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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In the UK, a man has pleaded guilty to racially abusing and spitting at a bus driver in west London on after a video surfaced of the suspect shouting anti-Muslim slurs and threats at the driver on social media, meanwhile in India, a large group of men from the Hindu Raksha Dal, a Hindu right-wing organization, targeted a slum near Galdhar Railway station singling out and violently assaulting the Muslim dwellers, and in the US, a Florida man who engaged in a hate-motivated assault against a Muslim U.S. Postal Service carrier who was wearing a hijab was sentenced to more than three years in federal prison on Friday. Our recommended read of the day is by Bridge Initiative Associate Director Mobashra Tazamal for Politico who writes on how the mainstreaming of Islamophobia in the UK is due to “decades of hostile media rhetoric and discriminatory government policy”. This and more below:
United Kingdom
The mainstreaming of Islamophobia in the UK | Recommended Read
Disinformation on online platforms played a crucial role in inciting these riots, as individuals with large followings spread false claims. For instance, a study by Dr. Marc Owen Jones, outlined how self-described misogynist influencer Andrew Tate, GB News broadcaster Darren Grimes and anti-Muslim agitator Tommy Robinson had a significant impact in spreading fictitious rumors online. However, the ease with which these racist claims spread demonstrates something else — the normalization of Islamophobia in British society. And it’s not just social media that’s to blame. British media has long peddled a manufactured narrative that Muslims don’t assimilate or uphold “British values,” that they’re prone to violence, that Muslim men are involved in pedophilia and the rape of white women, and that Muslim women are both oppressed and also a threat to British culture. It’s thus unsurprising that a 2022 survey found over a quarter (25.9 percent) of the British public felt negatively toward Muslims. When it comes to British politicians, unfortunately, not much is different. For years, rhetoric across the political spectrum has been laced with anti-Muslim tropes. This past week’s anti-Muslim mobs chanted slogans that were used by mainstream politicians in parliament. “Stop the boats” was the immigration policy of previous Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. His Home Secretary Suella Braverman, who spearheaded an illegal migration bill, had argued that illegal immigrants “possess values which are at odds with our country,” and attempted to tie “people coming on boats” to “drug-dealing, exploitation, and prostitution.” In 2022, then-Conservative Home Secretary Priti Patel put asylum seekers in the same category as rapists. And it was her prime minister, Boris Johnson, who in 2018 likened Muslim women who wore the niqab to “letterboxes” and “bank robbers.” He took office the following year. read the complete article
The Tories have created an Islamophobic cesspit – but Labour must share some of the guilt
Today, after days of an attempted Islamophobic pogrom on English streets, the question we should all be asking is: how did bigotry against Muslims become so widespread, acceptable and mainstream in Britain? There are obvious culprits. A vicious rightwing press has long presented Muslims as a dangerous enemy within, and Muslim migrants and refugees as hostile invaders. The Tories have created an Islamophobic cesspit: Sayeeda Warsi, the most senior Tory Muslim politician, has waged a lonely protracted battle to expose anti-Muslim prejudice within the party that she says “exists from the grassroots, all the way up to the top”. But ignoring Labour’s role – past and present – in making Muslims a stigmatised, caricatured and feared minority would be an assault on the truth. It was Labour that embroiled Britain in the calamities of Iraq and Afghanistan, in which western violence slaughtered thousands of Muslims. That radicalised a minority of Muslims, but because a discussion about foreign policy was treated as verboten, this was framed as an inherent problem within Islam itself. “Many millions” of Muslims simply had a viewpoint that was “fundamentally incompatible with the modern world”, declared Tony Blair. When, in 2006, the Labour cabinet minister Jack Straw declared he was uncomfortable speaking to Muslim women wearing a veil, calling it “a visible statement of separation and of difference”, it triggered days of Islamophobic bile in the rightwing press. New Labour’s clampdown on civil liberties legitimised Islamophobia. Amnesty International said of the 2003 counter-extremism strategy Prevent: “Islamophobic stereotypes associating Muslims with extremism or terrorism have played a major role in referrals to Prevent.” read the complete article
After two weeks of violence in the UK, healing is going to take some work
Britain has seen its worst acts of violence and disorder in more than a decade over the last fortnight. Far-right violent mobs, fueled by misinformation that a Muslim immigrant was responsible for the tragic stabbing deaths of three young girls in Southport, "retaliated" by attacking mosques, migrants and ethnic minorities. A Britain-born Christian teen, born in Wales to parents from Rwanda, was actually responsible for the killings. The misinformation did help spark the violence, but it would not have been possible without the latent prejudices that it sought to trigger. So how prejudiced is Britain? The long-term story is of positive change across generations. However anti-Muslim prejudice does have a broader social reach than most other forms of racism and prejudice in Britain today. read the complete article
