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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In France, the French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM) condemned the media and political harassment of women wearing the veil on Wednesday amid discussions about a headscarf ban in sports, meanwhile in the U.S., an attack on a Somali Muslim woman by four suspects in Ohio should be investigated by police as a possible hate crime, says the Council on American-Islamic Relations, and in Israel, an upcoming conference on antisemitism will host several far-right European politicians in a move many experts say could further fan the flames of antisemitism worldwide. Our recommended read of the day is by Gloria Oladipo for The Guardian on how ICE agents seem to be targeting certain Pro-Palestine protesters over others, often persons of color with visas and scholarships, as a means of intimidation. This and more below:
United States
‘A warning for students of color’: Ice agents are targeting certain protesters, say experts | Recommended Read
For more than a year, students at US colleges and universities have participated in protests in support of Palestine, as Israel’s war has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023. Students have faced suspensions and expulsions over encampment demonstrations and other actions, as schools crack down on participation. Now, at least five students and academics of color at US universities have been targeted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice), as a part of the Trump administration’s ongoing push to punish noncitizens over their support of Palestine. “What we’re seeing is the use of immigration law to go after visa holders, permanent lawful residents, [over] their speech,” said Samah Sisay, a staff attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR). “He’s trying to suppress political speech that goes against what the administration wants.” Despite white students, professors and academics also being heavily involved in pro-Palestine protests, people of color have disproportionately faced sudden arrests and threats of deportation or had their visas revoked. “We’re just seeing the focus on very specific people,” said Sisay, referring to academics of color. “I think it really is to try to create a wedge in solidarity, the multiracial, multiethnic solidarity that’s been created in support of Palestinian human rights.” Ice’s actions, she said, have “set a warning for students of color at these universities who rely on scholarships and educational support to improve their lives or better the situations for their family”. read the complete article
Attack on Muslim woman outside Ohio apartment building should be probed as hate crime, says pressure group
An attack on a Somali Muslim woman by four suspects in Ohio should be investigated by police as a possible hate crime, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Video footage of the assault showed the Muslim woman outside an apartment building arguing with the group, who appeared to be white, on March 20 in Columbus while waiting for her children’s school bus. The individuals then attacked her by punching and shoving her to the ground, the group said. While on the ground, one of the attackers repeatedly kicked her. As she moved to get up and walked toward the building, another assailant exited the structure and struck her across the face. The victim, who was not identified, believes she was targeted because of her ethnicity and religion, the organization said. She obtained treatment at a nearby hospital and was later released. Earlier this month, the group, which is the country’s largest Muslim civil liberties organization, reported that it had fielded 8,658 complaints regarding anti-Muslim and anti-Arab incidents last year, representing a 7.4 percent increase year on year. It was also the highest number since CAIR began collecting data in 1996. read the complete article
US: Tufts University student detained for pro-Palestine views transferred to Louisiana
Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish national on a student visa, is currently being held in detention in Louisiana, according to her lawyer, Middle East Eye can reveal. A Massachusetts judge ordered her not to be removed from the state, but it is unclear whether she was moved before or after the order was delivered. Masked Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents approached and physically restrained the Tufts University doctoral student while on the street in Somerville, Massachusetts, on Wednesday before taking her into custody for “pro-Palestine” views. She is being held at the South Louisiana Processing Center. Chilling video footage of the incident on Tuesday shows a man approaching Ozturk, while she was on the phone with her mother, and grabbing her wrists. Five other agents surrounded her, removed her backpack, and placed her in handcuffs before escorting her away. Ozturk, looking terrified, could be heard screaming that she had done nothing wrong. The Boston Globe reported that neighbours had observed unmarked cars surveilling the location for two days before she was detained. Ozturk was working as a research assistant and undertaking her PhD at the Eliot-Pearson department of child study and human development at Tufts University. She holds a master’s from Columbia University’s Teachers College and graduated from the developmental psychology programme with a focus on children’s media in 2020. She is a grantee of the prestigious Fulbright Scholar programme, which aims to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and people from other countries. read the complete article
The Long American Tradition of Categorizing Immigrants as Either Good or Bad
In February, President Donald Trump’s Administration sent 178 Venezuelan migrants to the U.S. military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. This is the latest chapter of the Trump Administration’s crackdown on immigrants, a project that officials have said will focus on those with records of unauthorized entry and violent crimes, or “the worst of the worst,” as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has put it. Advocates of strict border policing today typically divide noncitizens in the United States into two groups: regular immigrants and irregular (unauthorized) immigrants. Then, they disparage the latter as “illegal aliens” and call for their deportation. This dichotomous categorization of immigrants is in part rooted in 19th century discourse on foreign-born workers, which divided them into “natural” and “unnatural” immigrants. Then as now, separating immigrants into clean binaries may reflect the ideological debates of the present moment, but seldom does doing so reflect the realities they are facing at that time. Categorization has been one of the fundamental problems, and the most unreliable ideas, in U.S. immigration policy. The words, labels, or categories that lawmakers use to describe different immigrant groups shape public support or disapproval. Those labels, however, are often arbitrary and do not match the realities of the groups, to the detriment of the immigrants and the rule of law itself. read the complete article
