On Monday night a swastika and Nazi symbols were sprayed the mosque of the El Mouhsinine Muslim association in Tarascon-sur-Ariège. Police have launched an investigation. Local councillors visited the site to express their support for the association, and the mayor has called for a firm stand to be taken against racism and xenophobia.See also La Gazette Ariégeoise, 22 May 2012
Xenophobia? I guess one can’t simply be Muslim and French…
Excerpt:
Cohen’s movies clearly propagate stereotypes against Arabs and Muslims that increase western ignorance and subsequently animosity, specifically benefiting Israel. The marketing of his movies often target a segment of society with low IQ (which may have racist proclivities of their own) with this type of overgrown juvenile humor.
I have yet to see one Baron Cohen movie that picks on someone other than Arabs and Muslims. Sure he did a decent acting job in both Hugo and Sweeney Todd (good movie by the way), but it seems that any movie in which he stars, writes, and produces will do nothing more than advance stereotypes about Arabs and Muslims. He wins when his movies make a killing, but also when he sees his political agenda creep into the mainstream American discussion.
Excerpt:
Thus there is no one American Islam, but it – whatever it ultimately is being defined as – is in a constant state of formation and growth. It is happening in a multitude of ways, some often conflicting. But, it is there. So-called religious reform cloaked in the coercive terminology of ‘Progressivism’ going far beyond tradition will be unable find a place or appreciation amongst the majority of Muslim Americans. Islamic traditionalism has authority because of its grounding in an impressive, vast and flexible scholarship that spans philosophy, sociology, theology and science as well as other disciplines. But the continuous focus in the discourse of the (re)formation of an ‘American Islam’ on groups or individuals who – despite being sometimes prominent voices and images – are a minority, will only fuel the idea that attempts to give Islam an American character will just be laden with unorthodoxy rendering the faith unrecognizable.
‘Progressive’ religious movements are neither particular to Islam nor particular to Islam in America. They are part and parcel of genuine experiences of faith, identity and circumstance that evolve into an active search for space. But is the fear of an Islamic traditionalism that does not conform to the path used in the development of the American Christianity model so riveting as to avoid other voices also searching space? By ignoring these other voices and focusing on a particular minority, Muslims who do not agree with the actions of those popularly given the charge of ‘reform’ and progress’ fall into the category of ‘extremist’ or ‘fundamentalist’ – terms which have become as meaninglessly dangerous as they have become commonplace.
Mohamed Merah was born in Toulouse.
He died in Toulouse.
In 2008, he attempted to join the French army, but was rejected. The motivations for his murders: the French military presence in
Afghanistan, and French society’s attacks on Islamic forms of dress.
These are all French issues. Mohamed Merah is a product of modern French society, a symptom of the many terrible problems that that society faces. A society that propels far-right fascist politicians to seriously compete for the presidency, only 67 years after the end of a war where the French themselves fought fascism.
And yet in no way has he been described as a Frenchman gone bad; a product of the French environment. No, he is a Muslim, an Islamist, an Algerian, an Arab.
See, the word ‘terrorist’ cannot be associated with the word ‘French’. Put it next to the others and we’re good.
But isn’t France’s failed attempt at creating a one-size-fits-all homogenous society also partly to blame? Aren’t these attacks also a result of a society that places its poor, deprived ethnic minorities in squalid banlieues, out of sight on the outskirts of the main cities? A society where an unpopular president plays on racist and Islamophobic themes to garner more votes, rather than confront them.
That is the reality of today’s France.
You put people in a corner, and eventually, horribly, they’ll lash out in a terrible manner.
And how exactly are French Muslims being put into a corner? Well, let’s look at some recent examples.
We have Sarkozy’s recent statements on immigration, where he declared that there were ‘too many foreigners in our territory.’ The irony, of course, being that Sarkozy’s father was a Hungarian immigrant, and his own wife, the glamorous Carla Bruni, is Italian. Those who the speech was directed to understood who Sarkozy was attacking. The French far-right don’t care so much about European immigration – it’s the Muslims that are their main concern.
In fact, Sarkozy is trying so hard to win the anti-Islam vote that he is stealing extreme right policies, even when he has previously criticised them. When Marine Le Pen, the leader of the Front National announced that halal meat was invading French society, Sarkozy said that she was whipping up controversy. However, he then went on to announce that halal meat was the “issue that most preoccupies the French.” Well, the ones he’s seeking to get the votes of, anyway.
