Islamophobia
Anti-Muslim Racism Versus 'The Race Card'

People do not want to appear racist or prejudiced, and so many in the West find themselves unable to criticize religious practices that ought to be criticized. On the other hand, racism, xenophobia and anti-Muslim tirades are morally wrong, and only make the problem of sectarianism worse. We all have a duty to criticize errorneous ideas, especially those that conflict with our values, and we must make sure that an atmosphere of open debate is always embraced. Those who refuse to be criticized are those that need re-educating the most. In short: Criticize the ideas, not the people!

1. Racism, Prejudice and anti-Muslim Aggression Makes Things Worse and Boosts Sectarianism
2. Criticize Islam's Ideas, Not Its People
3. Aggressive Defensiveness: Conflating Criticism of Islam With Racism

1. Racism, Prejudice and anti-Muslim Aggression Makes Things Worse and Boosts Sectarianism

The sociologist of Islam, Jocelyne Cesari warns in "When Islam and Democracy Meet" (2004)₁ that Islamophobia and anti-Muslim racism causes victims to adhere to Islam as a strong part of self-identity. It leads to Muslims seeking out and learning from Islamic outreaches that present a stronger and more dominant image of Islam, such as those from Islamic countries, and therefore works against integration with the West. It isn't just the actions of individuals that cause this reinforcement, but, the apparent bias that also appears in Western news reports about Islam₂. This has been affirmed by European studies into anti-Muslim racism; the EUMC says the situation of entire Muslim communities is put out on a limb when they are all considered potential terrorists:

“The disadvantaged position of Muslim minorities, evidence of a rise in Islamophobia and concern over processes of alienation and radicalisation have triggered an intense debate in the European Union regarding the need for ex-examining community cohesion and integration policies. A series of events such as the September 11 terrorist attacks against the US, the murder of Theo van Gogh in the Netherlands, the Madrid and London bombings and the debate on the Prophet Mohammad cartoons have given further prominence to the situation of Muslim communities.”

"Muslims in the European Union: Discrimination and Islamophobia" by EUMC (2006)₃

2. Criticize Islam's Ideas, Not Its People

It was once the Communists, it was also the feminists and gays... but nowadays, it the Muslim, dressed in Muslim gear, that is the ultimate example of the social enemy. This is unfair. Many Muslims observe their religion and live their lives with no intent to either support or oppose fundamentalist extremism. Some critics proclaim that because mainstream Muslims fail to act against extremists, it allows extremists to prosper. But many active Christians are the same: They neither support USA Christian fundamentalism, nor do they do anything about it. It is Human nature just to want to get on in life, in peace. The last census showed 1.5 million Muslims in Britain, and they make up 6% of the EU: it is clear that most of these are part of a peaceful and quite undramatic ethnic culture within the West. When we want to curb Christian extremism the best technique is to criticize their ideas and show them to be ridiculous and unfounded. We'd be fools to start criticizing ordinary Christians just because some insane and outspoken Christians want to fight against the world. We'd only supply evidence to them that the world is against them, therefore, they should continue being against the world. No, this technique doesn't work. To fight against Islamist supremacists, we need to (all) fight against their ideas. But the West has grown mature and we have forgotten what it is like to debate. Now, we tiptoe around people's beliefs far too much!

“Criticizing any strand of Islam is any way felt too much like voicing racial or ethnic prejudice. Indeed, the Dutch (like Western Europeans generally) viewed Islam less as a religion than as an expression of ethnic identity.”

"While Europe Slept: How Radical Islam is Destroying the West from Within"
Bruce Bawer (2006)₄

Many in the West actually fear criticizing religions for fear of appearing biased. This is a shame, as religion in general generates many crazy and absurd ideas that should indeed be criticized more frequently. In an atmosphere where people can ask questions and point out shortcomings in beliefs, the chances of sectarian and dangerous cults arising is much reduced. This applies to Islam too. In the West, intellectual and religious freedom means that no religion is protected from equal debate alongside others. Yet many hold off from criticizing religions that appear to be tied to an ethnic minority. People dare not criticize Islam because they don't want to appear racist against Muslims; they daren't criticize even the crazy elements of Jewish practice, because there is a Western-wide fear of being accused of being an anti--semite. This is daft: All religious ideas and all religious practices can be openly questioned. Just be respectful and critical without an aggressive attitude.

