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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In New Zealand, Auckland mayor Wayne Brown referred to an RNZ staff member of Indian descent as “a Muslim terrorist” and commented on his beard as the man escorted him into the building for an interview, meanwhile in India, millions in West Bengal are voting in a tight state election, but more than 9 million names have been deleted from the voter list in a rushed revision that disproportionately affects Muslims in key districts, and lastly in the UK, Reform UK is investigating its candidate in the Plymouth City Council elections after he was accused of making a series of Islamophobic and antisemitic posts on social media. Our recommended read of the day is by Liam Adams for The Tennessean on how Muslims in Tennessee have responded to Rep. Andy Ogles’s (R-TN) Islamophobic campaigning by focusing on increasing community outreach to deepen relationships between Muslim and non-Muslim neighbors. This and more below:
United States
As Islamophobia rises, Nashville Muslims focus on bridge-building | Recommended Read
Rep. Andy Ogles has become a leading voice among some Republicans in Congress that Muslims "don't belong" in America. Ogles' rhetoric echoes a history of anti-Muslim sentiment in the region, though it also renews attention on subsequent progress with Muslim outreach to non-Muslims. Today, some Muslim community members are actively engaging in politics, while others are building bridges through local businesses. read the complete article
Islamophobia is surging again, but Muslims won’t be victims this time
Last month, Muslims marked Eid al-Fitr amid war in Iran and surrounding countries, continued bombings in Gaza, violence in Sudan, crushing immigration enforcement and rising anti-Muslim attacks and verbiage, coupled with fear permeating in American Muslim communities as Islamophobic political efforts rise. That didn’t stop about 480 Muslims and interfaith allies from gathering in Washington, D.C., in late March for a celebration that deliberately centered strength and joy, purposefully called An American Eid. The Muslim Public Affairs Council’s Eid celebration was an organized respite from and a clap back to anti-Muslim attacks and rhetoric that have ratcheted up the past few months — that includes mosques (and a Utah-based imam) being shot at or vandalized, and bigoted statements against Muslims by members of Congress. While one evening probably doesn’t have the power to stem the tide of Islamophobic statements and acts of violence of the past several months, it does serve as a powerful example of the ways many American Muslims are choosing unapologetic empowerment combined with strategic, meaningful and nonperformative allyships. They are walking a careful line between maintaining public pressure against what many Muslim communities are enduring, and rising above victimhood status. read the complete article
India
Why Indian Muslim voters say they’ve been frozen out of this state election
Millions in West Bengal are voting in a tight state election, but more than 9 million names have been deleted from the voter list in a rushed revision that disproportionately affects Muslims in key districts. read the complete article
‘Didi vs. Modi’: A Test for the Hindu Right in India’s Bengali Heartland
In India, the world’s largest democracy, a single misspelling from years ago can now threaten a person’s right to vote. Mohammad Ali Halder, a 63-year-old garment manufacturer in West Bengal, found that out after receiving a worrying notice earlier this year, months before elections to select the state’s next government. The Election Commission of India informed him that his father’s name had been spelled differently in two sets of voter records, making it tough to verify Mr. Halder’s identity. Mr. Halder is one of roughly nine million voters, or more than 10 percent of the electorate in West Bengal, whose names have been deleted or cast as “doubtful” in a recent voter roll revision by India’s Election Commission. Many of those deleted were Muslims, and opposition parties have accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government of abusing its power to disenfranchise Muslim voters. Mr. Modi heads a three-member committee that selects the chief of the commission. The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party of Mr. Modi has long described Muslims as invaders who compromise its idea of a Hindu nation. By deleting Muslim names from the voter list, the party may raise its chances in a state that has India’s second-largest Muslim population, and which it has never won. read the complete article
In a rare interview, a leader of the world's largest right-wing group talks to NPR