Keep calm and carry on: The UK far-right won't win the media war
We warned this could happen. After years of disinformation, demonisation, and the scapegoating of British minorities, migrants, and Muslims, Pandora’s Box has been opened in the UK, with terrifying consequences. Last weekend, far-right rioters tried to kill asylum seekers living in hotels. Not once but twice – in two different English towns. The rioters claimed they had “legitimate concerns” about immigration policy that had gone unheard, and that a reasonable response was to set fire to their accommodation paid for by the state. Let’s be clear: it is not a “reasonable” response to anything, it is attempted murder. And parts of the UK’s divisive political and media establishment are complicit. Towns and cities across England and Northern Ireland erupted – leaving the police to battle unprecedented violent disorder organised, promoted and perpetrated by racist agitators spreading misinformation. Instead of addressing the complex issues of poor housing, health and wealth disparities, far-right forces have played a far simpler tune to vulnerable communities: why bother metaphorically ‘punching up’ at those in power by demanding, say, a long-term sustainable industrial strategy that will ready us for the challenges of the technological revolution when you can literally ‘punch down’ the person of colour up the road and feel better for an adrenaline-fuelled week of burning and looting? read the complete article
Muslim Council Wales accuses Senedd Tory leader of 'race baiting'
The Muslim Council of Wales has accused the Welsh Conservative Senedd leader of“Islamophobic race-baiting” after comments he made about school meals. It has also expressed alarm over what it says are “the sheer number of Islamophobic comments” allowed to be left on Andrew RT Davies’ Facebook account. In an article for GB news Andrew RT Davies wrote “children should not be forced to eat halal school lunches”. This was after a constituent said she was told non-halal meat was not available at her daughter’s school in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan. The school later said on social media “the statement that all meat options are halal only is incorrect”. But the GB news article was posted on X by far-right activist, the convicted criminal Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, also known as Tommy Robinson was and shared widely. read the complete article
OPINION - The Islamophobic pogrom in the UK is a result of decades of racist policies
A key feature of all forms of racism is how an individual is seen to represent an entire community. Islamophobia is not only present in acts of violence against perceived expressions of Muslimness but also in the conditions that make such violence thinkable. A false rumour may have triggered the pogrom, but it was not the cause. We are currently living in a time when Islamophobia has become routine: from microaggressions to genocide, from Gaza to Gujarat, from street thugs to billionaires, media outlets to governments: Muslim lives seem not to matter. If we focus solely on what is specific to this Islamophobic pogrom in Britain, we risk treating it as an isolated incident and obscuring its causes. Islamophobia targets Muslimness because Muslims cannot be contained within the boundaries of any nation-state; they escape ethnonationalism and remind us of our common humanity because they represent, at their best, the possibility of imagining a people beyond racism. Whenever Islamophobes appear, whether in non-Muslim or Muslim countries, they first try to nationalise Islam. Whether it is governments in France or China or a hijabi woman in Türkiye demanding that Syrian refugees be forcibly repatriated, it is Islamophobia, and it is global. The Islamophobic pogrom in Britain occurs in the midst of an ongoing genocidal assault on Gaza. Since Oct. 7th, the British establishment has described pro-Palestinian, anti-genocide protests as “hate marches,” condemning them as antisemitic while continuing to support genocide by a colonial-racial settler regime, offering it military and diplomatic backing. The far-right thugs and their enablers have repeatedly recycled Tel Aviv’s propaganda against Palestinians and Muslims. The dehumanization of Palestinians and the demonization of pro-Palestinian activists is the backdrop to the outburst of violent street Islamophobia that the world saw last week. read the complete article
There can be no excuses. The UK riots were violent racism fomented by populism
We must now add the summer of 2024 to the list of riots that were in essence organised violence against minority communities. My generation, brought up amid the endemic racism of the 1980s, had in recent years started to believe that our memories of being assaulted on the streets or besieged in our homes belonged firmly to a 20th-century Britain that we had long ago left behind. Now members of another generation of Britons from minority communities have traumatic memories that they too will have to process later in life. An understanding of the long and ugly history of the second type of British “race riot” might have helped some of the journalists and commentators who last week attempted to explain the causes of the wave of violence and looting we have just witnessed. The initial category error, made by much of the media, was to describe riots as protests. That misstep led to later difficulties. It convinced editors of the need to adopt the increasingly unviable stance of “bothsidesism” and to go in search of deeper social causes behind the violence. Race riots of the sort Britain experienced in 1919, 1948 