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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In the US, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has a tattoo that appears to read “infidel” or “non-believer” in Arabic on his forearm, according to recently posted photos on his social media account, while in Maryland, an elementary school teacher was disciplined after accusations surfaced that they mistreating one of their students, an eight-year-old Muslim girl who was singled out due to her faith, and in Australia, a coalition of Muslim and Palestinian organizations have rejected a push by universities to adopt a new definition of Islamophobia, arguing it would “shield” the institutions from criticism of their contentious new antisemitism definition. Our recommended read of the day is by Branko Marcetic for Jacobin on how former President George W. Bush’s “War on Terror” paved the way for the draconian anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant policies of the current administration. This and more below:
United States
George W. Bush Lives on in Donald Trump’s Migrant Policies | Recommended Read
Twenty-four years ago, the “war on terror” led to a sweeping curtailment of immigrants’ rights that swept up green card holders as well as citizens. Its echoes are alive and well today in Donald Trump’s attacks on immigrants. We usually think of Bush’s war on terror policies as a series of foolish, destructive, and often lawless invasions and foreign policy decisions. But it was also a sweeping curtailment of the rights of US immigrants that saw noncitizens — and sometimes, even citizens — of the United States questioned, rounded up, deported, and in some cases detained for as long as months, often on false suspicion. Shortly after Bush made a now-famous speech insisting the United States was not at war with Islam, his administration began rounding up roughly 1,200 mostly Arab and Muslim immigrants, most of whom were charged and deported for minor immigration infractions. Some were told to simply report themselves or at most come in for simple questioning by immigration officials only to be arrested, while others were arrested for no crime other than being Muslim or Arab in a climate of fear and hysteria. The Trump administration is going much further than Bush’s crackdown, asserting the right to, among other things, unilaterally strip permanent residents of their green cards by fiat and deport migrants without due process to be imprisoned in third countries with dismal human rights records. Unlike the early 2000s, there is no deadly terrorist attack on US soil that the Trump administration is pointing to to justify this crackdown. Still, it’s easy to see how these early Bush-era actions — a combination of paranoia over terrorism and anti-immigrant animus — paved the way for what is now happening. The question is, if what we see today is the end result of what Bush started, where will Trump’s actions today take the country years from now? read the complete article
Pete Hegseth’s Arabic tattoo stirs controversy: ‘clear symbol of Islamophobia’
The US secretary of defense Pete Hegseth has a tattoo that appears to read “infidel” or “non-believer” in Arabic, according to recently posted photos on his social media account. In photos posted on Tuesday on X, the Fox News host turned US defense secretary had what appears to be a tattoo that says “kafir”, an Arabic term used within Islam to describe an unbeliever. Hegseth appears to have also had the tattoo in another Instagram photo posted in July 2024. Some people on social media criticized Hegseth for getting a tattoo that could be considered offensive to Muslims, especially as the US military seeks to represent a diverse pool of faiths. It is estimated that upwards of 5,000 to 6,000 US military members practice Islam. “This isn’t just a personal choice; it’s a clear symbol of Islamophobia from the man overseeing U.S. wars,” posted Nerdeen Kiswani, a pro-Palestinian activist in New York. She added: “‘Kafir’ has been weaponized by far-right Islamophobes to mock and vilify Muslims. It’s not about his personal beliefs. It’s about how these beliefs translate into policy – how they shape military decisions, surveillance programs, and foreign interventions targeting Muslim countries.” A former leader of the far-right Proud Boys, Joe Biggs, also has a similar tattoo. “Tattooing the Arabic word kafir – which refers to someone who knowingly denies or conceals fundamental divine truths – on his body is a display of both anti-Muslim hostility and personal insecurity,” Nihad Awad, the national executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair), told Newsweek. read the complete article
After Signalgate, Hegseth sparks uproar with 'Kafir' (infidel) tattoo on arm
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has once again drawn controversy and backlash over his new "kafir" tattoo, which many say is Islamophobic. Hegseth posted pictures on his X account where he joined the SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team One (SDVT-1) at a joint base in Pearl Harbor. One of the pictures showed a new tattoo on his forearm that reads " كافر" or "kafir", the Arabic word for infidel or disbeliever. Many people have picked up on the tattoo, arguing it's an Islamophobic symbol from the man overseeing the US army. "Hegseth just got a kafir (كافر) tattoo under his Deus Vult tattoo—a Crusader slogan. This isn't just a personal choice; it’s a clear symbol of Islamophobia from the man overseeing US wars," Nerdeen Kiswani, a Palestinian activist, said on X." 'Kafir' has been weaponised by far-right Islamophobes to mock and vilify Muslims. It's not about his personal beliefs. It's about how these beliefs translate into policy—how they shape military decisions, surveillance programs, and foreign interventions targeting Muslim countries." "'Kafir' has been weaponised by far-right Islamophobes to mock and vilify Muslims. It's not about his personal beliefs. It's about how these beliefs translate into policy—how they shape military decisions, surveillance programs, and foreign interventions targeting Muslim countries." read the complete article
Maryland teacher disciplined after allegedly harassing Muslim student over her hijab
