My Recent Experience with Islamophobia & Hate Speech

Below is my response to some hateful and Islamophobic interactions involving my family and my earlier post Response: Can a good Muslim be a good American? was in fact part of the same conversation. These things are not new to me and few months back for example, I was told that, “All from Issac are on truth and All from Ismail/Ishmael are from Satan!”. So, yep this is not something new but recent exponential increase in Islamophobia & Hate Speech against Islam and Muslims makes it important to share these experiences and instead of fighting fire with fire, take more pragmatic approach to calm things down. 

*I have modified my response for privacy reasons.

Dear XXXXX,

Respecting other religions (and not even disrespecting the idols of other faiths) is part of my creed and believing in Jesus, his miraculous birth, his message, and his return at the end of times are prerequisite of my faith. So it is impossible for me to be disrespectful towards any belief or creed including Christianity.

I am compelled to write this post after noticing a trend of Islamophobic ideas and intolerance towards Islam and Muslims. I am not only responding to you as a Muslim but also as a concerned husband and father. I am concerned because this hateful narrative is dangerous and can lead to bigger problems. Discussing problems and issues is great but it is extremely dangerous when you use false propaganda to dehumanize certain people, race, or religion because at the end of the day, you may not pull the trigger but your words can most certainly urge someone else to do something stupid. This is exactly what happened in Germany when the Jews were vilified for such a long time that murdering 6 million of them became nothing extra ordinary and this Islamophobic propaganda is doing exactly what Nazi’s did in Germany.

Just like you were offended when Jim Johns was mentioned with respect to Christianity, Muslims feel the same when you vilify them with false propaganda. Terrorist organization like ISIS are not representatives of 1.5 billion Muslims around the world. But if you want to go that route then according to your logic and all those with the same mind set:

1: Christianity is responsible for the ethnic cleansing of Muslims in Central African Republic because all this is being done in the name of your religion. Simple Google search should give you all the details.

2: The Christian faith is responsible for the evil acts of Anders Breivik who killed 77 and injured more than 400 in Norway 3 years ago. You can read his 2000 pages manifest for details.

3: All Christians are responsible for murdering 6 million Jews and the Holocaust. Below is a quote from Adolph Hitler’s book Mein Kampf to prove my point:

Hence today I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: ‘by defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord.’

4: All Christians are responsible for 1991 Massacre of Bosnians when Slobodan Milosevic used religion and race to dehumanize the Bosnians which eventually resulted in the genocide.

5: Tens of thousands of women were burnt alive in the suspicion of witchcraft and all that was done in the name of Christ.

6: Spanish inquisition is another example where Jews and Muslims were murdered, forcefully converted, their kids taken away from them, forced to leave their homeland, etc.

7: 12.5 million Africans were enslaved in America between 1525 and 1866 and no religion other than Christianity was used to justify all that happened to them.

So just like me and my fellow Muslims don’t blame you for everything that happened in the name Christianity, we ask the same tolerance and respect. Vilifying every American Muslims by spreading hate speech is disrespectful, replying to it with facts and figures is not.

Regards,

Ali

An open letter to the Barakat Abu-Salah Families and All Who Care!

You can never find Greatness but if Greatness is looking for you, it most certainly will!

I have said this a million times before and I will say it again that greatness is something most of us seek but few achieve it and majority of those who achieve it, never even expected or desired it. If you closely research, read history, and follow current events, you will see that true grandeur doesn’t require you to be the best in what you do or demands a doctorate as a prerequisite. You must have seen people who put all their efforts in their job by ignoring their families, friends, health, and beliefs but after giving everything, the only thing they are left with are regrets and what ifs. On the other hand, there are few mysterious souls who are picked by forces beyond our comprehension and greatness just follows them like a shadow, dying for their glimpse. These forces are in control of God Almighty, the one who turns their tiny deed into mountains of gold, their simple words into a slogan, their blood into a clot that stops bloodshed, and their scars that give birth to a revolution.

