KHAN YASIR presents a brief sketch of the phenomenon known as Islamophobia and presents the only remedy to counter it.
(O Prophet), good and evil are not equal. Repel (evil) with that which is good, and you will see that he, between whom and you there was enmity, shall become as if he were a bosom friend (of yours). (41:34)
Hate – intense dislike and extreme aversion – is a deep emotional impulse which (like pain) can better be felt than explained. Needless to say, harder is the task of theorising hate which David Hume aptly admits is ‘not definable at all’. Think of a person(s)/thing(s) that you hate passionately and you can perceive what hate is all about. But ‘hate’, like its antonym ‘love’, is of various types. Consider the following statements:
• A believer in nonviolence: “Gandhi preached doctrine of violence, bloodshed and arson and so I hate him.” (Ignorance)
• A classmate: “My friends adore him, teachers love him, he is considered to be a star – my foot! I hate him.” (Jealousy)
• A Hindutva fanatic: “I hate them because they refuse to lose their distinct identity and assimilate into the ‘national’ culture.” (Intolerance)
• A student: “I can’t get a single answer right, I hate maths.” (Incapability)
• An employee: “Oh shit, my boss is coming. He scolds me for no reason. I hate him.” (Fear)
• A billionaire: “I hate poor people.” (Superiority complex)
• A girlfriend: “I loved you so much and you did this to me. I hate you.” (Betrayal)
These are some of the dimensions of hate and it is particularly these dimensions that foil the attempts of philosophers to define hate. Islamophobia is, as the term indicates, ‘fear of Islam’ based on ‘hate for Islam’ – or is it the other way round? British Runnymede Trust has defined Islamophobia as, “an outlook or worldview involving an unfounded dread and dislike of Muslims, which results in practices of exclusion and discrimination”. It is also described by scholars as ‘new form of racism’ in Europe.
Elizabeth Poole has ruthlessly criticised the role of media for perpetrating Islamophobia. Hostility towards Islam and Muslims are “closely linked to media portrayals of Islam as barbaric, irrational, primitive and sexist.” (Benn & Jawad)
It should be mentioned that the concept of Islamophobia has been criticised from various quarters and this criticism, and efforts to dispute the existence of Islamophobia, are not just from the avoidable writers like Salman Rushdie and co. Even Fred Halliday naively opines that the target of hostility in the modern era is not Islam but Muslims and their actions; he suggests the term Anti-Muslimism would be more appropriate to describe this phenomenon. Poole, however, responds by noting that many Islamophobic discourses attack what they perceive to be Islam’s tenets, while Miles & Brown write that Islamophobia is usually based upon negative stereotypes about Islam which are then translated into attacks on Muslims (Wikipedia). However, Kenan Malik’s fear that Muslims of the west may develop a ‘culture of victimhood’ where all failings are attributed to Islamophobia should be addressed sincerely.
The one who searches Islamophobia on the Google or Wikipedia will be bewildered by the sheer enormity of enumerations of the Islamophobic incidents in Balkans, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Nigeria, Norway, UK, USA and ‘incidents on aircrafts’ under which a lengthy list of on-the-board incidents of discrimination rather humiliation of Muslims is provided.
Now Islamophobic waters have surpassed the neck of Muslims. With cultural export and globalisation of values, this phenomenon has defied the boundaries of the west and is knocking now at our doorsteps. Its effects are visible especially in urban areas (rural areas have their own indigenised versions of Islamophobia). And we as a Muslim Ummah should counter this phenomenon in all its variance.
On 22 July 2011, an Islamophobic Anders Behring Breivik, indulged in what he called, ‘atrocious but necessary actions’ – actions for which he didn’t hesitate to spent €317,000. What he did? He bombed a government building in Oslo resulting in 8 casualties then he arrived at Utøya Island and opened fire on youths that were attending a camp. He kept firing for 1.5 hours which ultimately resulted in around 90 casualties. He thought by doing this he would prevent Europe from becoming ‘Eurabia’. Breivik – the modern day crusader – as he himself refers to – had painfully written (read copy-pasted) a 1500-page manifesto in which he was all praise for mono-culturalism of Japan and Hindutva fanatics of India. He appreciated South Korea for not allowing refugees within its territory. He suggests Hindutva fanatics to drive Muslims out of India and condemns Pope for whatever little he has done in the name of dialogue with Muslims.
To confront this menace called Islamophobia, we need to analyse its causes and only then suitable remedies can be suggested. Look once again on different dimensions of hate elaborated above; all those dimensions are also hand-in-glove of Islamophobia. Major chunk of Islamophobia is due to ‘blatant ignorance’ of Islam and its tenets. And in wake of this ignorance filthiest and most preposterous of propagandas find its buyers among the masses. If Islam’s stance on issues like jihad, capital punishment, interest, polygamy, slavery, Khilafat, etc. is clarified, it would exterminate the problem to a large extent.
