How to End ''Islamophobia''
Tawfik Hamid
Islamic organizations regularly accuse non-Muslims of "Islamophobia," a fear
and disdain for everything Islamic. On May 17, this accusation bubbled up again
as foreign ministers from the Organization of the Islamic Conference called
Islamophobia "the worst form of terrorism." These ministers also warned,
according to the Arab News, that this form of discrimination would cause
millions of Muslims in Western countries, "many of whom were already
underprivileged," to be "further alienated."
In America, perhaps the most conspicuous organization to persistently accuse
opponents of Islamophobia is the Council of American Islamic Relations. CAIR
has taken up the legal case of the "Flying Imams," the six individuals who were
pulled from a US Airways flight in Minneapolis this past November after
engaging in suspicious behavior before takeoff. Not long ago, CAIR filed a
"John Doe" lawsuit that would have made passengers liable for "malicious"
complaints about suspicious Muslim passengers.
In an interview at the time, CAIR spokesman Nihad Awad accused Rep. Peter King
(R., N.Y.) of being an "extremist" who "encourages Islamophobia" for pointing
out what most people would think is obvious, that such a lawsuit would have a
chilling effect on passengers who witnessed alarming activity and wished to
report it. We can only assume that Mr. Awad believes flyers should passively
remain in a state of fear as they travel and submissively risk their lives. In
this case, Congress is acting appropriately and considering passing a law
sponsored by Mr. King that would grant passengers immunity from such lawsuits.
It may seem bizarre, but Islamic reformers are not immune to the charge of
"Islamophobia" either. For 20 years, I have preached a reformed interpretation
of Islam that teaches peace and respects human rights. I have consistently
spoken out - with dozens of other Muslim and Arab reformers - against the
mistreatment of women, gays and religious minorities in the Islamic world. We
have pointed out the violent teachings of Salafism and the imperative of
Westerners to protect themselves against it.
Yet according to CAIR's Michigan spokeswoman, Zeinab Chami, I am "the latest
weapon in the Islamophobe arsenal." If standing against the violent edicts of
Shariah law is "Islamophobic," then I will treat her accusation as a badge of
honor.
Muslims must ask what prompts this "phobia" in the first place. When we in the
West examine the worldwide atrocities perpetrated daily in the name of Islam,
it is vital to question if we--Muslims--should lay the blame on others for
Islamophobia or if we should first look hard at ourselves.
According to a recent Pew Global Attitudes survey, "younger Muslims in the U.S.
are much more likely than older Muslim Americans to say that suicide bombing in
the defense of Islam can be at least sometimes justified." About one out of
every four American Muslims under 30 think suicide bombing in defense of Islam
is justified in at least some circumstances. Twenty-eight percent believe that
Muslims did not carry out the 9/11 attacks and 32% declined to answer that
question.
While the survey has been represented in the media as proof of moderation among
American Muslims, the actual results should yield the opposite conclusion. If,
as the Pew study estimates, there are 2.35 million Muslims in America, that
means there are a substantial number of people in the U.S. who think suicide
bombing is sometimes justified. Similarly, if 5% of American Muslims support al
Qaeda, that's more than 100,000 people.
To bring an end to Islamophobia, we must employ a holistic approach that treats
the core of the disease. It will not suffice to merely suppress the symptoms.
It is imperative to adopt new Islamic teachings that do not allow killing
apostates (Redda Law). Islamic authorities must provide mainstream Islamic
books that forbid polygamy and beating women. Accepted Islamic doctrine should
take a strong stand against slavery and the raping of female war prisoners, as
happens in Darfur under the explicit canons of Shariah ("Ma Malakat
Aimanikum"). Muslims should teach, everywhere and universally, that a woman's
testimony in court counts as much as a man's, that women should not be punished
if they marry whom they please or dress as they wish.
We Muslims should publicly show our strong disapproval for the growing number
of attacks by Muslims against other faiths and against other Muslims. Let us
not even dwell on 9/11, Madrid, London, Bali and countless other scenes of
carnage. It has been estimated that of the two million refugees fleeing Islamic
terror in Iraq, 40% are Christian, and many of them seek a haven in Lebanon,
where the Christian population itself has declined by 60%. Even in Turkey,
Islamists recently found it necessary to slit the throats of three Christians
for publishing Bibles.
Of course, Islamist attacks are not limited to Christians and Jews. Why do we
hear no Muslim condemnation of the ongoing slaughter of Buddhists in Thailand
by Islamic groups? Why was there silence over the Mumbai train bombings which
took the lives of over 200 Hindus in 2006? We must not forget that innocent
Muslims, too, are suffering. Indeed, the most common murderers of Muslims are,
and have always been, other Muslims. Where is the Muslim outcry over the
Sunni-Shiite violence in Iraq?
Islamophobia could end when masses of Muslims demonstrate in the streets
against videos displaying innocent people being beheaded with the same vigor we
employ against airlines, Israel and cartoons of Muhammad. It might cease when
Muslims unambiguously and publicly insist that Shariah law should have no
binding legal status in free, democratic societies.
It is well past time that Muslims cease using the charge of "Islamophobia" as a
tool to intimidate and blackmail those who speak up against suspicious
passengers and against those who rightly criticize current Islamic practices
and preachings. Instead, Muslims must engage in honest and humble
introspection. Muslims should--must--develop strategies to rescue our religion
by combating the tyranny of Salafi Islam and its dreadful consequences. Among
more important outcomes, this will also put an end to so-called Islamophobia.
______________________________________________________________________
Dr. Hamid, a onetime member of Jemaah Islamiya, an Islamist terrorist group, is
a medical doctor and Muslim reformer living in the West. The Wall Street Journal
http://www.wataninet.com/article_en.asp?ArticleID=13737
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