Nelson Mandela, for example was a black man in a racist society, imprisoned for 27 years, opposed by almost everyone and even the super power like United States proclaimed him to be a terrorist (just like 1.5 billion Muslims are today) became a symbol of freedom, equality, justice, and human rights. Spending prime of his life in prison should have killed his odds of grandeur but that is where the unseen forces come into picture. Fifteen years old Aitzaz Hasan is another example who saved lives of 900 students by single-handedly tackling and stopping a suicide bomber from attacking a school in Pakistan. Aitzaz Hasan never planned for this, he didn’t go to school that day to be a hero or a martyr and same is true for Deah, Yusor, Razan, and the Barakat/Abu-Salah Families.
Deah was fundraising for $20,000 to support a team of doctors and dentists helping Syrian refugees. I don’t think he was sure he will be able to reach 20k mark but he trusted in Allah just like prophet Moses (as) who put his staff in the sea and trusted in Allah for the rest. The last time I checked, the total contribution to his cause on youcaring.com was at $353,884 and counting. I don’t think he ever expected it to reach 300k but Allah is the one who decides the outcomes of everything and He had something better for Deah and his efforts i.e. Deah walked towards Allah and Allah ran towards Deah.
Yusor who married Deah 6 weeks earlier with the plans to have kids and spend long and happy life with her husband and family and Razan was just visiting her sister that day. Dr. Suzanne Barakat never wanted to be interviewed by the world media and be representative of not only her family but also the whole Muslim World, Deah never intended his (request for donations) YouTube video to become proof of his personality and character, his parents never panned to show the whole world the true meaning of patience and submission to the will of Allah. No, none of them ever planned any of that but Allah has his own mysterious ways which are beyond our understanding.
Legacy of Deah, Yusor, Razan, Dr. Suzanne, and the Barakat/Abu-Salah family is right in front of us and we should learn from it but we should also ask ourselves a question: What Will Be My Legacy?!
Yet again… You can never find Greatness but if Greatness is looking for you, it most certainly will!

Inna Lillahi wa inna ilaihi raji’un – Surely we all belong to Allah and to Him shall we return. This is extremely difficult test and may Almighty make it easy for them. Aamin!

Response: Can a good Muslim be a good American?

This list is online for a long time but bigots in the society are bringing it back to support their hateful propaganda. Below is my point by point response:

Theologically – No. Because his allegiance is to Allah, The moon-god of Arabia.

Response: Theology has nothing to do with being good American because America doesn’t have any official religion. Secondly, the first amendment of the constitution (which you most certainly love) clearly prohibits the government from establishing an official religion which also applies to the states.

Only significance moon has in Islam is for calendar and if that makes them followers of moon-god, then Jews are in the same boat right next to them. BTW Christians in Middle East call their God Allah. You can research…

Religiously – No. Because no other religion is accepted by His Allah except Islam. (Quran, 2:256)

Response: Quran 2:256 which you have quoted above starts by stating that, “There is no compulsion in religion!” which is perfectly aligned with your beloved constitution of America. Secondly, just like you believe that Christianity is the true path, Muslims believe the same. So if it is fine for you then it should be ok for them as well.

Scripturally – No. Because his allegiance is to the five Pillars of Islam and the Quran.

Response: Yet again, scripture has nothing to do with being good American and using scripture to judge how American you are is unconstitutional. Just like observing Sabbath and following Halakha doesn’t make a Jew “bad American”, same is true for Muslims.

Geographically – No. Because his allegiance is to Mecca, to which he turns in prayer five times a day.

Response: Hmmm… According to this logic everyone except Atheists are bad Americans because the Wailing Wall is sacred to Jews, the Vatican for Christians, Lumbini for Buddhists, Varanasi for Hindus, etc.

Socially – No. Because his allegiance to Islam forbids him to make friends with Christians or Jews.

Response: The verse of Quran that is always quoted to prove this absurd point was revealed in response to a certain “Event” and was specifically for the “leaders” and had nothing to do with ordinary Christians and Jews.

Politically – No. Because he must submit to the mullahs (spiritual leaders), who teach annihilation of Israel and destruction of America, the great Satan.

Response: You need to do serious research if you believe that Muslims MUST SUBMIT TO MULLAHS. Mullah is like a church Pastor and just like some Christians blindly follow the pastors, Muslims are no exception. Remember Pastor Jim Jones!?!?

Domestically – No. Because he is instructed to marry four Women and beat and scourge his wife when she disobeys him. (Quran 4:34)

Response: You quoted wrong verse but Islam never “instructed” to marry 4 women. The verse 4:3 states that you can marry up to 4 but if you cannot be just to all of them then it is better to marry only one. And btw polygamy isn’t something new if you read old and new testament.

