Fellow “atheist and a secularist” Alex Gabriel takes on Dawkins over his anti-Muslim bigotry and links to far-right Islamophobes.
Category Archives: Resisting Islamophobia
‘Gammongate’ fraud exposed
The right-wing press spent several days last week whipping up indignation over the sacking of school dinner lady Alison Waldock, allegedly because she accidentally served pork to a 7-year-old Muslim pupil.
Having initially been broken by the Sun, the story was then taken up by the Express and the Mail. Never one to miss an opportunity for a spot of self-promotion and engage in a bit of immigrant-bashing, Nigel Farage of the UK Independence Party spelled out the message that the press coverage was intended to convey: “The reason that Alison’s been sacked is that we’re so terrified in this country of causing offence to anybody, particularly the Muslim religion.”
Zayn Malik told to ‘die’ and branded a terrorist at One Direction concert
Zayn Malik’s fans are out in force on Twitter this evening after he faced even more racist abuse at a recent One Direction concert.
It was around a year ago that the Bradford bad boy first left Twitter because of the racial slurs being directed at him and his family but it seems the haters are not constrained to online abuse, they’ve been harassing him in person too.
A photo of a supposed sign is being circulated by fan groups on Twitter and it appears to read “Die terrorist Zayn Malik.” In response Directioners around the globe have been pushing to get the hashtag #ZaynIsNotATerroristTR trending worldwide.
Another photo of Zayn looking at his feet and appearing distraught is supposedly showing the moment that he caught sight of the banner which was flown at the band’s San Jose concert this week.
NWI and fascist allies to stage anti-immigration march in Leigh
Plans for a far right march through the borough this weekend have caused outrage.
The North West Infidels – a splinter group from the controversial and violent English Defence League – have announced that they are to parade through Leigh town centre on Saturday. Organisers say around 200 members of the shadowy group will march in what they are calling an “anti immigration” rally outside the town hall.
Anti-fascist groups across the borough are now planning a counter-demonstration, leaving traders fearful of disorder and unrest that could well hit takings during difficult times.
A media microscope on Islam-linked violence
Are Muslims particularly prone to violence? Steve Rendall and Sara McCloskey crunch the numbers.
Fresh calls for home secretary to ban EDL march through Tower Hamlets
A letter calling for the home secretary to ban far right group the English Defence League from marching through Tower Hamlets has been circulated to trade unions, faith and community groups. The borough’s mayor, Lutfur Rahman, is calling on interested parties to sign the letter to Theresa May to stop the EDL from going ahead with a planned demonstration on September 7.
Mr Rahman expresses fears that the group intends to bring a “message of hate” to Tower Hamlets in the wake of the killing of Drummer Lee Rigby in Woolwich in May. “Their protests invariably result in violence against property, the police, or local communities,” Mayor Rahman wrote. “We have real fears that the EDL presence will act as a catalyst for further violence, disorder and destruction of property. There must be no place for hatred in our communities. The home secretary must act, and act now, to ensure the EDL is not able to bring its tour of hate to the streets of east London on September 7,” the letter concludes.
Murfreesboro mosque leader says enough’s enough
An Islamic Center of Murfreesboro leader Tuesday questioned why plaintiffs opposed to government approval of mosque construction continue to appeal their case.
“We have already wasted enough energy and money on this issue,” said Saleh Sbenaty, a board member with the ICM and a 20-year professor at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro. “We have been here for over 30 years. This is our home. We are productive members of our community. We have no other place to go.”
Plaintiffs’ attorneys Joe Brandon Jr. of Murfreesboro and Thomas Smith of Franklin filed a request to appeal with the Tennessee Supreme Court on Monday. The plaintiffs hope the state’s top court will overrule a Tennessee Appeals Court decision in late May that supported the way the Rutherford County Regional Planning Commission approved plans for the ICM to construct a mosque on Veals Road, off Bradyville Pike.
Jews stand in solidarity with Muslims against fascist SDL
Edinburgh’s Jews will not stand by while fascists threaten their Muslim neighbours, a leading figure in the capital’s faith community said today. Sukkat Shalom chairman Norman Crane offered words of support today after the city’s council said it would let the far-right Scottish Defence League march down the Royal Mile next month.
The SDL, known for taunting nazi salutes and racist attacks, plans a provocative march through the heart of the international Fringe Festival on August 17 – and councillors have approved the demonstration, saying police had reported “no significant public order issues” in recent years. Mr Crane said he could not understand why the march had been allowed – “freedom of speech, I suppose.” But he had attended an emergency meeting with anti-racist activists on Monday evening and would “strongly support” any counter-demonstration.
Bad day for the SDL in Pollokshields
The Scottish Defence League’s (SDL) threats to march on multi-cultural Pollokshields, Glasgow, proved pathetic on Saturday as over 300 anti-fascists outnumbered the racists ten-to-one. The EDL didn’t turn up to support their pals north of the border and the SDL were promptly marched to the police station.
The anti-fascist, counter-demonstration was as diverse as Pollockshields itself. Numerous speakers from the trade union movement, faith groups, community organisations, and politicians stated that the SDL were not welcome in any community in Scotland. Speakers, including Humza Yousaf, MSP, as well as Glasgow Central MP and deputy leader of the Scottish Labour Party, Anas Sarwar, stressed the need to stand against the SDL when they did appear.
The SDL is now threatening to march in Edinburgh on Saturday 17 August (during the Edinburgh Festival). The local council has announced it does not intend to ban them and anti-fascists in Scotland are planning to build on the successes of Pollokshields in organising a counter-demonstration on the day.
Anti-Muslim violence: A wakeup call for European governments
Marwan Muhammad, Elsa Rayand and Michaël Privot argue that “governments urgently need to take action against Islamophobic violence”. They argue:
“There is a tendency to view hostility and violence towards Muslims as normal and acceptable. Prejudice against Muslims does not always carry the same social stigma as prejudice against other ethnic and religious groups.”
A first step would be to “officially recognise Islamophobia as a specific form of racism”.