“Crazy beliefs are not harmless. Take the horrendous history of a theory which started out as amateur science, and proceeded to defy the general scientific community and win approval at a national level. The theory of a 'hierarchy' of delineated human races, with Nordics at the top and Negros at the bottom (with a special place reserved for the Christ-rejecting Jews), combined pseudoscientific anthropology with religious prejudice to create history's most horrific apparatus of prejudiced murder. The Nazi's ideology of race and euthanasia derived from erroneous beliefs based on faulty theory; and it blossomed into a wave of terror. It is no exaggeration to say that, in a world where nuclear weaponry is becoming more easily available, that beliefs need to be questioned and challenged continuously and vigorously.”

"Why Question Beliefs?: 1. Crazy Beliefs are Dangerous" by Vexen Crabtree (2009)

3. Aggressive Defensiveness: Conflating Criticism of Islam With Racism

Authors such as Robert Spencer have documented many examples where even mild and correct criticisms of Islam have been met with outrage and claims of racism and bias, when in fact the questions were quite within the reason of intellectual debate. It is this over-reaction which puts off some Westerns from even discussing the merits of Islamic theology.

Unfortunately, some Muslim individuals consciously and sneakily seek to create outrage when it is not warranted. I mean, it is on purpose, as part of a strategy of subduing Western protests to Islamic mores. In other words, "the racism card" becomes a weapon and a tool in a perceived war between Islamic supremacists and the West.

One of the most famous examples was the Danish cartoons row. The Jyllands-Posten, a Danish newspaper, published some cartoons that featured Muhammad, the Islamic prophet. They were not offensive and, of the 12, some didn't feature Muhammad. The purpose of the publication was to continue the debate after a long series of compaings by Muslims against having their religion questioned intellectually or socially. All other Western religions and philosophies are continually questioned, often ridiculed, by the popular press and in routine debating in the West. As a result of a Muslim outcry against their religion being treated the same way, this newspaper took a stand for freedom of expression and freedom of religion (which includes the freedom to criticize religion and speak out against it). The outrage from the Muslim sector spread across the world.

“On 30 September 2005, Jullands-Posten, a Danish newspaper based in Århus, published a series of cartoons depicting Prophet Muhammad. In the accompanying test, it read: "Some Muslims reject modern, secular society. They demand a special position, insisting on special consideration of their own religious feelings. It is incompatible with secular democracy and freedom of expression, where one has to be ready to put up with scorn, mockery and ridicule." [...]

Muslim religious leaders in Denmark called for Jullands-Posten to make an apology. On October 14, some 5,000 Muslims demonstrated in Copenhagen. Also in mid-October, two of the artists were sent death threats. One week later, diplomats from 11 Islamic nations complained to the Danish prime minister about the cartoons. [...] Several Muslim organisations brought forward legal charges against Jullands-Posten in October 2005 that were eventually dismissed [...]. Apologies from Jullands-Posten and the Danish prime minister "triggered a backlash by a number of European newspapers which decided to republish the images. That decision sparked angry and partly violent protests around the Muslim world. The EU and major intergovernmental organisations, including the UN and OSCE, published statements in which they expressed their support for freedom of speech, while at the same time speaking out against the infringement of religious beliefs."”

"Muslims in the European Union: Discrimination and Islamophobia" by EUMC (2006)₅

But the EUMC also mentioned briefly a few Danish imams who put together a dossier on the cartoons. With this, they disseminated this far and wide, running a long, dedicated and bitter campaign, stirring up much hatred. It is briefly mentioned that they added additional material to it. They added some racist and insulting images of Muhammad that were never published in any mass media, claimed that the newspaper was government-ran, and included a series of anti-Islamic hate letters. One of the added photos was of a French pig-squealing contest which was completely unrelated to anything, but when added to their dossier, looked very damning. This was conscious fraud for the purposes of crying foul: it was playing the racism card and it resulted in mass protests and riots over a long period of time. There were 139 deaths in total, and death threats remain outstanding. Several of those involved with the drawings are in hiding.

This entire shameful escapade was a fabricated case of fake-outrage that became real, of an entire network of, it seems, professional pseudo-victims who concoct outrage in order to achieve political and social ends, which are, primarily; the domination of Islam over free speech.

The fear of such outrage and the fear of claims of Islamophobia must not be allowed to stifle free speech and critical inquiry against Islam, or against any other religion or philosophy.

The moment you stop asking questions, and freethought fails to produce free action, society starts go backwards in time towards the dark ages and theocratic barbarism.