And so when you confront an Islamophobic, think why he is one and then devise a strategy to deal with him but remember the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. ”Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that” – so you have to have a positive attitude. An observatory report on Islamophobia by the OIC stated that Islamophobia has existed for as long as “Islam” itself. If it is so then the remedy of Islamophobia too is 1448 years old. What we need is its creative application today. I narrate here two incidents from Islamic history that cover two dimensions of Islamophobia and if we delve deeper into history, we can unearth numerous such pearls of wisdom.
In Makkah when opposition of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) was at its peak and his message was a matter of household discussion, an old lady too became wary of this new religion. She knew neither Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) nor his teachings in totality but was swayed away by the popular propaganda that he is a poet – whose poetry can mesmerise listeners; he is a sorcerer – whose spells can divide families and tribes. The old lady, waiting in Bazaar for some slave who could carry her luggage, was engrossed in abusing that poet-magician or magician-poet whatever he was for sowing seeds of enmity between the dear ones in Makkah.
No slave was passing by and others were not ready to help her, she was standing under the scorching sun for a long time. Finally, a young man was passing by, his clothes, attitude and walking style betrayed that he is a well-mannered son of some noble family. “He will not do this menial job,” thought the old lady and kept quiet. However, the young man himself reached her, “Can I carry your load, dear old lady?” he asked politely. The old lady smiled in return, it was smile of happiness and relief as well, “Why not?” she quipped. She was very impressed with the manners, politeness, and the way he talked, smiled and behaved. “Who these days help others?” she thought, “may be this guy is badly in need of money, I would pay him more than due, such a nice guy!”
She was absorbed in her thoughts that suddenly something struck her mind hard and she asked the young man, “Do you know some Muhammad who has emerged from nowhere in Makkah, claiming that Allah talks to him?” After getting the young man’s reply in the affirmative, she exhorted him, “Then, my boy! Beware of him. You must not listen to his poetry… or you should not even talk to that rubbish magician in the first place… or do one thing, don’t even pass from nearby him. God knows may be with some tricks he would enchant you as well!” She went on and on, “… he abuses our gods…” “…divides families…” “…only one God, strange?…”
They reached the spot. The young man, visibly tired, smiled yet again and bid goodbye. The old lady tried to remunerate him but he refused saying it was just a small service for God’s sake. When he turned away, the lady asked, “O young man, wouldn’t you even tell me your good name?” “Muhammad!” the smiling face finally revealed his name. “He is Muhammad, the same Muhammad?” the lady couldn’t believe. And finally that Islamophobic lady had fallen prey to the “magician’s” spell. Her Islamophobia was based on ignorance and when she witnessed Islam-incarnate before her, the clouds of misconceptions vanished and untainted sunrays of faith reached and warmed her.
The second incident is of the era of the greatest calamity that befell the Islamic civilisation in history – Tartar invasion.
Sheikh Jamaluddin and his companions were arrested and produced before the Prince Tughlaq Timur with hands and foot firmly tied. They had unknowingly treaded on the game-preserves of the prince. Timur epitomised the entire Tartar abomination for Islam when he asked them pointing towards his dog, “Tell me, who is better, you or my dog?” Sheikh was not to be cowed down either with this insult or the naked display of power; he replied, “If we die on the true faith then we are better. But if not, then obviously your dog is far better than us.” Struck by this astute and audacious reply as well as attitude, Timur later met the Sheikh in seclusion to ask what ‘faith’ is.
Sheikh, grabbing the opportunity with both hands, set before him doctrines of Islam in such a zealous manner that stone-heart of an Islamophobe melted like wax and he promised to embrace Islam after assuming the kingship which he duly fulfilled. Timur’s Islamophobia was based on superiority complex but when Sheikh with his razor-sharp reply (as well as character) presented before him the actual touchstone of superiority – true faith, he was convinced of blindness of his worldview and came into the fold of Islam.
And so, despite all the hues and cries over Islamophobia, large numbers of westerners are embracing Islam on a daily basis. This is another reason of Muslim population increase in the west over which Islamophobes like Breivik go crazy. They continue to shout about Muslim immigration and high fertility rate, feeling shy of admitting that actually they have problems only with conversion of the natives.
In short, to confront Islamophobia we should remember the scenario of Makkah during the Prophetic times, where with increasing incidents of conversions to Islam, opposition to Islam too swelled but instead of drowning in the quagmire of frustration or ghettoising themselves, Muslims opted for bold conveying and fearless preaching of Islam. This is the Master-Key to fight Islamophobia. In so doing, we will certainly come across the Abu Jahls and the Abu Lahbs but will also find the Abu Talibs and the Jubair bin Mut’ams; and would surely earn the Umar bin Khattabs and the Thumama bin Uthaals as well.