And of course, there is the ban on Muslims praying in the street. Whilst it is definitely preferable that Muslims not pray on the streets, in many instances they are forced into it, because of a lack of mosques. There are only 4 in France’s second city, Marseille, a city that’s population is 10% Muslim. If the issue of praying on the streets were about public safety and congestion then Sarkozy would seek to rectify this issue of a lack of mosques. Instead, the ban can only be seen as yet another attack on Muslims as elections near.
But isn’t France’s failed attempt at creating a one-size-fits-all homogenous society also partly to blame?
These issues aren’t new. Muslims have lived in France for over 100 years, and the problems remain the same. Muslim resentment of the situation is also longstanding. Whether it’s the riots that rip through France’s cities every so often, or the government’s continued refusal to apologize for the atrocities committed in Algeria during the colonial period; French Muslims are made to feel like the enemy within.
What Mohamed Merah did was a vicious crime, and one that shouldn’t be swept away by simply describing the man as crazy – unlike certain soldiers in Afghanistan. This piece should not be read as a justification for his crimes. However, let’s remember that, even if it has been barely mentioned, Merah killed Muslims too, Muslims who put their lives on the line for liberté, égalité, fraternité. Yet many in modern French society do not see them as equal. They are still the guestworkers, the foreigners, only in France temporarily.
But that does not take away from the reality – the Merah killings are a product of France, and not of Islam.
Recap:
“Immigrants” towards (white) gays = hate speech.
White ppl form bigoted, racist, xenophobic, Islamophobic groups = Freedom of speech.
I understand that you recently put five Muslim men on trial and convicted three for passing out “homophobic leaflets.” They were tired under a new law that was passed in March of 2010 that intended to curb “hate-speech”, including homophobia, while protecting “Freedom of Speech.”
While I am, in no way, going to give value for or against the issues, I do find it interesting that this law has been applied to this group of men - who were calling for a change in law and not vigilantism - versus the English Defense League (EDL). Not only is the EDL filled with white-supremacists, but it seems that it is allowed to continue its racist, xenophobic, and Islamophobic diatribes publicly, but it looks as though the UK government is paying an estimate £800,000 out of its pocket to protect their planned March (along with the group Unite Against Fascism) in Leicestershire next week.
At the sentencing, the judge said to the men
“You have been convicted of intending to stir up hatred. It follows that your intention was to do great harm in a peaceful community.”
These words would have carried more weight were they applied equally, and to everyone who “intends to stir up hatred.” From these (in)actions, I guess it’s not hatred when it’s directed towards ‘brown-immigrants’, huh? Only when it’s directed towards (presumably white) gays…
3M (Command, Scotchbrand tape),
Airborne Vitamin,
Amway, (says it has been misrepresented)
Anheuser Busch Inbev (Select55),
Art Instruction Schools,
Bamboozles,
Bank of America (Cash Rewards),
Bare Escentuals,
Brother…
NEW YORK - Retail giant Lowe’s has pulled advertising from Discovery Communications-owned TLC’s reality show All-American Muslim.
The conservative Florida Family Association in a statement said it has sent three email alerts, encouraging supporters to email advertisers on the show. “All-American Muslim is propaganda that riskily hides the Islamic agenda’s clear and present danger to American liberties and traditional values,” it said.
On its Web site, the Association posted an email from a Lowe’s representative saying: “While we continue to advertise on various cable networks, including TLC, there are certain programs that do not meet Lowe’s advertising guidelines, including the show you brought to our attention. Lowe’s will no longer be advertising on that program.”
On its Twitter feed, the home improvement retail company said Friday in response to a tweet: “We did not pull our ads based solely on the complaints or emails of any one group. It is never our intent to alienate anyone. Lowe’s values diversity of thought in everyone, including our employees and prospective customers.”
A Lowe’s spokeswoman later told The Hollywood Reporter: “We understand the program raised concerns, complaints or issues from multiple sides of the viewer spectrum, which we found after doing research of news articles and blogs covering the show. We based our decision to pull the advertising on this research and after hearing the concerns we received through emails, calls, through social media and in news reports.”
A TLC spokeswoman declined comment on the issue, but said: “There is strong advertising support for the show.”
Some still expressed outrage at Lowe’s decision. A person using the Twitter handle LawyerAsif, a tax lawyer in Washington, DC, wrote to Lowe’s that “your actions did alienate people and you knew it would. Will you next consider KKKs demands to pull ads from BET?”
(source)
