A Regional Arab Identity for Global Emancipation

 

Good day dear listeners, 

I thank you sincerely for coming together today; for following the curiosity within you about the Arab identity.  

All across the world, people are experiencing the extinction of their traditional identity in everyday life. In Germany, for example, a friend of mine complained that German folk songs are being sung and taught less and less. She had real concerns about the survival of her folk songs, which are legitimate concerns. More and more children and adolescents, even adults, no longer know their traditional roots. Let us take ourselves as an example. Can anyone tell me who the Arabs are? 

Do such images come to your head, as they pop up to me? The Arab identity has become outdated and blurred. Like a painting whose colors have faded. That is why designing a magnificent art piece with our own hands is our responsibility as the youth generation. The masterpiece that we want to call The Arab identity is to spring from the rich history of the Middle East to form a strong foundation. We are very fortunate to find in the Arab world a wealth of important people and knowledge that have shaped our world today. However, due to the loss of identity, these people were driven into the dark and almost forgotten. We, the Arab youth of today, want to lovingly explore our identity, think further and reshape it. Only we, today, can further develop the Arab identity to keep up with the modern world.

The formation of a formative Arab identity is important. The formation of a formative Arab identity is important because we are constantly exposed to other cultures and ideas. As a product, for which is advertised, a consumer-oriented global trend culture has emerged, to which no one can belong, but to which everyone wants to belong. This alienation, which is encouraged by media and communication networks, can no longer be controlled. 

But the solidarity for our regional identity is within reach. When you know where you come from and who you are, you are a stable person who is not so easily torn by fanatical fictions. You are independent and responsible. You are confident in yourself and the world. Not a follower who is influenced by strangers, dependent on alien currents. 

In the same way, a region that can be stand out and stand alone outside the network of social sameness is recognized as strong. The citizens there feel safe and they willingly work on the prosperity of their country and their region. These citizens are happier with their lives.

By contrast, a country is torn, and a person is tormented, whose identity is lost. This can be attributed to unsuccessful methods of dealing with globalization, as well as corruption and war. In this case, one is extremely dependent on external powers, which above all want to stock up their own profits. This is where politics comes in. No, let me rephrase this: And here's politics. Quite often, it is the case that dependent countries also benefit when the powerful pursue their goals. But as a parasite, one cannot and must not live for long. If it is favorable, not spontaneously, but after careful analysis and planning, the leap over the threshold must be dared to become self-employed. To gain freedom. To gain power. That is why the formation of an Arab identity is important.

So how do you form an Arab identity? One word: inclusion.

Huh? It seems counterpoint-like at the beginning, but it is true. Inclusion. 

Even with the individual idea of what the Arab identity is and can be for you and others, all these understandings of this great identity are good and right. There is no wrong or right, because all perspectives are different. If we were to start chopping each other by actions and words, by attitude, because one understands something different from the other, we should dress in leather aprons and potato sacks, because in this way we are undoing the progress of humanity.

The real development is therefore in the difference between people in all aspects of life. But the difference must be coupled with inclusiveness, communication, and collaboration to drive humanity's progress. So, you see, the difference between us humans is just as valuable as crude oil.

However, the cultural characteristics and geographical reach of the Arab culture are cloudy. Clarity is needed. I would therefore like to clarify the fact that Arabic and Islamic does not mean the same thing. Arabic is, among other things, Islamic and Orthodox-Christian and Jewish and infinitely more. 3arab, 3araby, Arab and Arabic, today encloses infinitely more than the humanity and culture of the Arabian Peninsula. But it is disputed, for example, whether the Maghreb states still belong to the Arabs. 

But this is not a problem at all, which anyone has to worry about. You don't have to deal with the Arab expansion for a lifetime to draw the borders. You don't have to create a checklist of Criteria for being Arabic. That is superfluous. This is unnecessary. That is not a solution. As I said, inclusion. Inclusion is the answer to the question of how we shape the Arab identity. 

The Arab identity is an asset. It is not another box to be sorted into, but an enrichment to your individual person. Because the Arabic identity does not create you; you create the Arabic identity yourself. Therefore, the Arabic identity is only as great as every person who joins it. But how? How do you combine an inclusive identity? One word: everyday decisions.

Your everyday choices about what you eat as food, what you wear as clothes, the movies you watch, and the songs you're sounding through your ears, can lead to the formation of The Arab identity, or wipe it out altogether. I am not asking you to perform a specific task. I encourage you to continue your life joyfully, while maintaining your proud identity in consciousness. Buying food, clothing and the arts can be more than buying, if you can get involved in something thanks to choice and product availability.  Just like how we can promote environmental protection and fair trade through our consumer behavior, we can use our behavior to promote a regional Arab identity by choosing local goods. Buying locally forms the region and promotes its people. Buying locally, more and more, leads to rising demand, possibly a worldwide demand, for services and things with the Arab flair. Demand for the region's identity will boost and move the local market. A river, a cycle, arises of goods, cash flow and production. Regional competence in industrial and social sectors increases and living standards improve. We Arabs are happier with ourselves and the world because we find our place in the world.

In an age where identity is a matter of freedom, we must consciously choose the Arab identity. For if we, children of the Middle East, do not hoard and love our tradition and values, who will do it? If we let our identity escape our hearts and hands, we will eradicate ourselves. Then we do not celebrate ourselves and therefore diversity not. Then, we are closer to the ominous sameness, where we are all in the same drawer and can no longer think outside the box. If we do not cling to our identity, then we will be trapped in a global society where we do not know difference. Then we will bloody our hands at the execution of public criticism, self-realization, and freedom. We want to celebrate and promote being ourselves because it brings us forward.

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Speech Outline:

Welcome and Introduction: Tradition is lost, e.g. Germany 

Problem presentation: The Arabic identity has become outdated and indistinct. 

Current situation: Globalization > mixing of cultures > formation of a consumer-oriented trend culture.

Necessity: to form tradition and identity to enable region and individual social emancipation.

Solution: regional awareness, local purchase > change consumer behavior

Appel: Identity has become a freedom, so it is also a responsibility. 

Warning: Diversity and otherness enable public criticism and the freedom of the alternative. Sameness is a social prison. 

Closing word: being ourselves advances us as humanity.