UK Churches Fight Islamophobia, Racism
Sat. Feb. 27, 2010
http://www.islamonl ine.net/servlet/ Satellite? c=Article_ C&cid=1235339917 921&pagename= Zone-English- News/NWELayout
Defying rightists speaking in the Christian voice against Islam, a major British church has set up a new project to fight racism and anti-Muslim sentiments in Britain.
"The root of the project is the recent relative success of the BNP [British National Party] and the English Defence League," the Rev Vernon Marsh, chairman of the Sheffield Methodist District, told The Times on Saturday, February 27.
The BNP, a far-right and whites-only political party, is notorious for attacks against immigrants and British Muslims, estimated at nearly two millions.
The EDL is also playing anti-Muslim rhetoric to draw support in Britain, leaving Muslims at the focus of unprovoked attacks by rightists.
"There is a high percentage of the Muslim population in our part of the world, and because the BNP is specifically targeting Islam they try and take the right of speaking as a Christian voice against Islam," said Marsh.
"But as Christians we live in a multi-cultural, multi-faith part of the world and we enjoy good relationships with other faiths and want to build on these relationships and work together against those who won't do that."
The project, set up by the church in partnership with the Methodist district of Sheffield, aims to challenge racism and bring together groups that don't ordinarily mix.
"A lot of the work to be done is in communications, to try over time to get good stories into the media," he said.
"We also want to create faith spaces where people can talk about the things that attract them to parties like these."
He said the project also aims to delve into the root causes pushing people to the far-right parties.
"We know it is affected by what is happening economically and by messages in the media. But its no good berating people without talking to them," he said.
Muslim Support
The church project also eyes support of British Muslims to stand up against rightists.
"This project will need selling to the Muslim community to get them on board, and I hope I can do that," said Abdool Gooljar, president of the Sheffield branch of the Islamic Society of Britain.
"I hope it will be successful, especially in the wake of successes by the far Right in elections."
The BNP won its first county council seats and European Parliament seats in 2009, winning one council seat in both Lancashire and Leicestershire, and one European Parliament seat each in Yorkshire and the Humber and North West England.
"People are worried if they put themselves forward that they might be targeted in some way," said Gooljar, who is on the steering group that will run the project.
"There is real lack of trust here now, everyone feels under the microscope."
The church project has caused unease among some conservative Christians.
"The biblical doctrine of the Church of England, as expressed in Canon A5, is crystal-clear as to the responsibility of frontline clergy," said Julian Mann, the vicar of the parish church of the Ascension in Oughtibridge, in the Sheffield Diocese.
"We are called to proclaim faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and his death for sins as the only way men and women can be saved, whatever their religious, ethnic or social background. If we are misrepresented as extremist for doing what it says on the tin, then that is part of the cost of authentic Christian discipleship.
"We must not allow ourselves to be bounced off the ball by political correctness," he said.
But the criticism is dismissed by the Rev Marsh, the chairman of the Sheffield Methodist District.
"You will get some people who say you should not be telling us how to vote or anything like that," he said.
"But we've not had any criticism of it in our Methodist district, which covers a wide area."
~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~
No Bus Drives For Liverpool Hijab-clad Girls
Fri. Feb. 26, 2010
http://www.islamonl ine.net/servlet/ Satellite? c=Article_ C&cid=1235339907 183&pagename= Zone-English- News/NWELayout
Let alone facing verbal attacks over their headscarf, female Muslim students in Liverpool are denied bus drives for wearing hijab, the Daily Mail reported Friday, February 26.
"They should not push their own personal prejudices on young people," Amina Ismail, a Muslim community leader, said.
Ismail said hijab-clad students at West Derby's Holly Lodge Girls' College in Merseyside are being insulted by racists at bus stops over their headscarf.
Fearing troubles with racists, bus drivers refuse to stop for the veiled Muslim girls.
"They (Muslim girls) said people driving past were being abusive because they were wearing the hijab at the bus stops on Queens Drive or West Derby Road," said Ismail.
Local and college officials confirmed that Muslim students were being attacked over their headscarf.
"There have been a small number of cases where ignorant people have directed racist comments at our pupils while they are on buses," Head-teacher Julia Tinsley said.
"It is completely unacceptable and very upsetting for those involved and we have provided support to those affected."
Hijab is a Muslim women code of dress not a religious symbol that shows one religious affiliation.
British Muslim, estimated at 2.4 million, have been in the face of storm since 7/7 terror attacks.
Stop Racism
Merseyside police held talks with travel authority Merseytravel and Muslim leaders to discuss how to stop racist attacks.
"We will be putting police community support officers on public buses during the periods these incidents are happening to reassure passengers and deter would-be offenders," a police spokesman said.