Intellectually – No. Because he cannot accept the American Constitution since it is based on Biblical principles and he believes the Bible to be corrupt.

Response: hmmm… I can talk a lot about this but to keep things simple, let us just talk about the 10 commandments: First and third commandment contradicts with the First Amendment, second and third commandment contradicts with freedom of speech and expression, Sabbath (4^th commandment) has nothing to do with American culture and society, adultery (7^th commandment) is celebrated and encouraged, etc.

Philosophically – No. Because Islam, Muhammad, and the Quran do not allow freedom of religion and expression. Democracy and Islam cannot co-exist. Every Muslim government is either dictatorial or autocratic.

Response: Muslim governments are dictatorial because it suits American foreign policy. May be you don’t know but Islam gave women right to vote 1400 years ago while it happened in 1920s for the American women. Freedom of expression and making nude/pornographic pictures and movies about religious figures are totally different things.

Spiritually – No. Because when we declare ‘one nation under God,’ The Christian’s God is loving and kind, while Allah is NEVER referred to as Heavenly father, nor is he ever called love in the Quran’s 99 excellent names.

Response: Jews don’t refer to God as “Heavenly Father” so are they in Santa’s “bad” list as well?

This hostility against Muslims isn’t something new and certain sections of society just need a punching bag to feel alive… so in the beginning, the “Red Man”, then the “Black Man”; Jews were evil until the Holocaust (which btw was a very Christian act), Japanese Americans were pushed in concentration camps, then the Red Giant USSR, then gays/lesbians, and now Muslims. Hence… same game, different players!

New Year’s Resolution Tips for All – From Atheists to Religious and Everyone in the Middle

1. The best of all richness is the richness of the heart.
2. The worst blindness is the blindness of the heart.
3. Lucky is the person who learns from the mistakes of others.
4. The pinnacle of wisdom is the fear of your creator.
5. All that which is little and suffices you is better than a lot that distracts you.
6. The worst of all excuses is the excuse you give at the time of death.
7. The most evil of all the regrets is the regret on the Day of Judgment.
8. The firmest of all handhold is the righteous word and the word that encourages to do good.
9. The higher hand (who gives charity) is better than the lower hand (who takes charity).
10. The best of all deeds is the one that benefits you in this life and the next.
11. Whoever wants to show off must know that he will be shown punishment.
12. The best of all knowledge is the one that is followed.
13. The worst of all sins is a lying tongue.
14. The worst of all incomes is the income of riba or interest.
15. The worst thing to eat is the property of an orphan.
16. Whoever is patient at the time of calamity, the Almighty will give him better than what was taken away.
17. The best of all deeds are the ones that are done with most sincerity and the worst of all deeds are innovation (in religion).
18. The most blind of blindnesses is to be misguided after your Creator guided you.
19. Whoever controls his anger, will be reworded.
20. Whoever is patient, his Creator will give him more.
21. The most truthful of all speech is the book of Allah.
22. The best of all paths is the way of Ibrahim (as), best of all sunnah is the Sunnah of Muhammad (swt) and the best guidance is the guidance of/by the prophets.
23. Best thing you can say is the zikr of Allah and the best of all stories are those mentioned in Quran.
24. The best death is the death of a martyr.
25. The best thing that settles in the heart is yaqeen (certainty in beliefs).
26. Alcohol is the mother of all evil.
27. There are those who don’t come for the Jummah at all except on rare occasions and there are those who don’t do zikr enthusiastically.
28. Whoever will ask for forgiveness, his Creator will forgive.

Prophet Muhammad’s (saw) speech on his way from the area of Tabook back to the city of Madina.

Blame The Victim: Palestine vs Israel

After closely following the storm of hateful propaganda against the Palestinians and total disregard for their lives, their rights, and their self respect, I have come up to the conclusion that it is not the love for Israel that drives these bigots but the hatred for Muslims. My conclusion is not out of emotions and is based on indepth analysis of the response from the west in particular and the world in general. The west that was “outraged” when Mallala was (allegedly) shot not too long ago is busy giving justifications for the murder of four young kids who were playing soccer on the beach when Israel targeted them in one of their world famous “pinpoint” operations. Barack Obama who went on his renowned “Muslims are not enemies” (felt like “make love to the muslims”) world tour in 2008, humiliated Muslims after inviting them for Iftar at White House last week and served racist Israeli ambassador’s (Ron Dermer) speech as an appetizer (main course comprised of “Israel has right to defend itself” with a hint of lemon zest, one of president’s speciality).

