Press Action

Thursday, September 25, 2003

Edward W. Said

By Mickey Z.

I just learned that Edward W. Said has died. Before reading how the corporate media will frame his obituary, I’ll say this: The world is a far more empty place today.

Almost a decade ago, I reviewed “The Pen and the Sword,” a collection of Said interviews with David Barsamian, published by Common Courage Press. While some of the references are dated, the message remains as I would state it today. Below is that review ... a meager attempt at saying thank you for the work and spirit of Edward W. Said, a true inspiration:

Thanks to popular culture, most Americans are taught to perceive Arabs as fanatical, yet inept, terrorists. Palestinians, so the conventional thinking goes, may not be the most fanatical but are certainly the most inept of the Arabs. Another equally voiceless group in this country is that of political dissidents. In a society where H. Ross Perot is accepted as a renegade outsider, true dissent is rarely discussed.

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