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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In his latest book, The War on the Uyghurs: China’s Campaign Against Xinjiang’s Muslims, Dr. Sean Roberts debunks the Chinese government’s claim about the threat of terrorism from the Uyghur Muslim community. Meanwhile, in the United States, a Muslim woman basketball player’s fight against discriminatory rules has resulted in making the game more accessible to players of different faiths. In Austria, Muslims voice their concerns surrounding a swell of Islamophobia against their community. Our recommended read of the day is by Asad Dandia of Al Jazeera on France’s weaponization of laïcité against the Muslim community and on the history of French liberalism which he feels is in jeopardy. This and more below:
International
‘Islam’ is not in crisis, liberalism is
There is seldom a reckoning with the dark underbelly of liberalism, and the unparalleled violence that was, and continues to be, meted out to its historic Others. But Muslims – having borne the brunt of French (and other) colonialism, imperialism and racist violence – know it all too well. Indeed, for many, Macron’s call for an “Islam of the Enlightenment” is viewed as the latest development in that history. read the complete article
Europe’s ‘Muslim question’ and the new secular crusade
French President Emmanuel Macron appears to have consciously taken the lead in launching a secular crusade to “save the soul of Europe” but his actions are misguided because they play right into the hands of the extremists he purports to target. Publishing sacrilegious and tasteless cartoons of the Prophet of Islam and doubling down on them is not defending freedom of expression; it is an extremist action in its own right. read the complete article
US removes group condemned by China from ‘terror’ list
The United States has removed from its list of “terrorist” groups a shadowy faction regularly blamed by China to justify its harsh crackdown in the Muslim-majority Xinjiang region. In a notice in the Federal Register, which publishes new US laws and rules, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he was revoking the designation of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) as a “terrorist organization”. read the complete article
Nonwhite Voters are not Immune to the Appeal of Right-Wing Populism
The more the media condemned him, the better Ford looked in the eyes of his supporters. Ford didn’t offer much in terms of policies or good governance, but his outlandish personality represented an “upraised middle finger,” as Toronto Life put it, against what many people felt was an arrogant, hypocritical, and morally self-satisfied establishment. read the complete article
United States
Muslim voters want more than ‘just a seat’ at the table from President-elect Joe Biden
In an election year defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, economic uncertainty and calls for social justice, a record number of Muslims have mailed in their ballots and headed to the polls, continuing a surge in voter registration and political engagement seen after President Trump took office in 2016, according to Emgage, a national get-out-the-vote group that focuses on Muslims. Emgage Action, an arm of Emgage, endorsed and supported President-elect Joe Biden. read the complete article
He cast his first vote as a U.S. citizen. Now, he’s eager for the ‘Muslim ban’ to go.
With the gift of sandwiches, Terou was celebrating his first time voting in an American election after becoming a citizen earlier this year. This election was special for another reason: It gave him a chance to help end President Trump’s ban on almost all travel from certain Muslim-majority countries. Terou’s brother and father are Syrian refugees living in Turkey, unable to come to America. His father, nearly 70, lives in a wheelchair due to heart conditions and diabetes. read the complete article
This Muslim basketball player refused to take off her hijab, opening new doors for athletes of other faiths
Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir dreamed of playing professional basketball ever since she was a child shooting hoops in Massachusetts. At the University of Memphis and later Indiana State University, she also became the first woman to wear a hijab while playing NCAA Division I basketball. read the complete article
The rotten state of American politics made Trump smell fresh
The US has certainly earned a moment of relief and celebration, but Trump’s toxic presence has not yet been eliminated. In the end, the result was not as close as it first appeared in those nervy early hours on Wednesday morning, and yet more than 70 million Americans picked the incumbent – more than Hillary Clinton managed while winning the popular vote in 2016. read the complete article
France
France’s PM vows to fight ‘relentlessly’ against ‘radical Islam’
French Prime Minister Jean Castex has said his government would keep “fighting relentlessly” against “radical Islam” as he paid tribute to the three victims of a knife attack in the southern city of Nice last month. “We know the enemy. Not only has it been identified, but it has a name, it is radical Islam, a political ideology that disfigures the Muslim religion,” Castex said in a speech during a ceremony for the victims on Saturday. read the complete article
French police interrogate Muslim children for disliking insulting cartoons
The police in Albertville, a city in southeast France, raided the residences of four school children for "glorifying terrorism" because the 10-year-olds did not approve of derogatory caricatures of Prophet Muhammad, the last messenger of God, according to the Muslim faith. read the complete article
China
How China used the war on terror to wage a war on the Uyghurs
In his latest book, The War on the Uyghurs: China’s Campaign Against Xinjiang’s Muslims, Sean Roberts, an anthropologist at George Washington University, and for the past 30 years a China watcher, sets out to unveil this enemy, but in the process debunk the Uyghur terrorist myth that has sustained the brutal crackdowns in recent years. read the complete article
India
Joy in India as Biden and Harris Win, but Questions, Too
If there was one place in India that relished the triumph of Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Ms. Harris, his running mate, in America’s presidential election, it was Thulasendrapuram, the hamlet where Ms. Harris’s Indian grandfather was born more than 100 years ago. Her name is scrawled on a board by the temple. People there love her and identify strongly with her. read the complete article
Austria
Austria's Muslims wary of backlash after attack
When Osama Abu El Hosna found himself under a hail of bullets during the shooting rampage in Vienna, he heroically risked his life to save a policeman at the scene. But while Hosna has been lauded for his courage, other Muslims say they are now scared to walk the streets of the city they call home as they fear a backlash against their community. read the complete article
Myanmar
Myanmar polls: Facebook under scrutiny over hate speech
One of two Muslims allowed to run for the governing party in Buddhist-majority Myanmar’s general election on Sunday, Sithu Maung, worries fake news on Facebook could damage his chances. Within a torrent of racist abuse and misinformation posted about him ahead of the polls are false claims he plans to close Buddhist monastic schools and to advocate for the teaching of Arabic. read the complete article