Nadiya Hussain’s account on Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs of the everyday anti-Muslim prejudice she encounters may have come as a surprise to some people. It won’t shock anyone in the Muslim community.
.... It is not only those engaged in politics like myself, London mayor Sadiq Khan or Baroness Sayeeda Warsi who receive abuse. The promotion of hatred and fear has been mainstreamed to the extent that there is now little outcry when a mosque is attacked, or when kids come home crying after being taunted for their faith, or when an elderly man like Mohammed Saleem is murdered. One recent survey suggested a 326% rise in anti-Muslim hate crimes in 2015.
Every Muslim I know has a story to tell. We are resigned to being blamed and vilified for the actions of any Muslim anywhere in the world. No matter how often we denounce the horrible atrocities carried out by some fanatics, we are still associated with them. No matter that this is as unfair and ridiculous as associating all white Christian men with Norwegian mass murderer Anders Breivik because he claimed to act as a Christian, or blaming Christianity itself for the genocidal actions of Radovan Karadzic because he described his war against Bosnian Muslims as “holy”. [Salma Yaqoob, 309 comments]
[TOP RATED COMMENT 1128 votes] Criticism of Islam, along with all religions, is perfectly justified. Shouting slurs at a person in the street is not.
[2ND 1016] Have you ever wondered why?
"No matter how often we denounce the horrible atrocities carried out by some fanatics, we are still associated with them."
In response to the savage killing of a well liked and locally cherished man, Asad Shah (R.I.P.), perhaps not quite a Moslem according to some Islamic scholars, the leader of Bradford's Mosques said what this country (sic) needs is a blasphemy law so that people won't need to take the law (sic) into their own hands. That is, embrace the justification for murder in order to stop the urge to murder for Allah's sake. Who needs this? You do, apparently. Still wondering?
[3RD 948] Questioning religious beliefs in a secular society is entirely acceptable. If you have the faith in your convictions then you should be able to accept this and come out the other side intact. The problem is actually the other way because religions have in built rules to prevent them being questioned, because ultimately the people at the top who use religion as a politicial tool know that religions are false and useful only for controlling the masses.
Abusing people is not acceptable, whatever their background. Questioning their belief system is acceptable.
[4TH 933] Given the large number of atrocities committed in the past few years in the name of Islam, it is not entirely surprising that people may be a little wary of those who adhere to that religion and its customs.
[5TH 885] I wonder if it ever occurs to religious people that following a set of beliefs which are not true and call for significant sacrifice in time and energy in order to please non-existent gods, might - MIGHT - put them at a disadvantage when compared with the general population.
I'm increasingly finding it hard to have any sympathy with the plight of religious people in Western society; they have made a conscious choice to live at a disadvantage and we have bent over backward to accommodate their choice - we allow them time off in order to pray, we let them run their own schools, we grant them charitable status for example - but for all this bending over backwards it cannot and should not be overlooked that being religious is a relic of a bygone age, almost completely unfit for a modern, liberal society and that because of this there will be times when religious people feel hard done by or disrespected.
It's not because we dislike religious people as people, it's because we're exasperated at having to cede ground for beliefs which we know, for a fact, are nonsense.
[6TH 713] "He also asked me if he would be safe if he stopped being a Muslim."
Probably not.. apostasy is frowned upon.
[7TH 697] I would far rather some nasty names shouted at me than blown up, beheaded or stabbed.
[8TH 653] Until Islamist atrocities became an almost daily event somewhere in the world, I don't think many people here really paid the religion much mind.
Now that more have, they simply don't like what they see.
[9TH 651] If you turn up for an interview in extreme religious dress be that monks cassock, nuns habit or hijab you can surely forgive an employer who comes to the conclusion your religion is likely to come before your job, and decides that others may be more suitable.
[10TH 607] "To blame a whole race, ethnic or religious group for the actions of a few is racism."
Check out the quranic opinion on the vile 'unbeliever' if you're looking for 'racism' and 'othering'....
ALL of us are to be viewed as subhuman, simply for our inability to swallow the nonsense required to be one of the 'faithful'.
Your 'holy' scriptures are a textbook for division and hate.
Please.
[11TH 606] The author is right, Islamophobia is a huge, world-wide problem. Every day we hear of Shia Muslims being murdered by Sunni Islamophobes, and vice versa, and of Ahmadi and Sufi Muslims being murdered by Islamophobes of all denominations. Even here in Britain, an Islamophobe recently drove 200 miles in order to kill an Ahmadi Muslim - purely from Islamophobic hatred. It is a massive problem, and needs to be dealt with effectively.
[12TH 593] "No matter how often we denounce the horrible atrocities carried out by some fanatics, we are still associated ...."
I have a very close Muslim friend, we were at med school & we are both junior doctors. He tells me the level of condemnation/denunciation of extremism in certain mosques is, in his opinion " lamentable, either totally missing or half hearted .. "
This how to dissociate problem for the muslim community has gone on since post - 9/11 ... it's not new - so it's fair to ask why is it still there Salma?
People need more convincing that ordinary muslims really despise extremists.
And, you're right, no-one should assume the opposite. But people are tired of it all and ... they will. [Guardian Cif] Read more