A Maryland elementary school teacher was disciplined after accusations of mistreating one of his students. An 8-year-old Muslim student at Cabin Branch Elementary School in Clarksburg, Maryland, was allegedly harassed by her teacher due to her Muslim faith, advocates said. The Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) has allegedly removed the teacher from his classroom and ensured he has no more contact with the student, according to the Maryland office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). Reports said the teacher allegedly humiliated, threatened, and intimidated the child regarding her hijab. Reports indicate that the teacher made inappropriate comments urging the student to “remove her hijab” and allegedly subjected her to harsher disciplinary measures in comparison to her classmates, which “severely affected” her well-being, CAIR said. The mistreatment reportedly led to significant anxiety for the girl, including multiple panic attacks that required medical attention from school staff, CAIR said. read the complete article
The assault on pro-Palestinian speech has a long and shameful history
The administration has targeted Chung and Ozturk for the same reason they detained Mahmoud Khalil earlier this month: pro-Palestinian views and activism. The government’s actions are a serious threat to free speech. A Trump administration official explicitly told the Free Press that the cause for Khalil’s arrest was not that he committed a crime. “The allegation here is not that he was breaking the law,” the anonymous official said. “He was mobilizing support for Hamas and spreading antisemitism in a way that is contrary to the foreign policy of the US.” (Khalil was part of the pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University when he was a graduate student last year.) Ozturk, Chung, and Khalil are in effect being targeted for their speech and activism — activity that, in all three cases, the administration has deemed to be aligned with Hamas. These cases might be some of the more extreme examples of the US government’s disregard for free speech. But unfortunately, they’re not unique. There have been many other instances when law enforcement trampled on people’s rights to protest and free speech. In one particular case, permanent residents of Palestinian descent were also arrested and threatened to be deported, all for daring to take the First Amendment at its word. read the complete article
Rubio boasts of canceling more than 300 visas over pro-Palestine protests
The US state department is undertaking a widespread visa-review process, revoking hundreds of visas and placing hundreds more under scrutiny, targeting mostly foreign nationals engaged in pro-Palestine activism, according to official statements. The secretary of state, Marco Rubio, confirmed the scale of the crackdown, announcing that he has canceled visas for more than 300 people he called “lunatics” connected to campus pro-Palestine protests in the US, with promises of action to continue daily. Asked by reporters during a visit to Guyana in South America to confirm reports of 300 visas stripped, Rubio said: “Maybe more than 300 at this point. We do it every day, every time I find one of these lunatics.” In addressing her case specifically, Rubio said: “We revoked her visa ... once you’ve lost your visa, you’re no longer legally in the United States … if you come into the US as a visitor and create a ruckus for us, we don’t want it. We don’t want it in our country. Go back and do it in your country.” But the visa-revocation campaign is just part of a broader, more aggressive deportation enforcement strategy that extends far beyond protest-related actions. read the complete article
Australia
Muslim groups reject push for new Islamophobia definition at Australian universities
A coalition of Muslim and Palestinian organisations have rejected a push by universities to adopt a new definition of Islamophobia, arguing it would “shield” the institutions from criticism of their contentious new antisemitism definition, and that a unified standard that rejects all racism is what is needed. Last month, Australia’s universities confirmed they would unilaterally enforce a new definition of antisemitism on campuses after an inquiry recommended higher education providers “closely align” with the contentious International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition. The eight organisations, which include the Australian Muslim Advocacy Network (Aman), the Australia Palestine Advocacy Network (APAN), Muslim Women Australia and the Muslim Legal Network, are urging universities to replace the antisemitism definition with a unified anti-racism standard that would apply to all communities – regardless of race and religion. read the complete article
India
How Nagpur's violence reflects India's deepening divide
Authorities imposed an indefinite curfew in parts of the central Indian city of Nagpur last week after sectarian clashes. The unrest was reportedly sparked during protests by Hindu nationalist groups demanding the removal of former Muslim ruler Aurangzeb's tomb. Police said in a statement cited by the Reuters news agency that protesters from the Hindu nationalist group Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) set fire to an image of Aurangzeb in Nagpur. A police officer told Reuters that several members of Muslim groups then threw stones at police. The situation escalated with violent groups torching vehicles and vandalizing homes, the Press Trust of India news agency reported. The VHP denied accusations of engaging in any violence but said it wants the tomb to be replaced with a memorial for rulers from the local Maratha community. Some Hindu activist groups, which are often linked to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), have claimed that several mosques were built over Hindu temples centuries ago during the Muslim Mughal empire. Shivam Thakre, a VHP youth leader, said that Aurangzeb was an "anti-Hindu" ruler. "We will not rest until we see his grave completely demolished. If the government does not demolish it, angry people may raze it some day the way Babri Masjid was pulled down," Thakre told DW. Tensions over Mughal ruler Aurangzeb intensified after the release of the Bollywood movie "Chhaava," an action film that portrays the 17th-century Indian king Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj as a hero who fights against Aurangzeb. read the complete article