United Kingdom
Fact Check: No evidence Sadiq Khan pledged to build 40,000 new homes solely for Muslims
The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan pledged to build 40,000 new council homes after saying housing was a major issue for Muslims in London, not that he would build 40,000 new council homes solely for Muslims, contrary to online claims. “I’m fu*king fuming - I’ve just found out London Mayor Sadiq Kahn, under the Muslim housing plan, is building 40,000 new homes for Muslims only to be near mosques and halal food shops,” said one widely shared video post on Facebook. “Imagine if the British government announced free homes for white British Christians only?” continued the March 19 post. Khan said in the April 26, 2024, interview,: “The other big issue facing Londoners, particularly Londoners of Islamic faith, is the issue of housing. We need to build far more homes in our city because often people from minority communities want to live near a mosque, near halal food, near where there are other people like them for a number of obvious reasons. And they are priced out, because there is not enough housing. So, we’re going to build at least 40,000 council homes, at least 6,000 rent-controlled homes.” However, while Khan spoke about building new 40,000 new council properties after saying housing was a particular issue for Londoners of Islamic faith, he did not say the homes would be exclusively for Muslims. He also said at the start of the interview: “My manifesto is to help to improve the lives of all Londoners. Over the last eight years, I’ve sought to be a mayor for all Londoners, whether you’re Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, member of an organised faith or not.” Khan’s manifesto, opens new tab for the mayoral elections - which saw him re-elected for a third term - mentions the 40,000 pledge three times, but does not say the homes would be exclusively for Muslims. read the complete article
Police get new powers to protect places of worship
Police forces will be given new powers to manage protests near sites of worship, the Home Office has said. The government said the powers were in response to a series of "intimidating protests" near synagogues and mosques in recent months. The new measures will make it easier for police to impose conditions on protest - including on the route and timing of a march - that might disrupt worshippers attempting to visit religious sites. In addition, a new law that bans people from climbing on war memorials will be extended to cover the National Holocaust Memorial, which is set to be built in Westminster in the coming years. The new powers, which are being introduced as amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill, protects synagogues, mosques, churches and all other religious sites. read the complete article
Petition urges UK government to launch inquiry into anti-Palestinian racism
A new parliamentary petition has been launched urging the British government to adopt a definition of anti-Palestinian racism and launch an inquiry into its impact on politics and the media. The petition was launched on Monday by Gary Spedding, an independent cross-party consultant on Israel-Palestine, and has since racked up over 1,500 signatures. If it receives 10,000 signatures, the government will respond. And if it reaches 100,000 signatures, it will be considered for debate in parliament. "Many view Anti-Palestinian Racism as a significant and growing problem in the UK, manifesting at all levels of society and in multiple spheres," the petition reads. "We believe this hatred reinforces oppressive & discriminatory systems that dehumanise and demonise Palestinians whilst also fracturing community cohesion." read the complete article
International
Israel's antisemitism conference kicks off amid criticism
Who are the key drivers of modern antisemitism? On its homepage, the Israeli Ministry for Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism, the organizer of a conference on antisemitism taking place in Jerusalem on March 26 and 27, says that this will be the main question. However, the list of invited guests for the event has sparked massive criticism. Reading like a who's who of the radical right in Europe, it includes Jordan Bardella, the president of the far-right National Rally (RN)in France, a politician from Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban's national-conservtive Fidesz party and an MEP from the far-right Sweden Democrats. President of the political entity Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, who is considered a friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is also due to attend. The star guest is Argentinian President Javier Milei. Many of the invitees share a closeness to the Israeli government, and an anti-Muslim agenda. Their hosts are Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister for Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli. One of the panels is titled "How Radical Islam Fuels Antisemitism in the West," and overall, the conference is expected to focus particularly on Islamic antisemitism. Milorad Dodik, who denies that the 1995 massacre of more than 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica was a genocide, is on the guest list. In February, the Serbian nationalistwas sentenced to one year's imprisonment for defying international rulings overseeing the fragile unity of the two entities that make up Bosnia-Herzegovina. The conference will not address the connection between right-wing extremism and antisemitism. This comes despite the fact that Jewish organizations and antisemitism experts have warned for years that the rise of the far right is a threat to Jewish life all over the world. read the complete article
France
French Muslim group condemns media, political harassment of women wearing veil
The French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM) condemned the media and political harassment of women wearing the veil on Wednesday amid discussions about a headscarf ban in sports, Anadolu Agency reports. “Whatever their approach or life choices, these women have become an easy target in our country, scapegoated for many of our society’s ills. Some accuse them of communitarianism or entryism, while others claim to want to ‘liberate’ them from a supposed subjugation,” CFCM said in a statement that emphasized that the victim’s fundamental freedoms are being questioned. CFCM underscored that Muslim women with headscarves are increasingly exposed to insecurity, as well as verbal and physical assaults. “This ongoing, harmful, and stigmatizing campaign fuels tensions and weakens national cohesion,” it said. CFCM said in the name of a “distorted secularism,” the debate has been widely expanded, moving from issues like the veil in sports to topics such as breaking the fast during a match, and even to a claimed egg shortage attributed to the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. “The vagueness surrounding terms such as ‘entrism’ or ‘Islamism’ today creates a climate in which no Muslim citizen feels safe from suspicion,” said the group. read the complete article