My family in Bangladesh will come together to fast and pray. Yet our feelings for Palestinians are based on secular values of equality and justice

I have not been a devout Muslim. I don’t fast or pray. I have never been to Mecca to make the hajj pilgrimage. I’ve only read the Qur’an in English – not in Arabic, as many Bangladeshi children do.

Instead of learning Arabic verses, I was raised on a diet of Marx, Mao and liberation theology. My bedtime reading was Nehru’s Letters from a Father to a Daughter, written while he was imprisoned alongside Mahatma Gandhi during the Indian independence struggle.

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Demonstrators in London, Nov 2023

Over the past week, some of the same politicians and think-tankers who couldn’t hide their resentment at George Galloway winning a by-election and were accusing anti-genocide demonstrators in London of being controlled by extremists behind the scenes and making London a “no-go zone for Jews” (a claim reported uncritically by the BBC, who could have asked the police if their statistics back this claim up) were also telling us to stop using the term ‘Islamophobia’ and stop paying heed to those who do. According to them, Islamophobia is a term made up by Islamists to impose a blasphemy law on non-Muslims by the back door and to punish people who opposed Islamist politics rather than those who were hostile to Muslims as such. Politicians started telling us it was different from “anti-Muslim hatred” which of course they condemned. And lo and behold, today there was an open letter to politicians from a group of victims of Islamist terrorist attacks (Lee Rigby’s widow as well as relatives of the victims of the Bataclan massacre and the 7th October attacks, among others) appealing to politicians not to associate Muslims with terrorists and to stop fuelling “anti-Muslim hate”. Why is this a problem?

Islamophobia has been the term favoured by the Muslim community for hostility to Muslims and Islam since at least the 1980s; it was already well-established in the mid-90s when I was actively looking into Islam (I took the shahadah in 1998) because Muslims were campaigning for such hostility to be recognised in law, and for Muslims not to have to base any complaint on constructs of race. The term ‘phobia’, meaning fear in Greek, was already being used in words for hostility such as xenophobia. Perhaps not accurate in its use of Greek, but it’s certainly typical of English words derived from classical Greek and Latin. We tend to prefer this sort of single long word to a whole series of words when we have to refer to something a lot. As with other terms for racism or bigotry, it has no doubt been abused by some people to make people out to be racists who aren’t, but it’s a bit snappier and just as well understood as “anti-Muslim hatred”, much as ‘antisemitism’ does the job better than “anti-Jewish hatred”. But much as antisemitism includes more than shouting racial slurs and beating up Jews for being Jews, or calling for them to be expelled (less often heard than in the case of more recently arrived minorities), Islamophobia includes more than just obvious and straightforward hatred. These include:

• Stereotypical views about Muslims, such as assuming we all eat the same foods, or that all Muslim women are oppressed, or are at risk from FGM or honour killing
• The “politics of suspicion”, such as assuming that Muslims generally support terrorist actions committed in our name or in Islam’s, and in particular, demanding condemnations from Muslims who had nothing to do with them
• Making assumptions about what, say, Islamic dress means or ‘symbolises’ and then talking over Muslims about these issues (the hijab is a common focus of such assumptions)
• Ascribing political meanings to in themselves apolitical aspects of Muslim practice: portraying “Allahu akbar” (God is great) as the chant of terrorists, or minarets as military fortifications rather than places from which to project a call to prayer, and paying no attention to Muslims about the facts of these things
• Making life difficult for Muslims when we try to practise Islam: excluding girls for wearing the hijab, or imposing a uniform that is incompatible with it, or preventing students from praying when they are an age when it is required of them.

As for the accusation of a “blasphemy law”, the protests about insults to Islam or Muslims are not usually about someone merely criticising Islam or disagreeing with something in it (or they think is in it) but about insults that have a threatening edge to them. Muslims accept that we cannot stop people saying what they like about Islam in the West; there is, however, no real reason to publicly insult another’s religion other than to whip up hostility to it and, by extension, its followers. Insults are perceived, often correctly, as threats to people’s safety. A commonly cited example is the teacher who left his job because of parent protests after showing cartoons published by the French comic Charlie Hebdo to his pupils. Now, this teacher could have displayed these cartoons on his personal blog or Twitter account, but as a teacher you have responsibilities to uphold the children’s welfare, and the cartoons are not actual critiques of Islam but a collage of racist stereotypes about Arabs. The teacher told his pupils that it was his right of freedom of expression to show them the cartoon, which is not an attitude any teacher should take.

