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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In the United Kingdom, the graves of children and babies are among up to 85 desecrated at a cemetery in what the council has branded an “Islamophobic hate crime”, meanwhile in India, a 20-year-old woman was allegedly assaulted and stripped of her hijab, while the Hindu man accompanying her was beaten by a group of men in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar, and in the United States, more than 370 alumni of Georgetown University joined 65 current students there in signing on to a letter opposing immigration authorities’ detention of Dr Badar Khan Suri, a senior postdoctoral fellow at the institution’s Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding (ACMCU). Our recommended read of the day is by Rana Ayyub for The Washington Post who writes that the “unrest following the release of the Bollywood film called “Chhaava” (“Lion Cub”) is one more example of how the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) uses ancient history to incite hatred against India’s Muslim minority.” This and more below:
India
This 17th-century hatred is fueling India’s politics | Recommend Read
In February, a Bollywood film called “Chhaava” (“Lion Cub”) debuted in India amid massive fanfare. In the film, actor Vicky Kaushal plays Sambhaji, a Hindu leader who took on Mughal ruler Aurangzeb in the 17th century. Aurangzeb is portrayed as a sadist who chains and tortures the valiant hero, whose fingernails and tongue are pulled out and who eventually (spoiler alert!) dies. Mughal soldiers also burn a shepherdess alive. Indian news channels showed viewers emerging from the theater sobbing, exclaiming that they were unaware of the gory history of the Mughals in India. Ironically, the film was released on Valentine’s Day, when many couples pose in front of the Taj Mahal, a symbol of love constructed by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan as a memorial to his favorite wife. But these beloved places went unmentioned in the onslaught of acrimony that followed the release of “Chhaava.” On social media, Hindu nationalists expressed outrage over the treatment of Hindu leaders by Islamic invaders more than three centuries ago. Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the film, prompting several states to make the movie tax-free. The chief minister of the northern state of Uttarakhand announced he was renaming cities and roads named after Muslims and Mughals. And the chief minister of Maharashtra state asked that Aurangzeb’s tomb, which is under archaeological protection, be removed. In the city of Nagpur, mobs demanding the removal of the tomb attacked homes and set vehicles on fire, killing a 38-year-old Muslim man during the rampage. The unrest following the release of the movie is one more example of how the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) uses ancient history to incite hatred against India’s Muslim minority. Mughal rule in India has long been used as a dog whistle by the Hindu nationalist party, which refers to the country’s more than 200 million Muslims as the “children of Mughals.” Since Modi came to power in 2014, Bollywood has made the Mughals the enemy. Even Muslim leaders long recognized as heroes have been caught in the historical crossfire. Tipu Sultan, the “Tiger of Mysore,” used to be celebrated for fiercely protecting his state from British invasion in the 18th century. Today, BJP leaders want to strip him of all honors. read the complete article
Muslim woman stripped off hijab, Hindu boy accompanying her thrashed by mob in Uttar Pradesh
A 20-year-old woman was allegedly assaulted and stripped of her hijab, while the Hindu man accompanying her was beaten by a group of men in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar on Saturday. A video of the incident went viral on social media, triggering widespread outrage. In the video, a man is seen forcibly removing the woman’s hijab as others shout abuses, harass and physically assault both her and the man she was with.The incident took place in the city’s Khalapar area when the duo, riding a bike, were returning from Sujroo village after collecting a loan EMI. According to the police complaint, the woman said she had been accompanying one of her mother’s colleagues to collect an EMI on behalf of Utkarsh Small Finance Bank when they were stopped and attacked. read the complete article
United States
A Palestinian activist expecting a US citizenship interview is arrested instead by ICE in Vermont
