Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden dropped a popular Arabic phrase during Tuesday night’s presidential debate, leaving Twitter users conflicted over its usage.
The remark occurred halfway through the debate when moderator Chris Wallace pressed President Donald Trump to release his tax returns. “You’ll get to see it,” Trump repeatedly said as Wallace pushed for a firm timeline.
Biden responded to the exchange with “When? Inshallah.”
The phrase “inshallah” is commonly used across the Middle East and directly translates from Arabic to “if God wills it.” For pious people, the phrase represents a submission to God’s will, but the phrase can also be used in the context of everyday speech. Biden’s usage reflects a sarcastic application of the phrase.
Anthony Khoory, a sophomore majoring in sociology, grew up in an Arabic-speaking household. He immediately caught the word while watching the debate.
“[It means] God knows that this will happen, like, hopefully,” said Khoory in an interview with Annenberg Media. “But in other uses and contexts, it’s used when somebody doesn’t believe that what the person said will happen. Or if you’re asking your parents for something, and they don’t want to do it for you. So they’re like, ‘Yeah, hopefully God willing. Inshallah.’”
Khoory said it is easy to get excited on social media because representation of the Arab communities in the U.S. is hard to come by, but he cautioned that Biden is not that progressive of a candidate. Investment in Arab-focused policies, like the inclusion of a census category for people from Middle Eastern and North African backgrounds, are points that Khoory would like to see Biden speak on.
“If [Biden] is not there showing support for us in those tangible ways, then it’s really just a slap in the face that he used one of our terms to get political points or to look good in front of Trump,” Khoory said.
Nevertheless, Khoory said the use of an Arab phrase on national television is significant.
“We are an invisible population,” Khoory said. “More and more kids are losing touch with the culture of their parents, their culture, because it’s not seen as trendy or respected in America. And so representation is important, but also representation in a positive light.”
Professor Laurie Brand, who specializes in Middle East studies, said the phrase has become more commonplace in the United States among non-Arabic speakers since the escalation of U.S involvement in the Middle East.
Brand said that while she was not impressed by Biden’s use of the phrase, she realized the importance of recognizing Arab Americans during a presidential debate.
“For Arab Americans, this isn’t a particularly friendly context to be living in and it didn’t start with Trump, it got worse with Trump. Perhaps some people are just looking for any indication that this is some kind of an acceptance of our culture or language or something like that,” Brand said.
Brand said Biden, who supported George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq in 2003, has a history of approving foreign policy that has not supported Arab Americans.
“I don’t think of Joe Biden as a particularly sympathetic figure when it comes to concerns of everyday Arabs, or Arab Americans… when it comes to foreign policy issues anyway,” Brand said.
Brand expressed hope that, if elected, Biden will commit to policies that help Arab Americans.
Zakaria Hijaouy, a junior studying industrial and systems engineering, was surprised by Biden’s use of the phrase.
“I, more than anything, thought it was really funny,” Hijaouy said. “It’s partially just because of the way he pronounced it. And, also, it completely caught me off guard. I was like whoa, did Biden just say inshallah that’s crazy.”
Hijaouy also appreciated a nod to Arab American culture.
“We don’t really get a lot of representation in American politics overall, so hearing Joe Biden say that was like oh, you know, he at least knows something from our culture,” Hijaouy said.