I am surprised at the level of Islamophobia on Mumsnet

When did you last pay jizyah?

What are her experience? She has two best friends that are Muslims that she intends to leave all her money to.

So Muslims can’t be that bad surely?

Try telling the 3,400 victims of hate crimes committed against Muslims each year that Islamophobia is just a buzz word.

Oh here we go. So someone disagreeing with an aspect of your religion on a forum for mums (to and what this thread is about) is also comparable to actual hate crimes. Some perspective, please.

There are definitely tiers of esteem in islam. Hence jizyah, right? And a lot of other things. No one asks me and I certainly don't tell them unbidden but I am scared of islam and what it means for me as a woman, yes.

Try telling the 3,400 victims of hate crimes committed against Muslims each year that Islamophobia is just a buzz word.

It’s a buzz word for you because it doesn’t affect you. For Muslims it’s very real.

@SallyWD

"I'm sad to say this but the most islamaphobic people I know are Indian"

So the counter to the post and experiences described by by @imnewhere2024 is that Indians are "the most Islamophobic people " you know ?

Everyone must be free to practice their faith of choice but I don't think they have any right to expect that others will be keen on that choice.

What does this even mean?

When was the last time a Muslim approached you to ask you if you’re keen on them?

I think I am right in saying that islam would hold me in poor regard for a variety of reasons.

’Islam’ is not a person. And the Quran is clear there is no compulsion in religion. It says ‘To you your faith, and to me mine.’

That means it really doesn’t care if you have faith or not!

I find it just as oppressive (towards women especially) as any other religion. Is that allowed?! I don’t have any respect for any religion, but I do respect peoples right to believe, that doesn’t make my phobic.

(I think the main thing is not to dehumanise someone by reducing them to their identity characteristics)

I think I am right in saying that islam would hold me in poor regard for a variety of reasons. It's impossible to unpick religion from culture and personality but I think Islam raises some specific worries for me and my future. Everyone must be free to practice their faith of choice but I don't think they have any right to expect that others will be keen on that choice.

I think people are harsher on Christianity than any other religion in today's world.

I think all religions come under fire on MN. All for different reasons. And I think, to some degree, all of them should.

I think where religion and culture are mixed it’s more difficult. But I think people don’t realise that religion and culture are mixed for all religions to varying degrees.

I think social media highlights the extreme ends of religion. Which makes it people even more concerned about the impact it has on people’s thoughts around it.

I grew up Catholic though don’t consider myself Catholic or even Christian. Seeing Christian extremists online makes me feel sick. I recently saw videos from Muslim women talking about the behaviour of a lot of Muslim men on TikTok and Twitter that made me feel similar. Those women said those views weren’t extremist views, just that in SM the men were more vocal. But for the sake of this discussion I would call them that. However, in real life, I don’t come across either of these stereotypes, often. That’s worth remembering.

Extremist are often given more air time, because they are extremist. It attracts more views, more attention.

a story about Muslims just going about their day and not giving a shit about how other people live their lives isn’t going to attract any attention.

People who are bigoted against one minority tend to not just hate that one single group. It bleeds over into a hatred of most other groups to a greater or lesser extent as the core belief tends to be that otherness is wrong

Wise words right there, @Energypanic
As a very wise professor of Arabic once explained it to me, the hatred always come first and the rest is a casting around for "justification" - and that applies to all cultures, though admittedly some seem to consider themselves freer to express their hatred without contradiction than others

I agree it’s worth looking at the impact of religions on women and girls, rather than clamp down on discussion.

I’d prefer threads to stand. If there’s a particular post people can get that deleted.

I can't say I've noticed any.

I've seen antisemitism though.

I think there is a fair amount of negativity to all of the big religions on here and elsewhere.

Personally I think organised religion has done a huge amount of harm in the world and has been particularly detrimental to women.

What is Islamic terrorism exactly?
Do you consider what happened in Ireland in the 70's and 80's (and here too) to be Christian Terrorism?
Religion gives some people an excuse, thats all.
As for a negative image pop down to your local foodbank or street kitchen, I know which communities are there every week handing out food and I know which people are questioning how genuine the people using them are.

@DrJoanAllenby I also had the same experience when starting a new job in a certain area of Birmingham. I was called all sorts, I was spat at, told I didn't belong there and threatened with sexual violence. I was 18 years old and stuck it out for 2 weeks.

I would never usually check or even read most threads on subjects such as these but saw a young woman on a post yesterday asking about an Islamic ceremony saying her dh to be wasn’t even interested in it but they were doing it for his family. It’s nothing to do with religion or country, if she was a young woman saying her dh wanted her to come away from her family and without them there to marry anywhere and as people said she had been on another thread saying things weren’t great, of course you’ll say ‘hang on, are you sure?’ Are you financially prepared? Are your family supportive of this guy?

Agree, Christian's are fair game for ridicule

I'm also kind of sick of any mild criticism of Islam being called Islamophobia. I try and stay out of these debates but I'm so sick of these buzzwords to shame and shut people up, usually said by people who don't even belong to that group.

What are you classing as Islamophobic?

im classed as transphobic because i believe you can't change sex - so forgive me if I take "phobic" with a massive pinch of salt

Maybe to do with Islamic terrorism of recent years. It’s given Islam a negative image.

If you're thinking about the religious marriage abroad thread people were concerned because going by other threads by the same OP she's in an abusive relationship. So YABU.

You should have called the police on them.

Unfortunately misogynistic abuse is not limited to Muslims. Nearly all (or possibly 100%) of the men who have shouted abuse at me were white and most unlikely to be part of any minority religion. A friend's sister used to live in a part of London associated with a different religious minority much admired by right wingers, and was verbally abused as you describe. It's a man problem, not an exclusively Muslim problem.