Generally, minorities know what forms prejudice against them take. They know what certain words mean that are used as coded racial slurs and they know the subtexts (if they aren’t obvious) to racist slogans. That doesn’t mean false or abusive accusations of racism don’t happen, and sometimes people take it too far, interpreting something that sounds like a thing racists used to say as actual racism when the phrase has other meanings, but in general, members of a minority are able to spot expressions of bigotry and prejudice against them. There is a doctrine that something is deemed to be racist if it is perceived as such, regardless of what the speaker intended, and the same people telling us Islamophobia is not a thing, that it’s just made up for censorship purposes also insist that Jews know best about what is and isn’t antisemitism and we should just take them at their word. The politicians concerned have their agenda, but if you are concerned about bigotry against Muslims and want others to be, please don’t use language endorsed by the politicians who are doing just that. We call it Islamophobia, because it’s more than just hate.

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• Thanks Wes, but take a stand on Gaza!

Situation in Gaza “is now so terrifying as to be unspeakable.”

Holy month to begin against backdrop of bombardment of Gaza and rise in Islamophobic incidents

Thousands of people are expected to attend evening prayers at the East London Mosque to mark the beginning of Ramadan, a deeply significant time of spirituality and community for Muslims.

The shared experience of fasting and worship during the holy month, which begins on Monday in the UK, “reinforces a sense of unity and common purpose within the British Muslim community”, according to Sufia Alam, the head of programmes at the mosque.

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Every year -right before the coming of Ramadan- we at MuslimMatters put together a list of ‘must read!’ Ramadan articles from our platform that have proven exceptionally popular over the years gone by. From articles on reverts’ first fasts, fasting with a disability, boosting our ‘ibaadah during that mid-Ramadan slump, to even tips on social media management for the Holy Month.

And as alhamdulillah we approach yet another Ramadan, here’s your MM Ramadan Recap for 2024:

Spirituality

– Prophetic Guidance For An Exemplary Ramadan

Prophetic Guidance For An Exemplary Ramadan

– Al-Wahhab And The Gift Of Ramadan

Al-Wahhab And The Gift Of Ramadan

– Beginning My Quran Memorization Journey In Ramadan

Beginning My Quran Memorization Journey In Ramadan

– Using Ramadan To Forgive Those Who Have Hurt Us In The Past

 Using Ramadan To Forgive Those Who Have Hurt Us In The Past

– The Ramadan Of The Early Muslims | Sh Suleiman Hani

The Ramadan Of The Early Muslims I Sh Suleiman Hani

– Show Up As You Are: Overcoming Ramadan Guilt For The Last 10 Nights

Show Up As You Are: Overcoming Ramadan Guilt For The Last 10 Nights

Social Media

– This Ramadan, Delete TikTok Before It Deletes You

This Ramadan, Delete TikTok Before It Deletes You

– Get Your Phone Ramadan Ready!

Get Your Phone Ramadan Ready!

 Parenting & Children

– Ramadan With A Newborn: Life Seasons, Ibaadah, And Intentionality

Ramadan With A Newborn: Life Seasons, Ibaadah, And Intentionality

– Beyond The External Trappings: Teaching Children The True Essence Of Ramadan

Beyond The External Trappings: Teaching Children The True Essence Of Ramadan

– Foster Love For The Blessed Month With These 5 Fun And Easy Ramadan Crafts For Kids

Foster Love For The Blessed Month With These 5 Fun And Easy Ramadan Crafts For Kids

