Imagine writing these song lyrics because you felt compelled to do something to address the injustice of a brutal crackdown plaguing your home country. Imagine being invited by one of the oldest Arab American civic organizations to perform at its annual national convention in Washington, D.C. Now imagine being disinvited by the same organization? because you planned to perform your protest song.
That?s exactly what happened to this week at the National Convention. ADC?s sudden dis-invitation of Jandali has exposed a rift in the Arab American community and sparked a debate as to what degree Arab American?s should embrace the Arab Spring. Furthermore, the Jandali case has prompted strident calls for a change of leadership at the ADC for its purported ties to the regime of Syria?s autocratic President Bashar al-Assad.
Jandali is a renowned German-born Syrian pianist and songwriter, known best for contemporizing some the oldest songs ever written ? ancient Syrian Ugarit melodies that date back as far as 3400 B.C. Recently, he penned ?Watani Ana,? or ?I Am My Homeland,? after being moved by pro-democracy protests and subsequent violent military reprisals taking place across Syria.
A few days before this week?s convention, Jandali posted this on his Facebook page: ?It is with deep sadness that I announce I will no longer be performing at the annual ADC Convention? This is the result of their unfortunate decision to prohibit me from performing ?Watani Ana.
The decision to prevent Jandali from performing caused an uproar in the Arab American community, social media circles like Facebook and Twitter and especially, at the ADC convention itself. Many speakers cancelled at the last minute, refusing to appear as a sign of protest. Others speakers made their feelings known on stage.
In defiance of the decision, Libyan-born poet recited lyrics from ?Watani Ana? at the beginning of his panel discussion on popular uprisings in the Arab world. He called ADC?s decision was a ?travesty? and said he almost didn?t attend.
is an Arab American comedian who has appeared on Al Jazeera English?s "The Stream" and Comedy Central?s ?Axis of Evil? special. He was invited to speak on a panel called ?Social Networking in a Changing Media.? He, too, used the opportunity to draw attention to the Jandali case and the issue of freedom of expression.
?I?m very much against the decision. I?m a comedian, a performer, and freedom of expression is fundamental to my career,? said Obediallah. ?As I told the audience today, if there are people uncomfortable with the fact that [Jandali] was going to talk about freedom for the Syrian people, for the Arab people, you don?t disinvite the singer. Disinvite the people uncomfortable with freedom for Arabs.?
In an interview with VOA, ADC Chairman Safa Rifka said, technically, there was no ?dis-invitation? and Jandali?s failure to appear stemmed from a ?miscommunication? between ADC and Jandali?s agent ? a contradiction to what Jandali posted on his own Facebook page.
When pressed as to whether the misunderstanding was over Jandali?s protest song specifically, Lebanese-born Rifka said, ?It wasn?t about the song. He assumed it was about the song. I never got the chance to talk to him.? However during his interview with VOA, Rifka never gave an alternative reason why Jandali was told not to come. Other ADC staff told VOA privately during the convention that the decision was Rifka?s alone.
?I think that the Arab American community wishes the Middle East stability and democracy.? Rifka added. ?Of course, we are all saddened for the loss of life that is happening there. But at the same time the Arab American community has challenges of their own.?
One of those challenges, in the case of ADC, appears to be projecting greater transparency in a world where social media spreads controversy quickly. As the conference began, blogs about the Jandali decision were posted on Politico, Huffington Post and several English-language newspapers in the Middle East. Even the condemning the decision, urging ADC to make amends with its members.
On Saturday, irate ADC members won a partial victory as ADC organizers acquiesced and played Jandali?s song during a reception, although he himself was not in attendance.
But another deeper challenge is the perception of a possible conflict of interest, specifically in regards to where ADC gets its funding. The conference program lists the Saudi Arabian Embassy as a main sponsor. Other Arab regimes that are listed in the sponsors section of the ADC Convention program include Syria, Bahrain and Morocco.