and 1958 have always had the same motivations – racism and nativism. To put the violence directed at British Muslims, Black Britons and asylum seeking down to “legitimate grievances” is to fall for one of the most toxic and intentionally divisive falsehoods in the populist handbook: the myth that class and race are diametrically opposed, the assertion that non-white people have no class identity. In this distorted world view, the true working class are the “white working class”, and the difficulties they face are not a consequences of political choices that affect everyone, irrespective of ethnicity, skin colour or faith, but of “elites” putting the needs of minority communities first. As if those minorities are not themselves working class. Boris Johnson’s disastrous government pushed that falsehood whenever it got the chance. read the complete article
Man pleads guilty to racially abusing and spitting at London bus driver
A man has pleaded guilty to racially abusing and spitting at a bus driver in west London. Police were called to Coldharbour Lane in Hayes at 12.25pm on Wednesday (August 7) after Michael Mongan shouted racial abuse at a bus driver. The driver had refused to let Mongan board as he did not have enough money to pay for his journey. Mongan then spat at the bus driver's cab “a number of times” while shouting Islamophobic abuse and making threats. A video of the incident was widely shared on social media. Mongan was quickly identified and arrested on Friday (August 9). He was charged with a racially aggravated public order offence and criminal damage. read the complete article
‘I feel fear’: Muslims in the UK question sense of belonging after riots
On Friday, a holy day for Muslims, fewer women are attending prayers at their local mosques across the United Kingdom. Those who dare out are exchanging safety tips. Move in groups, avoid crowds, keep your car windows closed. “I’m quite a strong person, and yet I feel fear, you know? I feel scared,” said Saba Ahmed, a resident who works for a multicultural hub that serves local communities. “It just doesn’t feel right.” Fears spread over the city as Islamophobic and racist riots took place in the wake of the killing of three young girls in Southport, less than one hour’s drive from here. Rumours on social media falsely claimed that the suspect was a Muslim and an asylum seeker. The disinformation, since neither is true, fuelled the worst bout of violence to hit the nation in years. The riots, which took place in dozens of areas, have been extinguished thanks to the thousands of antiracism protesters who outnumbered them in a show of solidarity with those affected. Police have handed heavy sentences to rioters, which has also dissuaded others from joining in. read the complete article
Muslim NHS workers report rise in racist abuse since far-right riots began
The head of an association representing Muslim health workers has said it has recorded an increase in racist abuse since the beginning of the far-right riots last week, with “unprecedented” fear among NHS staff. Dr Salman Waqar, the president of the British Islamic Medical Association (Bima), which represents about 7,000 healthcare staff, said health workers had been left in fear and affected personally and professionally. Waqar said: “I’ve seen some terrible messages, particularly coming out from Belfast and in Greater Manchester, of people having to close up their GP surgery early, of people being trapped in their practices, of people having to take taxis back and forth from work, people not going on home visits, people working remotely from home, there’s too many to mention and to count.” He shared a video and screenshots of text messages from NHS staff, who contacted him about the abuse they had faced in the past week including being called a racial slur and an individual threatening to “kill this Muslim man”. read the complete article
Exclusive: UK government ignored Muslim Council of Britain during far-right riots
The UK government has ignored communications from the country’s largest body representing British Muslims since far-right riots began last Tuesday, Middle East Eye can reveal. The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), established in 1997, is an umbrella organisation with over 500 members - including mosques, schools, local and county councils, professional networks and advocacy groups. Multiple sources in the MCB told MEE that the government has not spoken to the organisation at all during the wave of racially fuelled and Islamophobic rioting across the country. read the complete article
Self-defence classes empower women amid UK’s far-right violence
At a London sports ground, Maya Hassan looks on with pride as about 30 women, nearly all Muslims and from ethnic minorities, join a self-defence class that she organised in response to a wave of riots that saw violent, racist attacks on Muslims and ethnic minorities. The 28-year-old martial arts expert said she wanted to help women of colour to learn how to deal with abuse and build connections and confidence after more than a week of unrest aimed at mosques, asylum seeker hotels and the police. Muslim and ethnic minority communities have expressed shock over the disorder, which was sparked by false information online that the suspected killer of three young girls in a knife attack in Southport, northwest England, was a Muslim migrant. Martial arts instructor Stewart McGill said he had seen more women signing up for classes since the unrest started. He told them how to defend themselves with tactics including kicks and impromptu weapons such as belts. read the complete article
International
Exposed: what links Israel to UK far-right riots?