The media around the world is also playing its part in this dirty game of “blame the victim” by showing damage done by the Israeli missiles as something done by rockets from Gaza. This total bias is more prominent when you hear about number of rockets fired from Gaza instead of reporting the damage done by the rockets. I mean comparing rockets from Gaza and the missiles from Israel is like comparing fireworks with tomahawks but who cares about that side of the equation!?  It is the same media that totally ignored protest in UK that was joined by more than hundred thousand people.

Another sad aspect of this scenario is the fact that you are promptly labeled as anti Semitic as soon as you point out human right violations committed by Israel and everyone forgets the fact that genocide has no religion and you don’t have to follow a certain religion to condemn it or to be its victim.
Religious segments of the society are using religion and scripture to support everything that is being done to the Palestinians and are trying to overlook the whole situation as if Israel is fulfilling God’s commandments by killing those “damn Arabs”. So in short, it is not the love for Israel that is driving these people but the hatred for the Muslims.

Double Standards Of The West

Same NATO that will not take a min to support division of Pakistan into multiple states is opposing the division of Ukraine. Yes, the same people who didn’t say anything when Iraq was being carved into multiple sub-states(like Kurdistan) by the terrorists (which btw happened after the “success” of mission Iraqi “Freedom”)

Kids & Adults

According to my experience and observations, I believe that babies are born with infinite level of intelligence/creativity and it is the environment, social pressures, etc. that turns them into “ordinary” adults.
I have also learnt that it not the child’s limitation to understand complicated concepts but our inability as “ordinary” adults and  our limited/flawed explanations and uncreative expression.

In Response to “10 REASONS WHY I DO NOT WANT SHARIA IN PAKISTAN”

Below are my ten points in response to the “10 REASONS WHY I DO NOT WANT SHARIAH IN PAKISTAN”

Source: 10 REASONS WHY I DO NOT WANT SHARIAH IN PAKISTAN

Islam is more than inshaAllah and MashAllah but some in the land of the pure believe that it is good enough.

1. Religion and how I choose to practice it is my business and not that of the State.

1.  Sharia law never dictates how you practice your religion at personal level or what you do in your home. It merely gives a framework of rules and laws that should be implemented to run the affairs of a state.

2. Enforcing Shariah will not make me a better Muslim nor will it make Pakistan a welfare state. The world’s welfare states are all governed by secular governments.

2. Yet again, the purpose of sharia law is not to make you a “better Muslim” because Quran clearly dictates that there is no compulsion in religion. And your argument that as all the welfare states are governed by secular governments therefore sharia law is not workable is just childish. It is like saying that as number of male recipients of Noble prize is greater than that of women therefore all women are stupid.

3. I reject the idea that Shariah in any form can be enforced by those who have raped and plundered my country, blown up schools and mosques and beheaded soldiers. I will not give these criminals the right to dictate to me.

3.  TTP will not be implementing sharia law, government of Pakistan will. Secondly, implementing sharia law doesn’t mean that you are justifying the evil acts of the few. If evil acts of TTP in past 10 years can be used to undermine Sharia law then we have suffered far longer due to “democracy”. Hence if I accept your logic, democracy is bigger evil than sharia.

4. I will not give up my civil rights, including freedom of thought and expression, under the guise of Shariah.

4.  Muslims both at individual level and as a nation contributed more in science, medicine, arts, etc. following laws of Allah. Islam gave right of vote to women 1400 years before the west and abolished slavery long before the “free world”. Islam encourages all aspects of expression unless your definition of “freedom of expression” coincides with the one expressed by Veena Malik.

5. I stand against acts like wife beating and the premise that rape requires 4 witnesses, all of which can be justified under Shariah law. Virtually anything can be justified by quoting religious scripture, and the context or interpretation of quoted text is usually not questioned. An example is a heinous crime like the Peshawar church blast being declared “in accordance with Shariah” by the TTP.

5. How can you equate wife beating/domestic violence with sharia law? But if you really want to go that route than I must accept the challenge. In US, one woman is being raped every two minutes and 1.3 million women were physically assaulted in one year by their significant other. So this proves that democracy is bigger evil than the sharia law!?!? Secondly you have stated that and I quote “virtually anything can be justified by quoting religious scripture”, isn’t it true in the secular legal system where lawyers play all kind of games and twist things to win? I know that finding faults in secular legal system is not enough to prove my point but I just wanted to show the other side of the picture. Just like acts of a killer are his own fault and the state or the legal system is not responsible, same is true for sharia law if one decides to beat up my wife. Blame the player not the game! Last but not least, the 4 witness rule is not for rape but for adultery and formication.

