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Mogahed began her discussion by pointing out that given such heavy involvement in the Middle East, Americans need to step back and examine how much they actually know about the area. What do they know about Islam, radicalization, women’s views, and Muslims’ perceptions of democracy? In March 2002, a Gallup poll found that 54% of Americans reported that they knew very little to nothing about Muslims. Almost five years later, in January of 2007, despite the United States’ involvement in two major wars in the region, 57% reported they still knew very little to nothing.

Mogahed’s book adds real value for it is based on objective data collected by Gallup, an organization that polls over 95% of the world’s population in more than 140 countries. For the study, thousands of Muslims were polled all over the Middle East, Asia, Europe, and sub-Saharan Africa. All studies conducted were nation-wide representative, incorporating opinions from all backgrounds. Surveys are given both in rural areas and urban centers, in-home and face-to-face, to get all-encompassing data that does not discriminate from those who do not own a phone or are illiterate.

For the presentation, Mogahed chose to feature two excerpts from the book. The first topic she detailed was, “What makes a radical?” One popular assumption held by many people is that terrorism is spurred by religion and religious fanaticism. Her study has found this presupposition to be inaccurate. When asked about their positions on 9/11, only 7% of the population (whose level of religiosity did not differ from the total polled) found it to be completely justifiable and reported strong anti-US sentiments. Those who did find 9/11 to be a tragedy cited the loss of innocent lives, many referring to religion and the Qu‘ran’s denunciation of murder. The 7% who had condoned 9/11 did not bring up the Qu‘ran or religion at all, but rationalized the event through of their own perceptions of geo-politics, noting that the US had deserved it as a result of its foreign policy in the region. Thus, it was not piety that was the differentiating factor between these two groups, but politics.

Another popular assumption held by Westerners is that Muslims hate them because they enjoy democracy and freedom. However, the first two most frequent responses to what Muslims admired most about the West were technological advancement and democracy. Similarly, Americans also regarded these characteristics as the two most admirable Western qualities. What Muslims did resent most about the West was their disrespect for Islam. The most frequent response to what the US could do to improve relations was to show more respect towards Islam and Muslims in general. Most Muslims agreed that there is need for improving relations with the West, including the 7% who were identified as radical. However, many were doubtful of the possibility of amiable relations in the future. Many Muslims also reported fear of eminent American domination, even in countries where this has never been an issue, such as Egypt and Morocco.

The second excerpt Mogahed highlighted centered on “Faith and Freedom.” When asked about their preferences on how religion should influence law, Muslim majorities around the world wanted Sharia to play some part in legislation. However, while Egypt had the largest majority where people thought Sharia should be the only piece of legislation, 57% of Turkey’s population claimed that Sharia should not be part of legislation at all. Interestingly, while most did want the influence of Sharia, majorities also did not want religious leaders to directly participate in politics. Many wanted them to perhaps work as advisors, but nothing more.

In summation, through all of the data gathered, Mogahed and Esposito found three lenses, or prisms of pain, that define the manner in which Muslims regard West. The first is cultural disrespect, relating to the sentiment that the West does not respect Islam. The second lens relates to political domination, resulting from intense interactions with the West and the threatening feeling of possible future invasions. The final prism of pain shared by Muslims when viewing the West is acute conflicts, due to the current situations in Iraq, Israel/Palestine, and Afghanistan. It is worthy to note Mogahed’s analysis that these lenses in fact overlap and enforce one another, influencing Muslims’ general outlook towards West.