Standing Up Against Islamophobia

Hello, friends.

Islamophobia. Generally defined as fear or hatred and prejudice against Muslims. Something we have all heard about, especially as more and more terrorist attacks are committed around the world by those claiming to belong to the religion of Islam. The pain of those lost in Manchester, in London, in Egypt...all over the world at this point...lies heavy in so many hearts.

I understand that fear comes up as a result of these attacks. Up until last week, I lived in a place where only 13 years ago, Palestinian terrorists were using violence very often as a way to attack average civilians in their daily lives (like when a bus was blown up by a suicide bomber from the West Bank on Emek Refaim, a main street near my Jerusalem apartment where I would go often for a delicious brunch with one of my friends). I cannot imagine the fear of living every day watching for such violence--and more and more often, my friends and family in the West sense that they need to live in a state of constant fear like those who are from more generally "turbulent" areas such as the Middle East.

But what we need to be careful about is letting this fear of radical terrorists--people using the name of Islam to excuse their radically violent and immoral actions--from turning us into hateful people. Not every woman in a hijab is someone to be feared, and in fact most aren't. Not every one stopping in the middle of their day to pray the five daily Muslim prayers is someone who should cause you to dislike them. Most people fasting for Ramadan this month may be hungry (or hangry), but not violent. Many people even refuse to refer to the "Islamic State" aka ISIS, instead calling it "Daesh" since they do not consider its members Muslim at all because of their terrible actions. Caution on our part is understandable, fear is understandable--hatred is not.

Someone recently told me that she does not act prejudiced against Muslim folks when she sees them. I explained that we can go beyond that--and I shared that I try to go out of my way to smile at folks who are distinguishable as Muslim (okay, I smile at a lot of people, smiling is my favorite, but I particularly try harder when I notice someone in a hijab, for example). Almost instantaneously, exposing her deep fear, she asked, "But what if you are smiling at a terrorist?"

The thing is, the likelihood is that the person at whom I am smiling is not a radical terrorist. The likelihood is far greater that they face abuse every day for the acts of a few horrible people--that they face unfriendliness and suspicion in their daily encounters at the supermarket, on the bus, at school, for practicing a religion that some people have perverted for their own purposes. I would rather go out of my way to be extra nice to those people so that they see at least one friendly face in their day. And if I smile at someone who turns out to be a horrible person, so be it--I will not let the few violent extremists change who I am.

And neither did three heroes in Oregon last month. On May 26, a hate-filled man on a train in Portland started yelling prejudiced epithets at two young women (one, a Muslim in a hijab, and her friend who was not Muslim). Three men stepped forward in defense of the young women. The terrible attacker then stabbed the three men; two died from their injuries, and the third man was hospitalized.

To me, these men are the epitome of heroism. They stood up for others, knowing that they would gain nothing for themselves. Yes, it is terrifying the price they paid for defending others. Even in less-extreme situations, standing up to hateful people is challenging and scary and nerve-wracking at best. But it is imperative that we do so if we want to fight against the rising tide of hatred around the world. Just as some amazing non-Jews stood up for us during the Shoah, I too will stand up for others. I look to Ricky John Best (53), Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche (23) [the two men who died], as well as Micah David-Cole Fletcher (21) as my modern-day heroes. You can read more from Micah about the situation here.

We absolutely must stand up to those who would take our world and twist it into something I for sure would not want: a homogeneous place, with everyone practicing the same religion, believing the same things, doing the same actions. No. I refuse to accept this as my reality. We thrive in the diversity--in challenging one another with our ideas and thoughts, and--yes--differing religious beliefs. This is beauty. But to do that, we need to finally, finally figure out how to respect those differences, and not see them as threatening our own way of life. Yes, there are horrible people claiming to be Muslim and killing people in horrific ways, just as many have used other religions now and throughout history to excuse their own despicable actions. Nothing excuses that, and being scared is understandable. But many, many Muslims just want what I pray for so often--peace and love. I refuse to give up as long as they are still out there. If we let the actions of a few make us into hateful people, the terrorists have already won.

So stand up. Believe in the good. I will leave us with a quote from the young woman whose diary helped us learn so many truths about the world, even though she died so tragically young in the Shoah: 

In spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart. I simply can’t build up my hopes on a foundation consisting of confusion, misery, and death. I see the world gradually being turned into a wilderness, I hear the ever approaching thunder, which will destroy us too, I can feel the sufferings of millions and yet, if I look up into the heavens, I think that it will all come right, that this cruelty too will end, and that peace and tranquility will return again. --Anne Frank

 
Now go out and love one another, and together, we can make sure that the approaching thunder will not destroy us this time around.

<3,
Allyson