The police also decided to review street cameras, CCTV, to stop anti-Muslim assaults.
"CCTV will be routinely checked following allegations of any criminal offence."
Merseytravel, which runs the local buses, also vowed to ensure that Muslim girls are guaranteed their rights.
"(We) condemn all acts of racism" it said.
"(We have) drawn up an action plan to deal with and prevent any further incidents," it said, but without releasing details of the measures which might be implemented.
Ismail, the Muslim community leader, urged Britons to stand up against racism in the country.
"(People should) see past the scarf or skin color and look beyond this."
~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~
New Research leads focus on anti-Muslim hate crime
http://www.exeter. ac.uk/news/ international/ title,53723, en.php
A new report launched today 28 January reveals the trends behind underreported violence against Muslims in London.
It illuminates how contexts of fear and prejudice against Muslims are providing a basis for violence against Muslim communities.
This is the first step in a ten year research project led by the European Muslim Research Centre at the University of Exeter that will investigate Islamophobia and anti-Muslim hate crime in towns and cities across Europe.
Dr Jonathan Githens-Mazer and Dr Robert Lambert MBE, of the University of Exeter co-authored 'Islamophobia and Anti-Muslim Hate Crime: a London Case Study' the first study from the new European Muslim Research Centre. This report is being launched today in partnership with Muslim community groups to provide research for and about Muslims in Europe. The authors call for anti-Muslim hate crimes to be taken more seriously by government, media and the police.
The report finds that Muslim Londoners face a threat of violence and intimidation from three groups. Firstly from a small violent extremist nationalist milieu that has broadly the same political analysis as the British National Party (BNP). Secondly from London gangs who have no allegiance with or affinity to the BNP. Thirdly from a small number of Londoners and visitors to London who appear to be acting on prejudices gained via negative media portrayals of Muslims as terrorists and security threats.
The report illustrates how perpetrators of hate-crimes against Muslims are invariably motivated by a negative view of Muslims acquired from mainstream or extremist nationalist media reports or commentaries. These spread stereotypes and fears that stigmatise, alienate and isolate Muslims as threats to safety, security and social cohesion. As political commentator and journalist Peter Oborne, says in a foreword to the report that British Muslims now perform an 'unenviable outcast role' previously played by 'Germans, Roman Catholics, Jews and West Indians'.
Dr Githens-Mazer of the University of Exeter, co- author of the report said, "Anti-Muslim hate crimes in London have caused death and serious injuries and have generally inflicted suffering, fear and distress just like racist hate crimes aimed at other minorities in the capital. However, the motivation for anti-Muslim hate crimes is not as well understood by government, media or the police as racist hate crimes."
He added, 'Additional problems arise because a significant number of Muslim Londoners don't report crimes to the police, and that makes it difficult to assess or quantify the scale of the problem."
The evidence for the report arises from original in-depth interviews with victims of anti-Muslim hate crime, and in some cases perpetrators of racist crimes. The report is intended to introduce politicians, public servants, police, media and public to Muslim community perspectives that are often hidden.
A more detailed follow-up report Islamophobia and Anti-Muslim Crimes in the UK is due out in July 2010 which will analyse the situation in other UK towns and cities as well as London.
Note to Editors: Full report of Islamophobia and Anti- Muslim Hate Crime a London case study is available for download on Thursday 28 January from www.exeter.ac. uk/emrc.
~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~
How young Muslims are fighting extremist propaganda
The communities secretary, John Denham, has promised to make changes to the anti-extremism programme Prevent after Islamic groups accused it of stigmatising all Muslims as terrrorists and even spying on them. Haroon Siddique talks to participants on one of the schemes, the Digital Disruption project, about the value of what they are learning
Haroon Siddique
guardian.co. uk, Friday 29 January 2010 12.21 GMT
http://www.guardian .co.uk/uk/ 2010/jan/ 29/young- muslims-fighting -extremist- propaganda
Sixteen-year- old Abdul Sahed recalled how at a rally earlier this year where he was protesting against the Israeli bombardment of Gaza, a few people started shouting "it's the Jews, the Jews". They then made the leap to blaming Starbucks (because for this small minority the "Star" was the star of David and the "bucks" were dollars) and smashed up a nearby branch of the coffee chain.
He recounted the incident to a group of young Muslims discussing the power of propaganda at the Mile End Community Project (MECP) in London's East End. The discussion formed part of the Digital Disruption project, funded by the government's controversial Prevent strategy to stop the spread of violent extremism.
By educating the participants about propaganda, the Digital Disruption project – which could be introduced in schools across the country if those running it have their way – hopes to empower them, and their peers, to resist the videos and images that extremists use to gain recruits.
"They [the extremists] say we are being killed so we're gonna kill them. They use propaganda, they make them [potential recruits] feel sorry for the people in Palestine," said 18-year-old Abdul Samad.
All bar one of the teenagers admitted they did not know what the word propaganda meant when they joined the project. But demonstrating their new-found knowledge, they reeled off examples, not just limited to Muslim extremists.
Zak Islam Choudhury, 19, referred to David Cameron's comments on the radio about Twitter when the Tory leader said: "Too many twits might make a twat." "He swore … to convince people he's just like them," said Islam Choudhury.
While none of the group had been exposed to extremist videos they were familiar with a rap video on YouTube about the 9/11 attacks with the refrain "Bush knocked down the towers". Samad said he found the idea that the then US president could have been responsible for the destruction of the twin towers believable before learning about propaganda.
As part of the project, the group are making their own propaganda videos. A later one will use excerpts such as those employed by extremists but the first will focus on a local legend that gained credence.
"A few years ago, around Tower Hamlets, there were a lot of people saying there are vampires," Islam Choudhury explained. The rumour became so widespread that it was mentioned in the Friday sermon at the east London mosque.
"We want to make them [the audience for our video] believe it and at the end we'll go, 'It's fake'," said Samad. "It will make them think."
The hope is that the videos and their exposure of propaganda techniques will resonate with people who might otherwise be susceptible to more sinister influences.
Martin Orton, director of Bold Creative, the group specialising in working with young people that runs the project, said Mile End was chosen because it is an area where "extremists are recruiting". The teenagers became involved through their existing participation with MECP. "The reason we're doing it with them is so that they can connect to their peer group who are more vulnerable – the ones who don't go to this. You can't just target a group of young people and say 'they might be extremists', " said Orton.
MECP youth worker Nurull Islam said the participants' connection with other young people meant that the message relayed by their videos would have credibility and, with the power of new media, could reach far and wide. But Prevent has been pilloried by the media amid allegations of stereotyping of and spying on Muslims, and accusations that funds have been wasted on ineffective projects.
While the teenagers also highlighted propaganda against Muslims in the media, they all agreed that the government had to do something to tackle extremism. Orton hopes the project, which has funding until March 2011, could go nationwide and become part of the school curriculum – a goal supported by the young Muslims at MECP.
"It's the young people who get affected [by propaganda] the most," said Habz Rahman, 19.
The feedback from the government has been positive. The communities secretary, John Denham, has visited the project and the Department for Communities and Local Government said he had been "impressed".
But Orton, Islam and colleagues recognise that before Digital Disruption can expand, Prevent needs to address questions about its credibility. "It's not about teaching them what to think, it's about educating them how to think," said Islam.
"They are under threat in the sense they're always on the street. If they [extremists] do any recruiting they're going to go to the street corners – in that sense they're vulnerable."
Prevent: the government's anti-extremism programme
Preventing Violent Extremism (PVE), an action plan for Muslim communities, was launched by the government in 2007.
In August last year, the communities minister Shahid Malik said the extended title would be dropped in response to complaints from Islamic groups that the programme stigmatised all Muslims as terrorists. Many opted out of Prevent as a result. Malik also said the strategy would be broadened to include rightwing extremists.
There have been allegations the government has wasted money on ineffectual projects through Prevent. In one instance a talking lion taught schoolchildren how to spot a terrorist.
There was more trouble in October when the government faced allegations that Prevent was being used to gather intelligence about innocent people who were not suspected of involvement in terrorism.
Shami Chakrabarti, the director of Liberty, branded it the biggest spying programme in Britain in modern times.
Denham has rejected the allegations of spying but admitted the programme was being hampered by "controversy, criticism and lack of clarity".
~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~
Media and politicians 'fuel rise in hate crimes against Muslims'
Report blames 'Islamophobic, negative and unwarranted portrayals of Muslim London' for increase in attacks in the capital
Vikram Dodd
guardian.co. uk, Thursday 28 January 2010
http://www.guardian .co.uk/uk/ 2010/jan/ 28/hate-crimes- muslims-media- politicians
A rise in the number of hate crimes against Muslims in London is being encouraged by mainstream politicians and sections of the media, a study written by a former Scotland Yard counter-terrorism officer, published yesterday, says.
Attacks ranging from death threats and murder to persistent low-level assaults, such as spitting and name-calling, are in part whipped up by extremists and sections of mainstream society, the study says.
The document – from the University of Exeter's European Muslim research centre – was written by Dr Jonathan Githens-Mazer and former special branch detective Dr Robert Lambert.
"The report provides prima facie and empirical evidence to demonstrate that assailants of Muslims are invariably motivated by a negative view of Muslims they have acquired from either mainstream or extremist nationalist reports or commentaries in the media," it says.
Lambert headed Scotland Yard's Muslim contact unit, which helped improve relations between the police and Britain's Islamic communities.
The unit won praise from even long-standing critics of the police, and Lambert was awarded an MBE.
The study mentions no newspapers or writers by name, but alleges that the book Londonistan, by the Mail writer Melanie Phillips, played a part in triggering hate crimes.
"Islamophobic, negative and unwarranted portrayals of Muslim London as Londonistan and Muslim Londoners as terrorists, sympathisers and subversives in sections of the media appear to provide the motivation for a significant number of anti-Muslim hate crimes," it says.
In his foreword, the rightwing journalist Peter Oborne writes: "The constant assault on Muslims from certain politicians, and above all in the mainstream media, has created an atmosphere where hate crimes, ranging from casual abuse to arson and even murder, are bound to occur and are even in a sense encouraged by mainstream society."
The report is based on interviews with witnesses to and victims of hate crimes, as well as police officers and former members of extremist organisations such as the British National Party.
The report cites interviews with rightwing extremists to try to prove a link between what is published in the mainstream media and the anti-Muslim views held by extremists.
It says: "An experienced BNP activist in London explains that he believes that most BNP supporters simply followed the lead set by their favourite tabloid commentators that they read every day.
"When these commentators singled out Muslims as threats to security and social cohesion, he says that it was perfectly natural for BNP supporters to adopt the same thinking."
The report says the extreme right are directing their violence more against Muslims than black or Asian Britons.
"Interviewees with long experience of extremist nationalist street violence in London are unequivocal in their assessment that Muslim Londoners are now a prime target for serious violence and intimidation in the way that Londoners from minority ethnic communities once were," it says.
"Similarly, interviewees with experience of London street gangs that have no connection or affinity with extremist nationalist politics are adamant that Muslims have become prime targets for serious attacks.
"In addition, well-informed interviewees are clear that the main perpetrators of low-level anti-Muslim hate crimes are not gangs but rather simply individuals from a wide range of backgrounds who feel licensed to abuse, assault and intimidate Muslims in terms that mirror elements of mainstream media and political comment that became commonplace during the last decade."
The report says the attacks come in part from street gangs targeting Muslims as punishment for members who have embraced Islam and left gang culture.
"Often, they know someone who has left their scene and become a devout Muslim," the document, which also drew on interviews with youth workers dealing with gangs, says.
"That is like a defection. And whether they do or don't, they say they know this or that terrorist who used to be a great person till he joined the Muslims."
The report also says gang members believe Muslims values "oppose everything these kids aspire to. Flash cars, nightclubs, expensive clothes, jewellery, drugs, alcohol, casual sex, glamour, dancing, music ...".
The study says the majority of hate crimes involve low-level incidentsand are not reported to police.
Most officers are committed to tackling anti-Muslim hate crimes seriously, but are undermined by a few colleagues who are not. But the study warns: "Anti-Muslim hate crimes have not been afforded the same priority attention [that] government and police have invested in racist hate crimes."
The report is dedicated to Yasir Abdelmouttalib, a PhD student who was left brain-damaged after a gang of youths attacked him in London, striking him over the head with a stick, as he made his way to a mosque while wearing Islamic clothing.
It cites other cases of rightwing extremists preparing hate campaigns and of serious attacks on Muslims in Britain.
These included: "Neil Lewington, a violent extremist nationalist convicted in July 2009 of a bomb plot; Terence Gavan, a violent extremist nationalist convicted in January 2010 of manufacturing nail bombs and other explosives, firearms and weapons; a gang attack in November 2009 on Muslim students at City University; the murder in September 2009 of Muslim pensioner, Ikram Syed ul-Haq; a serious assault in August 2007 on the Imam at London Central Mosque; and an arson attack in June 2009 on Greenwich Islamic Centre."
The study focuses on anti-Muslim violence in London, with its authors saying they will produce one covering the whole of the UK by this summer.
The INTERNET now has a personality. YOURS! See your Yahoo! Homepage. http://in.yahoo.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Milis Wanita Muslimah
Membangun citra wanita muslimah dalam diri, keluarga, maupun masyarakat.
Twitter: http://twitter.com/wanita_muslimah
Situs Web: http://www.wanita-muslimah.com
ARSIP DISKUSI : http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wanita-muslimah/messages
Kirim Posting mailto:wanita-muslimah@yahoogroups.com
Berhenti mailto:wanita-muslimah-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
Milis Keluarga Sejahtera mailto:keluarga-sejahtera@yahoogroups.com
Milis Anak Muda Islam mailto:majelismuda@yahoogroups.com
Milis ini tidak menerima attachment.
0 comments:
Post a Comment