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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In the United Kingdom, according to new research conducted by the Muslim Census Survey, only half of British Muslims feel they belong, elsewhere in Britain, a cab driver in Essex is under arrest for stockpiling guns, explosives and homemade grenades for what he said was a “race war” against Muslims, and lastly in Australia, police have admitted that Muslim worshippers had permission to perform prayers, as authorities face backlash over their forcible removal at last week’s protest. Our recommended read of the day is by Geeta Pandey and Asif AliKotdwar for The BBC on the heroism of Hindu gym owner Deepak Kumar, who stood up for a Muslim shopkeeper who was being threatened by a Hindu nationalist mob in Uttarakhand. This and more below:
India
The Hindu who stood up for a Muslim and became a hero | Recommended Read
"My name is Mohammad Deepak." With these five simple words, a Hindu man who stood up for a Muslim shopkeeper has been catapulted to fame and become an unlikely hero in India. Deepak Kumar has been praised as an "icon for secular India" and a "posterboy for India's pluralism". At the same time, he has faced noisy protests, been called a traitor to his Hindu faith and received death threats. The incident that thrust him into the spotlight took place on 26 January in the small town of Kotdwar in the northern state of Uttarakhand. It has made headlines since a video recording of the incident went viral. It shows the 42-year-old gym owner arguing with activists of Bajrang Dal, a hardline Hindu group that routinely makes news for harassing Muslims." Are Muslims not citizens of India?" he is heard asking in the video. Deepak said his intervention was spontaneous and not part of a strategy. "I did not like these young men talking so rudely with an elderly man. They were targeting him because of his religion. They were targeting Muslims." read the complete article
United Kingdom
Only half of British Muslims feel they belong in UK, suggests new report
Only half of British Muslims feel they belong in the UK, according to new research conducted by the Muslim Census Survey. The finding is part of a wider study entitled The Crisis of Belonging, one of the largest ever socio-economic studies of British Muslims. The survey found that just over half (51.9%) of British Muslims feel strongly or strongly that they belong in the UK. A further quarter (25.6%) said they felt ‘neutral’, with around a fifth (17.6%) stating they didn’t feel they belonged in the UK. Of those, nearly 3% (2.8%) said they felt they didn’t belong in the UK at all. Less than 10% (8.2%) said they feel positive about their future in the UK, with six in 10 reporting feeling pessimistic. This rises to nearly two third of young Muslims aged 18-24. This age group were the second most likely to report feeling negatively about their future in the UK. The report’s authors suggests that this relates to a feeling amongst respondents that the UK feels ‘increasingly hostile’ towards British Muslims, with their findings pointing to feelings of ‘fear, exclusion, and insecurity’. read the complete article
A brown girl with a scarf: My experience being a Muslim girl in Durham
I am incredibly proud of my religion, but also incredibly aware of the assumptions now placed upon me by people who had never met me. The first friend I met up with after putting on the hijab asked me, eyeliner drawn thickly around concerned eyes, “Did your parents make you wear that?” I had laughed slightly, my smile fading once I realised that she wasn’t joking. I took a calming sip of the hot chocolate in front of me and made myself actually consider an answer. “My mom doesn’t wear the hijab, actually. It’s her choice whether or not to put it on, to dress as covered as they want. I choose to dress modestly because I like being known by my faith.” I twisted my lips to the side, considering. “Just like how your goth clothes,” I gestured to her fashionable all-black ensemble, “let people know that you’re a theatre kid with great taste, my hijab lets people know how I conduct myself, just like my Indian jewelley lets people know that I’m proud of my heritage. I choose to dress in a way that displays my identities, and how happy I am to represent them.” I remembered our conversation in the spring a few weeks after making the big decision. I was walking with my mother around the quiet streets of my American hometown, a green scarf covering my head, a blue scarf covering her shoulders. “You’re already all the way in England, beta. What if something happens to you? What if someone tries to attack you because you wear a hijab?” She paused, collecting her words. “It’s a brave thing to do. I’m just so worried about you.” I hate that I have to carry my mother’s worry around. I hate that I can’t tell her about my hijabi friend who had her scarf pulled off, violently, suddenly, in the middle of the street just a town over from my university campus. I hate that her worries have so much validity. read the complete article
