Abstrakt: |
In the aftermath of September 11, 2001, public policy in the United States (US) was redrafted in order to project a new image of the US in the world. Under the Freedom Promotion Act 2002 the Youth Exchange and Study (YES) programme was introduced by the US Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA). The YES programme offers scholarship for high school students (15-17 years) from countries with significant Muslim populations to spend up to one academic year in the US. The salient goal of this public diplomacy is to build bridges of 'international understanding', especially between the Americans and people in countries with significant Muslim populations. By deploying post-colonial structuralism discourse this article explores testimonials of the YES students and hosts and relevant documents. This article argues that the new discourse of 'international understanding' is nothing but Americanism in which America is trying to impose its cultural supremacy on the Muslim community by reinforcing a savage/ civilized dichotomy. American institutions use such strategies to transmit their own idea of a 'global citizen' to Muslim exchange students, a strategy that was used by colonial powers during colonial periods to prolong their domination. To explore the likely consequences of the YES programme on American citizenry, this article provides an analysis showing how American citizens learn to develop their knowledge and understanding of another cultural world through this process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |