In the globalized world, the need for people from different cultures to communicate effectively is essential. Yet, attaining effective cross-cultural communication is not always an easy undertaking. What with every person believing that his or her culture is the best and even more people not willing to learn or accommodate another culture? Moreover, human beings tend to be stereotypical, usually judging people from other cultures based on long-held biases. Regardless of the stereotypes and biases, the human relations across the conventional world are such that governments need each other, and hence cross-cultural communication must be enhanced if understanding between governments and the people they represent is to be attained. Among the cultures that have always been in conflict are the Islamic culture and the American culture. The latter is predominantly based on Christian principles, although the government and its people are quick to denounce any religious affiliations, choosing to remain a liberal society. Islamic culture on the other hand is based on Islamic religion, and Muslims perceive their religion as a way of life. Specifically, Muslims do not separate their religion from the life they lead publicly or privately (Hamada). As Shaheen observes however, the casual American observer usually associates Islam to hatred, fanaticism, violence, women oppression, and jihad (2). This affects cross cultural communication between Americans and people who adhere to the Islamic culture because the former always view the latter as a group of people who believe, feel, think and act as one based on their religious inclinations. Muslims on the other hand perceive adherents of the American culture as a “proud culture” with little tolerance to ideals that differ from what the ‘liberal culture’ advocates. Cultural conflict Most cultural conflicts between the American culture and the Islamic culture are based on stereotypes. According to Shaheen, people form stereotypes through hearsay or imagination (5). As such, their perceptions are not based on personal experiences or knowledge. The perceptions based on stereotypes however shape their future relationships with people from ‘the other’ culture, hence affecting communication between the two parties. One however wonders why effective cross-cultural communication between adherents of the Islamic and American cultures is such an important issue. There is an average 6.5 million Muslims living in the United States. Some are Americans by birth, while others are immigrants. More important is the fact that the United States as a nation needs to comprehend the Islamic culture in order to serve its strategic geopolitical needs as well as uphold its constitutional ideals such as religious tolerance. There are also a significant number of American scholars, investors, and even students in countries with a predominant Islamic Culture (Ahmed “Journey” 7; Shaheen 6). There is evidence in literature to the effect that cross-cultural communication between adherents of the American and Islamic culture can only be effective if both parties take time to understand each other (Ahmed “Journey” 7; Shaheen 6; Zaharna 245). Notably, communication breakdown as observed by Zaharna occurs when one “observes the differe