– Parents In Ramadan: Pivot To Another Worship

Parents In Ramadan: Pivot To Another Worship

– My Dear Ramadan Stay-at-Home Mom, I Salute You

My Dear Ramadan Stay-at-Home Mom, I Salute You

 Ramadan & Illness

– Eating Disorders And Ramadan: Debunking The Myths, Mechanisms To Cope

Eating Disorders And Ramadan: Debunking The Myths, Mechanisms To Cope

– Reflections On Observing Ramadan With A Disability

Reflections On Observing Ramadan With A Disability

– How To Maximize Ramadan When Not Fasting

How To Maximize Ramadan When Not Fasting

– Mental Illness and Ramadan

Mental Illness and Ramadan

– What I Learned About Ramadan – By Not Fasting

What I Learned About Ramadan – By Not Fasting

 On Campus/At The Workplace

– From The Chaplain’s Desk: Prep Guide For Ramadan On Campus

From The Chaplain’s Desk: Prep Guide For Ramadan On Campus

– Ramadan While Working Full-Time: Tips For Young Muslim Professionals

Ramadan While Working Full-Time: Tips For Young Muslim Professionals

– Tips For Managing School And Ramadan

Tips For Managing School And Ramadan

– From The Chaplain’s Desk: Engage With The Quran

From The Chaplain’s Desk: Engage With The Quran

– How University Made Me a Better Muslim

How University Made Me a Better Muslim

 Podcasts

– Ramadan Reflections: 30 Days of Healing | Aliyah Umm Raiyaan

Podcast: Ramadan Reflections: 30 Days of Healing | Aliyah Umm Raiyaan

-Man 2 Man: Beast Mode – Spiritual Preparation For Ramadan

[Podcast] Man 2 Man: Beast Mode – Spiritual Preparation For Ramadan

– Ramadan Vibes: Connecting with the Quran | Sh Muhammad Ziyad Batha

[Podcast] Ramadan Vibes: Connecting with the Quran | Sh Muhammad Ziyad Batha

– Ramadan Imposter Syndrome | Shaykha Taimiyyah Zubair

[Podcast] Ramadan Imposter Syndrome | Shaykha Taimiyyah Zubair

– Muslim Women’s Spirituality In Ramadan

Podcast: Muslim Women’s Spirituality In Ramadan

Have we missed out on mentioning any of our articles that have deeply impacted you, or at least made a small change in the way you approach Ramadan? Do let us know in the comments below!

 

Related:

The MM Recap: Our Most Popular Ramadan Articles [2023 Edition]

The MuslimMatters Ramadan Podcast Playlist [2023]

The post The MM Recap: MuslimMatters’ Most Popular Ramadan Articles [2024 Edition] appeared first on MuslimMatters.org.

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Exclusive: Marco Longhi and Jill Mortimer, allies of Lee Anderson, question Jeremy Hunt setting aside £1m for tribute

Tory MPs have privately criticised the government’s decision to build a memorial for Muslims who died fighting for Britain in the two world wars.

In messages to a Conservative MPs’ WhatsApp group seen by the Guardian, two Tory MPs elected in 2019 – Marco Longhi and Jill Mortimer – questioned why a memorial for Muslims was needed. The disclosure raises questions about the attitude towards Muslims in some sections of the Conservative party.

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Exclusive: Chair of working group raises concerns over Michael Gove not restarting body that last met in 2020

The government’s anti-Muslimhatred working group (AMHWG) has been “on pause” for more than four years, despite repeated promises from officials and a sharp rise in hate crime.

The Guardian understands members of the AMHWG last officially met in January 2020, before all working groups were adjourned because of the Covid pandemic.

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Displaced families prepare to spend holy month in Rafah amid food shortages and fear of attack

• Middle East crisis – live updates

Seventy days after they were forced to leave their house in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, Hanaa al-Masry, her husband and their six children are preparing for Ramadan in their new home: a dilapidated tent. Here, there will be no decorations, no joyous family meals and no reading of the Qur’an under the lemon and orange trees in the garden.

The Muslim holy month – a time for friends and family as well as religious contemplation, prayer and fasting – starts on Monday and will be like none that anyone in Gaza can remember.

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Open letter signed by families of victims including Manchester Arena bombing says debate ‘must not play into terrorists’ hands’

More than 50 survivors of terrorist attacks, including the Manchester Arena bombing and the London Bridge attacks, have signed an open letter warning politicians to stop conflating British Muslims with extremism.

The signatories include Rebecca Rigby, the widow of soldier Lee Rigby who was murdered in south-east London in 2013, and Paul Price, who lost his partner, Elaine McIver, in the Manchester Arena attack in 2017. They caution against comments which play “into the hands of terrorists”.

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Key site is al-Aqsa mosque on what Jews call the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Peaceful access for Muslims could send a message of calm

Israelis and Palestinians are bracing themselves for a tense and ­potentially violent week, with no sign of a ­ceasefire likely in Gaza and calls from Hamas for protest marches around the Islamic world to mark the start of Ramadan on Monday.

Earlier this month, a halt to hostilities before the Muslim holy month looked possible, but hopes have dimmed since indirect talks in Cairo ended without progress last week.

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Without basic supplies, food and medication, physicians cannot provide life-saving care for premature infants, says Dr. Arham Ali.

How many times must we start all over again?

Breaking its own law, US helped Israel force starvation on Palestinians.

How many ways can we say we are starving?

Hundreds of people have to share one outdoor toilet.

Pediatric specialist Dr. Arham Ali on working at the NICU in a Gaza hospital (15:27); Bryce Greene on how the media launders Israel’s lies (34:26); Jon Elmer on Palestinian resistance in Gaza (01:23:00); and a news update (01:16).

Still no evidence for 7 October sexual violence, despite Pramila Patten's claims.

Parents can't feed hungry children.

Children bear brunt of increasing military raids, as Israel announced further settlement expansions.