selective rendering of “democracy” and the consequences of a false agenda

Why the Western agenda of world democratization, he asks, when the West itself was not democratized in the sense of voting rights until well after the mid 20th century (if even now).

“Only at the turn of the 20th century did [Western societies] begin to open the discussion on democracy.” Approaching World War I, only “Finland, Norway, Australia and New Zealand” allowed women the right to vote. Swiss women “did not get the vote until 1974.” Democratic changes or substantive attention began occurring in earnest in the 1970s and 1980s.   

But the meaning of democracy is obscure, selective, or its importance feigned.

False “Betterment of Society” mantra

The “commonly held perception that democratization is providing a better position for society, which [Western] powers want to share from their goodness [emphasis added] with the aim of initiating the betterment of human society globally” is an intentionally false claim.  

“We cannot observe this utilitarianism or international philanthropy anywhere in the world,” Dr. Ameli explains.

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s the motive and objective “democracy,” or something else?

Six hundred million Muslims live democratic countries, he observes; yet Western powers “blame and accuse” them “for not practicing democracy.” Despite political reality, Muslims “are condemned as undemocratic.”

Though he is not a critic of democracy per se, he says “we need to ascertain what is behind this concept of democracy and what consequences [effects] its hidden implications have on the type of democracy that they [Western powers] want to impose upon us.”

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merican style exported democracy or democracy by force he sees as “an ideology” as is Americanism. As manifest in Western thought and practice, “there is no acceptance of the rest of the world”; instead

the rest of the world is deemed meaningless and what is of importance is “American interests alone.

This is part of American exclusivism, which entails rejection of those who are not in the camp of America.”

Modernity in, tradition out; Old out, New in

Americans “have contempt for the past, tradition, and anything old (including old people),” Ameli writes. 

Thus “Islam, its civilization, and its institutions are condemned and rejected on the pretext that any order based on a Divine law revealed fourteen hundred years ago could not possibly be valid and relevant to modern life.”

Saied Reza Ameli summarizes the Western project as “the hidden face of democracy.” There is in the view of many, he says, “a hidden ideology behind American democracy, concealed in a feigned [manufactured, artificial] image.”

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hose who would be wise or even credible on the world stage would do well to hear, to listen, respectfully; to study well (and study war no more); to see the world and themselves honestly and more clearly; to humbly correct a wrong course.

 

Sources

Saied Reza Ameli is professor of Communications and North American Studies, Dean of Faculty of World Studies at the University of Tehran. His writings cover various aspects of Islam, Muslim studies, globalization, global media, the Internet, intercultural and strategic studies.

New Chapter program on PressTV

American Exceptionalism, Eurocentrism and Otherisation of Muslims July 26, 2018 https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/07/26/569313/American-Exceptionalism-Eurocentrism-and-Otherisation-of-Muslims-

Saied Reza Ameli, University of Tehran American Exceptionalism, Eurocentrism and Otherisation of Muslim. November 2017 Amirkabir publisher

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/322526160_American_Exceptionalism_Eurocentrism_and_Otherisation_of_Muslim%27

Saied Reza Ameli. Crescent. Democracy in Question: the persecution of the believers and the imprisonment of faith. Jumada' al-Ula' 01, 1424 https://crescent.icit-digital.org/articles/democracy-in-question-the-persecution-of-the-believers-and-the-imprisonment-of-faith

Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saied_Reza_Ameli

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