TDR Interview: Mona Kareem

Friday, February 8, 2008

By Weston R. Sager

Editor’s Note. Mr. Sager spent the fall in Kuwait. While there he met Miss Kareem, an accomplished Arabic Poet of Iraqi and Kuwaiti descent.

The Dartmouth Review: How is America perceived in Kuwait?

Mona Kareem: Prior to Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, Kuwait was simply part of the broader Arab perspective. They didn’t like America because they were the enemy. They supported Israel. But after the Iraqi Invasion of 1990, our perceptions changed a lot. The Kuwaitis were so thankful for America’s intervention and they kept that with them. The Kuwaitis discovered after the Invasion that all the ideas of Arab nationalism don’t work in practice, so they ended up feeling more attached to America.

In terms of culture, Kuwaitis are very attached to America. They like to imitate American lifestyle, even the accent, all of the details that you guys have in America. Most Kuwaitis think that Americans are ‘cool dudes.’ They are allowed to do different sort of things, like drink, have sex, demonstrate, express their opinions, and participate in democracy. All the positive things you could ever think of we think are embodied in Americans. Americans are seen as being on a pedestal.

TDR: What was your perception of Americans, and particularly, Conservatives, before you met me?

MK: I honestly hated them. They were just killers, but my opinion was because of our media. Our media doesn’t like America. The press tells us that Democrats are more human than Republicans and they are more respectable, but after I met you, I figured out that reality has nothing to do with what I was told by the media. Republican or Democrat, you’re all American, your politics don’t make you hate the Middle East. You explained to me why there are some people who choose to be Republican, and I respected that because it’s actually reasonable, because you don’t measure the Middle East as a giant war. Republicans or Democrats keep America’s interest at heart then they make their decision based on how America will fare. I feel what makes an American good or bad is his own character and has nothing to do with being a Republican or Democrat.

TDR: Looking back on the American invasion of Iraq in 2003, do you feel that the cause was just, even if simply to remove Saddam Hussein from power?

MK: As far as providing reasons to invade Iraq, America had a lot of good reasons to go in, but at the same time they lied about some things, which hurt them. However, As an Iraqi and as an Arab, I felt so thankful to get rid of Saddam Hussein. Saddam was the biggest nightmare for the Iraqi people and we didn’t think that we would ever get rid of him, but unfortunately when America came and we saw civil war and destruction and terrorism. We saw all the countries seeking revenge on Iraqis and Americans coming into Iraq. America coming to Iraq wasn’t wrong, because there has to be a solution [to Middle Eastern turmoil], and there was no one else who could bring the downfall of Saddam except America. Even we Iraqis tried to remove Saddam in 1991 but we failed because his military was still very strong. So the War was right, but things have gone wrong. Things kept getting destroyed and America didn’t expect that. There were a lot of interventions from other countries and organizations that America didn’t account for.

TDR: There are a few cultural things that one needs to understand about Kuwait, because the culture is so different in many ways from America. Chief of these things, to me, is the system of waasta. Could you please explain what waasta is and how it is used in Kuwait?

MK: Waasta is basically having someone in a certain place. For example if you’re going to get something from Ministry of Education, you need to know someone who works there. If you have waasta, you get what you need easily. If you don’t have waasta, if you don’t know someone, you will go through a long and arduous process that will, basically, force you to quit.

Waasta is basically the way to survive in Kuwait. If you don’t have waasta, just stay at home. Anything you want to get in Kuwait, needs waasta. If you get in a car accident, you need waasta. If you want to get a scholarship, you need waasta. If you want to travel, you need waasta. Everything has to do with waasta.

TDR: Dating in Kuwait is another interesting part of the culture. Could you please describe what a typical traditional courtship would be in Kuwait?

MK: It’s really funny in Kuwait, because if I’m American or a Westerner, it might be strange, but we grew up with it, so we’re used to it. There are different ways to date, and I’ll mention some of them.

