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SearchToday in Islamophobia: UN members release dueling statements over China’s treatment of Uighurs, as the French senate debates Muslim headscarf ban. Our recommended read today is by Aysha Khan titled “A decade after the FBI killing of Detroit imam, Muslims still look for answers.” This, and more, below:
United States
A decade after FBI killing of Detroit imam, Muslims still look for answers | Recommended Read
Imam Luqman Ameen Abdullah led Masjid Al-Haqq in Detroit’s West Side until he was killed in a 2009 warehouse raid. Supporters say he may have been the first imam, and perhaps even the first mainstream faith leader, killed in the U.S. by federal authorities. “It’s probably the most heartbreaking case that I ever will work on in my career,” said attorney Lena Masri, who joined CAIR as its national litigation director attorney the day Abdullah died and who later filed a lawsuit against the FBI over Abdullah’s shooting. “The vast majority of issues that are underlying this case, most people don’t know about, because of a concerted effort by the government to cover up what actually happened that day.” read the complete article
Lawsuit: Muslim boy questioned at Ohio school about religion
The parents of a 10-year-old Muslim boy who said he was questioned by an Ohio student teacher about his patriotism and religious beliefs and was told to undress to determine if he had been physically abused at home have filed a federal lawsuit claiming the boy’s civil rights were violated last November. read the complete article
China
UN members issue dueling statements over China's treatment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang
Speaking at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, a representative for the UK issued a statement on behalf of 23 countries raising concerns over alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang. The 23 countries, including the United States, Canada, Japan and Australia, all called on China to "uphold its national and international obligations and commitments to respect human rights," as well as to provide access to Xinjiang for international monitors. read the complete article
Australia
Muslim woman denied entry to nightclub after refusing to remove hijab
Soaliha Iqbal was in the queue with friends outside a Sydney venue, when a member of door staff asked her to take her hijab off. She wrote on blog post website 5Why: ‘Chatting and laughing with my mates in the line, I broke off mid-conversation to hand my ID to Paragon’s bouncer-but he didn’t ask for it or take it. ‘Instead, he pointed to my hijab and said “take it off”. The 21-year-old says she was in such shock at the request that she couldn’t muster the words to respond and felt discriminated against. Police who were in the area had to intervene as the argument between Ms Iqbal and the door staff became more heated, after the doorman was called racist. read the complete article
United Kingdom
Star jockey Khadijah Mellah: I’m glad to challenge stereotype of Muslim women
Khadijah Mellah, 18, from Peckham, made history when she took first place in a charity race during the Glorious Goodwood festival in August. The University of Brighton engineering student, who is also the first hijab-wearing woman to win a horse race in the UK, added: “I’m really glad I managed to get a positive story out there about the Islamic community and women in Islam because there’s a stereotype that women can’t go out there and do things that the normal person is able to. “I can see why I’m an inspiration, but I personally don’t see myself as that — I just feel like a normal human being.” read the complete article
Why I Made A Video Game To Challenge Muslim Stereotypes
Nearly all the Muslims depicted in TV shows and movies in this time seem to have been cast by those who are either ignorant of or hostile towards the normative practices of almost two billion people. The archetypes have been angry and barbaric if male or submissive and oppressed if female. And in today’s video games – an enormous industry with some two billion consumers – it seems like the only Muslims you see conform, perhaps in an even more reductionist manner to the archetypes found on TV or in movies. read the complete article
India
Facebook Has Become a ‘Megaphone for Hate’ Against Muslims in India
A new report from the non-profit rights group Avaaz details widespread abuse online against religious and ethnic minorities, and in particular against Bengali Muslims, who have been labeled “criminals,” “rapists,” “terrorists,” “pigs,” and “dogs.” “Facebook is being used as a megaphone for hate, pointed directly at vulnerable minorities in Assam, many of whom could be made stateless within months,” Alaphia Zoyab, senior campaigner at Avaaz, said in a statement. read the complete article
France
French Senate debates Muslim headscarf bill
The French Senate is debating a bill that would require Muslim mothers who wear headscarves to remove them on school outings. The bill under consideration on Monday comes amid a weeks-long uproar over French secularism and headscarves at the center of the debate. The thorny topic moved into the headlines in mid-October after a far-right National Rally representative at a regional council demanded that a Muslim woman in the chamber remove her headscarf, causing a scandal. The bill has little chance of passing in the lower house and becoming law. read the complete article