6. I abhor the notion that under Sharia law the State will be classifying its citizens into those who practice Islam and those who don’t. There should be NO minority, and NO majority, everyone should be equal citizens with equal rights under the law.

6. Sharia law doesn’t classify on the basis of majority or minority but on the basis of religion so that those who are not Muslims can live their lives according to their religion, customs, laws, culture, etc. In this way laws related to drinking for example will not be applicable on non-Muslims.

7. I believe that draconian laws under the guise of religion will push Pakistan back socioeconomically and isolate it from the rest of the world. This must not be allowed to happen.

7. If I accept your idea that sharia law will push Pakistan into isolation then my question to you is: Aren’t we isolated now i.e. during the golden age of democracy in Pakistan? Secondly If sharia law will push Pakistan in isolation then why is Saudi Arabia (not supporting Saudis in any way) is not isolated and is considered biggest American ally after Israel?

8. Imposing religion in a country that is already torn apart by religious extremism and sectarianism is like adding fuel to the fire. The criminals who are demanding Shariah are the ones who have taken responsibility for sectarian killings across the country.

8. An evil group asking for something good should never change your stance towards the good thing just because “they” are asking for it. TTP guys also drink water so should that stop you from drinking water ever again just because “they” are drinking it too?!?!

9. We live in a modern world that uses rational thinking, information and science to frame laws which don’t necessarily derive inspiration from religion or religious text. These laws can be amended according to the will of the people. Laws based on religion take away the freedom to choose, criticize or amend. An example is the relegation of scientific and forensic evidence as secondary in cases of rape.

9. This statement of yours basically means that religion is obsolete in the modern world and I cannot argue with you here because I don’t think I need to prove that here. But if you (those against religion or laws dictated by religion) want to kick religion out then you should be ready to give your daughter freedom to sleep around because secular law allows that. There are many other examples but I should just shut up. I agree with use of scientific and forensic evidence in cases of rape. By the way it is really weird that same people who don’t allow their daughters to marry according to their wishes (which sharia law allows) talk about freedom.

10. I believe the actual reason for the demand for Shariah is to simply grab power and territory under religious pretense. I will not give up any part of my country to anyone for any reason.

10. Last but not least we should never judge the statement by looking at the person who is saying it and that each statement or argument should be weighed in isolation from the one who said it.

If I have said something good it is from Allah and if I have made some mistakes then that are from me and I ask for your forgiveness.

Allah HoAkbar & The Media

Fox news, radio shows, and others kept whining about one thing today i.e. America should not help those who say “Allah hoAkbar” after a successful attack on Assad’s forces. So they have problem even with this tiny little thing. isn’t it priceless! Hence: وَلاَ يَزَالُونَ يُقَاتِلُونَكُمْ حَتَّىَ يَرُدُّوكُمْ عَن دِينِكُمْ إِنِ اسْتَطَاعُواْ
Btw one dumb ass “expert” was explaining that Allah hoAkbar was first used by “Mohammed” (saw) when he attacked Arab Jews and that is why Muslims say this!
Muslims used Allah hoAkbar long before the confrontation with Arab Jews but these people have special way of presenting the facts.

War Drums & March Towards Syria

I am in no way, shape or form supporting Assad but I find it hard to believe him using chemical weapons when he knows that such actions will be a suicide for his regime and will only expedite his downfall. History is full of events when a third party exploits the conflict between two for their own goals and aspirations and we should be mindful of that. Prophet Mohammed saw said that you should support your brother, whether he is an oppressor or the oppressed one! People asked, “O Allah’s Apostle! It is all right to help him if he is oppressed, but how should we help him if he is an oppressor?” The Prophet said, “By preventing him from oppressing others.” Hence, there is no doubt that we need to stop the bloodshed, but we should also be careful and ensure that we are not being used by our enemies for their own agenda. We should be careful, mindful and not hasty, is all I am saying. There is a punjabi proverb, “apna maray ga tay sutay ga chaan ich iee! i.e. if one of your own will assault you, he will at least put you under the shade unlike your enemies…