A powerful anti-Muslim and pro-Israel network is funding the UK's far-right leaders. Figures like Tommy Robinson and Katie Hopkins, who have not only instigated and mobilised recent racist violence, but have been agitating against Muslims and migrants for decades. MEMO video journalist Alexander Morris reveals how an American tech billionaire, a former Israel Department of Defence employee and a far-right news network are at the centre of this network, pushing pro-Israel messages while funding anti-Muslim activism across Europe and the US. read the complete article
What does Allahu Akbar mean and why do Muslims say it?
From happy occasions to sad ones, to protest and during mosque sermons, Muslims have long uttered the Arabic phrase "Allahu Akbar". This week, the UK Conservative MP Robert Jenrick, who is running for leadership of the party, came under fierce criticism after he suggested that police must detain protesters chanting the phrase. The comment was quickly condemned by Muslims and other MPs, who said it was "complete ignorance" and "textbook Islamophobia" by suggesting Muslims chanting it were extremists. The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) said they were shocked by the claim and urged the Conservative hopeful to apologise and retract his comments. Afzal Khan, a Labour MP, said: "Another day, another senior Tory being Islamophobic," in response to the remark. So what exactly do those two Arabic words mean? Allahu Akbar, which translates to "God is Great", is a proclamation Muslims state before and during their five daily prayers. It is sometimes said during other occasions, including weddings, religious supplications, and when seeing something awe-inspiring. read the complete article
United States
Man Who Attacked Muslim Postal Carrier Is Sentenced to 37 Months in Prison
A Florida man who engaged in a hate-motivated assault against a Muslim U.S. Postal Service carrier who was wearing a hijab in October, about two weeks after violence in Israel and Gaza erupted last year, was sentenced to a little more than three years in federal prison on Friday, prosecutors said. The man, Kenneth Pinkney, 47, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., who had pleaded guilty to assault on a federal employee, including a hate crime enhancement, was ordered to serve 37 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida said. “No one should live in fear of being targeted because of their religious beliefs,” Michael Davis, the first assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, said in a statement. “Everyone, including federal employees, have the right to carry out their duties safely.” read the complete article
India
“They went to every house, asking if residents were Muslims or Hindus”: Eyewitness of Ghaziabad attack on Muslims
Last week, men from the Hindu Raksha Dal, a Hindu right-wing organisation, barged into a slum area with wooden and hockey sticks. An angry group of thirteen people went to almost every tent to ask for the residents’ religious identities. Of nearly 200 huts, four were attacked; they were Muslims. “They were so angry, went to everyone’s house, and asked if they were Muslims or Hindus,” said an eyewitness, requesting anonymity. “Hindus were spared, and Muslims were beaten brutally.” On the night of 9 August, a video went viral on social media. The video showed men with sticks vandalising tents, beating people, and setting their belongings on fire in Ghaziabad’s Galdhar. The slum area is near the Galdhar Railway Station and houses hundreds of people. While most of them are Hindus, four, who frequently came to the area for livelihood, were Muslims. The assailant mob was heard using Islamophobic slurs and abusing the Muslims they were attacking. Among those attacked were children, women, the disabled, and the elderly. “They didn’t spare anyone. They beat all 16 of the Muslim families,” the witness said. “We tried to intervene, but they charged at us with lathis and anger.” The Hindu neighbors recalled the mob threatening them: “You are helping Muslims as a Hindu. You should have joined us and beaten them. Stay away, or we will beat you too.” read the complete article