First, there is dating through driving. If there is a guy driving alongside a girl in a car, and he thinks she’s interested in him by her looks or her smile, he’ll follow her and tell her his cell phone number, and hopes that she calls him and schedules a time to meet.

The internet is used for chatting online between members of the opposite sex. Also, if a guy sees a fellow student that he likes, he will approach her or have his friends approach her friends, and she’ll respond ‘yes’ or ‘no.’

There are a few ways to approach dating. However, in all kinds of dating in Kuwait we don’t have a good idea about the person we’re seeing. We just go and try it without knowing the person all that well. It’s all because of society’s imposed values and morals. It’s just not acceptable to see a guy and a girl that are not married or engaged together in public.

TDR: Kuwait has segregation of the sexes. How and where is it implemented and how does it play into the Islamist doctrine?

MK: We cannot honestly say that we don’t want gender segregation because our Parliament represents our people. It’s a fault of people that they elected those who support segregation. Our elected officials want to keep Kuwait conservative and respectable by trying to make Kuwait conservative through legislation. For me, it’s just a misinterpretation of the whole idea of Islam. Those who support segregation, they refer to a hadith, an Islamic saying, that says if you have a man and a woman together, they will make a mistake. Islamic extremists see that as a sign that segregation has to be applied in this country.

But there are conflicting examples. On the haj (the Holy Muslim Pilgrimage) to Mecca, there are women and men together, and there is no segregation. Non-extremist Muslims see this as a sign against segregation and that segregation is not a part of Islam. In Kuwait, it exists because of politics. Again and again, each Parliament body tries to improve the Islamic identity in Kuwait. We, the new generation, hate that. We don’t like it, we’re against it, but there is a minority of students who do like it. It’s really hypocritical because we go to malls where it’s not segregated. People of the opposite sex walk together and that’s not segregated. So why do you do that just in the universities? Why do you give us such a hard time? Because of segregation, I will graduate with no knowledge about the opposite gender and I will not be able to communicate with any of them.

TDR: What do you believe is the role of arts in the culture of the Middle East?

MK: Unfortunately, I believe that the role of art is not that big in the Middle East. It is a way to reflect on the reality and their concerns; it’s a very intellectual thing, something for intellectuals only. Art in the Middle East does not have a large audience like it used to have. Now people are more attached to their television sets and simpler things. They don’t like to have deep, dark thoughts because it’s more difficult. Many think that the arts are sophisticated without purpose, but some art still survives. There are a lot of people, even though they are the minority, who create art and get their message out.

TDR: What kind of music is popular in Kuwait?

MK: In terms of American music, rap and hip-hop are really popular in Kuwait. Last in popularity is rock music, because rock is more for the American educated. In Arabic, pop and hip-hop are the most popular. Unfortunately, our music has really gone downhill. Music has become a solely visual thing. Arab men watch music videos to see the women in them. If the woman in the video is suggestive and sexy, and he likes her body and her movements, he’ll think she’s a good singer because she’s being erotic. It’s not about the music; it’s about the image.

Of course, there is a minority of classy, authentic music that tries to appreciate the heritage we have.

TDR: What artistic movements that do exist have the most influence in the Middle East?

MK: We don’t have a great diversity in artistic movements. We’re largely influenced by movements in Europe that were popular a half century ago. If you focus on literature, you’ll see the influences of symbolism and surrealism. But ordinary people feel that they can’t relate to most literature because it’s hard to read and has nothing to do with their lives. We produce more accessible literature that suits a lot more people, but it’s not deep art. It’s more entertaining, but it makes literature, and art in general, shallow.

TDR: How does your poetry fit into the broader artistic movement of the Middle East?

MK: First, I want to present myself. My writing is a way of getting my ideas, my feelings, out to others. I would like to present my identity and the diversity of my [Iraqi and Kuwaiti] cultures, and my way of thinking, and my different way of thinking in this rapid world, whether they’re positive or negative. n

TDR Interview: Mona Kareem

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