A Palestinian man who led protests against the war in Gaza as a student at Columbia University was arrested Monday at a Vermont immigration office where he expected to be interviewed about finalizing his U.S. citizenship, his attorneys said. Mohsen Mahdawi, a legal permanent resident who has held a green card since 2015, was detained at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Colchester by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, his lawyers said. The attorneys said they do not know where he is. They filed a petition in federal court seeking an order barring the government from removing him from the state or country. “The Trump administration detained Mohsen Mahdawi in direct retaliation for his advocacy on behalf of Palestinians and because of his identity as a Palestinian. His detention is an attempt to silence those who speak out against the atrocities in Gaza. It is also unconstitutional,” attorney Luna Droubi said in an email. read the complete article
Georgetown alumni and students call for release of scholar detained by Ice
More than 370 alumni of Georgetown University joined 65 current students there in signing on to a letter opposing immigration authorities’ detention of Dr Badar Khan Suri, a senior postdoctoral fellow at the institution’s Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding (ACMCU). The letter, dated Sunday and shared with the Guardian, follows the Trump administration’s detention of Khan Suri – a citizen of India – on 17 March. He is being held at an immigration prison in Alvarado, Texas, where his next hearing is scheduled for 6 May. Immigration officials revoked his J-1 student visa, alleging his father-in-law was an adviser to Hamas officials more than a decade ago – and claiming he was “deportable” because of his posts on social media in support of Palestine. “We see his detention clearly for what it is: an attempt to instill fear, silence critical thought, and erode solidarity among students and scholars of varying backgrounds and identities,” the letter added. “We reject this attempt and demand his immediate release.” read the complete article
Marjorie Taylor Greene's ex-husband settles harassment claim by Muslim women for $75K
Three Muslim college students who were verbally harassed while praying outside the Avalon shopping center in Alpharetta have reached a $75,000 settlement with Perry Greene, the ex-husband of Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. During a news conference Monday in Johns Creek, attorneys for the women and representatives from CAIR Georgia revealed new details about the case and its resolution. The women said Greene contacted them through their attorneys after the video began circulating online. He later apologized to them privately and issued a public apology earlier this month. read the complete article
Bush’s ‘War On Terror’ Helped Create Trump’s Terrifying War On Immigrants
During his first presidential campaign nearly 10 years ago, Donald Trump promised to “load” up the infamous prison at Guantánamo Bay with “some bad dudes.” Weeks after Trump’s second inauguration, the administration put 10 migrants on a flight to Guantánamo, claiming without evidence that they were members of a Venezuelan gang called Tren de Aragua. Over the next several weeks, the administration sent hundreds of migrants to the offshore naval base and Trump ordered government officials to prepare to imprison as many as 30,000 migrants at Guántanamo. The influx of detainees, many of whom had never been charged with a crime, invoked images of the post-Sept. 11, 2001, so-called “war on terror”: secret prisons where torture was rampant, years of litigation over what rights applied at Guantánamo, defense contractors inking multimillion-dollar construction deals, and people who would never walk free nor be charged with doing anything wrong. “If you go back to the early days of the War on Terror, Guantánamo was supposed to be the legal equivalent of outer space, where no law applied. It’s that threat that you saw the Trump administration invoking in order to terrorize immigrants,” said J. Wells Dixon, a senior staff attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, a civil liberties nonprofit that played a major role in challenging war on terror detentions at Guantánamo and is now challenging the Trump administration’s migrant detentions. read the complete article
US: Zio-McCarthyism, a 21st century political purge that has dangerous overtones