You're listening to RSS followers in matching khaki pants, white shirts and black hats pledging their allegiance to the Hindu motherland on the organization's 100th anniversary last year. The RSS has millions of members. Its branches maintain deep connections to many of India's key political and cultural institutions. It provides social services, and it emphasizes military discipline to unify its members. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a former member, and his political party is under this group's umbrella. The leaders of this movement rarely talk to the Western press, which is why I was surprised when a lobbyist representing one of those leaders asked to set up an interview. The general secretary of the RSS - more or less the second in command of the organization - is Dattatreya Hosabale. He was in Washington, D.C., for a talk at the conservative think tank the Hudson Institute. I met him in their offices. I wanted to know why this far-right Hindu movement was in the U.S. capital and why Hosabale wanted to talk to the press. read the complete article
United Kingdom
No, a doctor didn’t get struck off for asking a woman to remove her niqab
Over the last week, media outlets including the Telegraph, LBC, GB News and Talk TV have run stories about Dr Keith Wolverson, a GP who was barred from practising medicine earlier this month. “Doctor Banned After Asking Muslim Woman To Remove Veil,” reads one headline. “Doctor suspended for asking Muslim woman to remove veil is struck off,” states another. Wolverson’s story has become a lightning rod for anti-Muslim sentiment on both traditional and social media, with commenters claiming the case is evidence of a demise of British values and disproportionate control held by Muslims in Britain. One remark highlighted by Talk TV itself reads: “It’s time we ban burqa not doctors.” Despite the implications of the headlines in recent days, this is not the reason he was struck off. The decision of the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) from 10 April shows that Wolverson was removed from the register because he failed to engage with the regulatory system necessary for his return to work after he was suspended for several counts of misconduct and dishonesty. read the complete article
Reform investigates candidate for anti-Islam posts
Reform UK is investigating its candidate in the Plymouth City Council elections after he was accused of making a series of Islamophobic and antisemitic posts on social media. According to an article in The Times, Ben Rowe, candidate for the Ham ward in Plymouth, urged protesters throwing bricks at police defending a mosque to "get rid of that filthy building" during the 2024 Southport riots. The leader of Reform UK on Plymouth City Council, Steve Ricketts, said the party was "thoroughly investigating" the matter. read the complete article
Local elections 2026: what success for Reform UK could mean for Muslims
Since winning four million votes in the 2024 general election — performing better than any challenger party in modern UK politics — Reform UK has gained control of 10 local authorities and enjoyed a surge of media attention. It now poses a significant risk to the century-old duopoly held by the Conservatives and Labour. The party built its support on hard-line anti-immigration rhetoric and promises of a tougher criminal justice system. Among its flagship policies is the creation of a mass deportation agency. Inflammatory rhetoric against migrants and minorities has been key to the political brand of its leader, veteran eurosceptic Nigel Farage. read the complete article
Canada
The “Social Death” of Muslim Women in Quebec
Hadjira Belkacem didn’t wait for the humiliation of being fired because of her religion. She quit. Belkacem taught children in Quebec’s government-subsidized daycares for nearly 20 years, taking babies from their parents’ arms every morning and returning them safely at night. She was like a second mother to them, witnessing first steps and first words, teaching them how to use a fork, how to say please, how to show empathy and which arm goes in which sleeve of their winter coats. Years ago, when a mother with two children in Belkacem’s care became pregnant with her third, she said Belkacem would drive the kids home every night so she didn’t have to pick them up. “She wasn’t just doing a job, she was building a community,” the mother said, in an interview with The Rover. All of these things that Belkacem did — from wiping away tears to lighting candles on birthday cakes — she did while wearing a hijab. But hijabi women aren’t allowed to work in Quebec’s government-run daycare system anymore. read the complete article
New Zealand
Auckland mayor Wayne Brown refers to RNZ staffer as 'a Muslim terrorist'
Auckland mayor Wayne Brown referred to an RNZ staff member of Indian descent as "a Muslim terrorist" and commented on his beard as the man escorted him into the building for an interview. Brown said the comments were a "fumbled attempt at humour". RNZ said the man was greeting Brown as he arrived at RNZ's Auckland offices for an appearance on the Afternoons programme on Monday. The staff member apologised to Brown for the wait, mentioning security being tight in the building, an RNZ spokesperson said in a statement. "The Mayor responded with a comment along the lines of 'security can't be very tight if we're being escorted by a Muslim terrorist'," the RNZ spokesperson said. "The Mayor also made a comment about the employee's looks and said something like 'gosh look at your beard'." read the complete article