Anti-Muslim graffiti removed from fence near Horwich school
The graffiti had been daubed down a ginnel which runs between Chorley New Road and Mansell Way in Horwich. The public path runs down the side of Chorley New Road Primary Academy. The writing read "Kill Muslim", with what appeared to be a Christian cross drawn next to it. The writing appeared to have been crossed out. It was reported to the police and Bolton Council. Now, a spokesperson for the council confirmed that the graffiti has been removed. read the complete article
Lorry driver who prepared for 'race war' jailed
Thomas McKenna, 60, had set up a gun-conversion factory in a caravan on a travellers' site in South Ockenden, Essex. Police say he was a key supplier of firearms to criminals and, since his arrest, the number of shootings in London using converted firearms has fallen significantly. McKenna was also stockpiling guns, explosives and homemade grenades for what he said was a "race war" against Muslims that he believed was coming. When police raided McKenna's homes, officers found two homemade explosive devices, one filled with bullets and screws. They were hidden in a jug in the caravan where McKenna and Tina Smith lived and counter-terrorism detectives and a bomb disposal team were called in. When detectives looked at McKenna's electronic devices they discovered he was stockpiling weapons and explosives in preparation for what he called a "race war". Det Ch Insp James Tipple said: "McKenna had a very anti-Muslim sentiment and had sent messages to friends and associates saying he was collecting the weapons in anticipation of their violent use to 'kill' or 'shoot' Muslims, in his words." read the complete article
UK decision to ban Palestine Action as ‘terror group’ unlawful, court says
The High Court in the United Kingdom has ruled that the government ban on the pro-Palestinian campaign group called Palestine Action as a “terror group” was unlawful. In a statement responding to the landmark ruling on Friday, Palestine Action’s co-founder Huda Ammori, who had challenged the government’s ban, said the ruling was a huge win for the group. “This is a monumental victory both for our fundamental freedoms here in Britain and in the struggle for freedom for the Palestinian people, striking down a decision that will forever be remembered as one of the most extreme attacks on free speech in recent British history.” However, the British government immediately said it intended to appeal the court’s ruling. There has been a sharp split in the UK between government policy, not recognising Israel’s war a s a genocide, and supporting Israel on the diplomatic stage, with public opinion. Hundreds of thousands across the country have protested for an end to the war and punitive action against Israel. read the complete article
United States
Virginia ‘Islamophobia’ bill creates recording category, not new crime
First Amendment encroachment and fear that a new crime has been created tied to the “Islamophobia” bill are not founded, says the Virginia bill’s author and a leading voice on free speech. Both tell TCS bias-related incidents would have a new categorization. “The purpose of this legislation is to create a subcategory so the state can track these crimes,” Sen. Saddam Azlan Salim, D-Fairfax, told TCS on Thursday. “This does not infringe on any First Amendment rights.” Senate Bill 624 – filed Jan. 14 and on Feb. 2 moved to the 2027 legislative session – proposes adding a definition of “Islamophobia” to Virginia’s assault-and-battery statute. The legislation does not create a new criminal offense; rather, it addresses how certain bias-related incidents could be classified and tracked. Salim said the bill is largely focused on reporting and data collection rather than expanding criminal liability. The Department of State Police in consultation with the Office of the Attorney General and the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, would include the bill’s definition of “Islamophobia” in its hate crime reporting central repository. read the complete article
Australia
Australian police admit dragging Muslim worshippers despite prayer permission during Herzog visit
Australian police have admitted that Muslim worshippers had permission to perform prayers, as authorities face backlash about their forcible removal. The New South Wales Police Force confirmed on Thursday that the worshippers had been told they could continue to worship, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). "The NSW police force has now become aware that a senior police officer had allowed a group of Muslim protesters to continue praying at Town Hall Square on Monday evening," said a spokesperson. Thousands of protesters took to the streets against Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s visit to Australia, leading to clashes with police at several locations. "The senior officer was attempting to relay that message to other officers who were carrying out a move-on direction during what was a noisy, dynamic and fast-moving situation,” the spokesperson added. read the complete article