In the 1950s, the United States launched a sweeping campaign to root out alleged communists from public life. Careers were destroyed, lives were upended and a culture of fear permeated the political and academic landscape. That era, McCarthyism, is remembered today as a dark and shameful chapter in American history. We are now living through its echo. But this time, it comes under a different banner. This is the era of Zio-McCarthyism, a new political purge targeting anyone who dares to oppose the atrocities committed by the Israeli state or express solidarity with the Palestinian people. And just like the original, this one will not stop at its initial targets. In recent months, we’ve seen a disturbing escalation. Pro-Palestinian activists are being detained, surveilled, deported and smeared for little more than exercising their constitutional rights. Some press reports revealed that the Trump administration is preparing to strip naturalised citizens of their status if they are deemed disloyal or "aligned with foreign adversaries". If implemented, this would mark the first wide-scale denaturalisation programme in decades with American citizens being sent to a Gitmo-like torture camp in a foreign nation. If history teaches us anything, it’s that political purges never stay confined. In the 1950s, it started with communists and swept up civil rights leaders, labour organisers and artists. In the 2000s, the so-called War on Terror began with Muslims and spread through the dark corridors of the Patriot Act. And today, the crackdown on Palestinian solidarity is only the beginning. Already, the campaign is expanding beyond immigrants. Visa revocations, ICE raids and visa denials are happening at alarming rates. But it would be naive to believe it ends there. Naturalised citizens are next. Their citizenship, already treated as conditional by some in power, is now being actively re-examined. read the complete article
United Kingdom
Children and babies’ graves among up to 85 damaged in ‘Islamophobic hate crime’ at Watford cemetery
Children and babies' graves are among up to 85 desecrated at a cemetery in what the council has branded an “Islamophobic hate crime”. Muslim burial sites were ripped out of the ground or destroyed in Carpenders Park Lawn cemetery in Watford on Saturday, sparking grief and outrage from families and the local community. All of the graves vandalised were in a section reserved for Muslim burials, police said as they investigate. No arrests have been made so far. A spokesperson for Wadi Funeralcare said some graves were subjected to “unspeakable acts of disrespect”. He told The Independent: “Their pain and anguish was deeply felt by all of us. “We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the many individuals and organisations who responded swiftly and stood in solidarity with the affected families and our wider community.” He added: “This incident has deeply shaken our community, but the swift response and shared outrage remind us of the strength we have when we stand together.” read the complete article
International
Speaking out against Islamophobia now risks accusations of extremism
Words like infiltration, Brotherhood, Islamism, separatism, and communitarianism are now everywhere. They've become so common that few stop to question them. Their unspoken assumption? That some Muslims aren’t just stepping back from broader society to quietly practice their faith—but are instead pushing a hidden agenda to undermine society and disrupt the social order. In other words, what may start as a legitimate concern quickly slides into conspiracy thinking. “They” here refers to both those who intentionally weaponize this rhetoric and others who, perhaps sincerely, sense some vague and looming threat. It’s no longer just about condemning jihadist violence or vaguely defined Islamism. It’s about actively tracking down supposedly deviant Muslims simply because they’re visible in public life. A woman wearing a headscarf. A man with a beard. A citizen criticizing state policy—whether it’s about government’s management of Islam, interpretations of secularism, or foreign policy on Israel and Palestine. Today, just using the word “Islamophobia” can get someone accused of being an Islamist or a Brotherhood sympathizer—or at the very least, an enabler. While Islamism and Brotherhood ideologies do exist, their actual expressions often don’t match the mainstream portrayals. Speaking out against discrimination, racism, or bigotry is itself viewed as suspicious. In some circles, even calling out bigotry can spark accusations that you're “putting a target” on those who make Islamophobic comments, whether overt or subtle. Take the increasingly common claim that the headscarf is inherently a symbol of Islamist submission, or that Brotherhood influence is at play whenever a Muslim protests vandalism at a mosque—a pig’s head or blood left outside a place of worship. A Muslim who expresses a dissenting or critical view is now often dismissed outright in the public sphere—written off due to their perceived religious conservatism, whether real or imagined. Claims by a particularly vocal researcher on X (formerly Twitter), now echoed by ministers and media figures, have gained wide traction—to the dismay of many academics. Those same scholars are then accused of Brotherhood sympathies simply for challenging the flimsy academic basis of such claims. Their arguments? Only ex-Muslims are truly equipped to fight Islamism. That logic implies that practicing Muslims—or those deemed “too Muslim”—are either incapable or complicit. read the complete article