What’s Really Wrong with the Middle East

According to Whitaker (Unspeakable Love), former Middle East editor at the Guardian, the various political, economic, and human rights deficits are too commonly shrugged off by the Middle East’s civil society as “someone else’s fault.” While acknowledging the huge impact of European colonialism, foreign interventions, and despotic leaders, Whitaker argues persuasively that “if Arabs are ever to take charge of their predicament they must stop asking ‘How did we get here?’ and instead say ‘How can we move forward?’ ” In looking for answers, Whitaker brings the conversation to the actual populations struggling against stultifying authoritarianism, cultural stagnation, corruption, and deep-rooted inequalities, in the process revealing “the debate among Arabs themselves about change—a debate that many in the west are still largely unaware of.” His analysis is accessible and instructive, and cuts deep, settling neither for easy explanations nor simple solutions. (June)