The future for Muslims in the UK is "bleak and dystopian"

[Scirocco]

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2024/nov/17/muslims-face-bleak-and-dystopian-climate-in-uk-says-head-of-thinktank

According to a report by the Runnymede Trust. The crisis in Palestine and Lebanon is considered to be a major contributing factor.

There are all sorts of emotive/offensive arguments at play, just remember to include the Arabic/Ottoman expansion in your talk of colonialism and slavery, no hands are clean.

The Brits actually stopped Jewish European refugees from entering British mandated Palestine at the instigation of their Arab allies, so condemning them to the third Reich. Hitler inflamed existing Jewish/Muslim tensions and that legacy remains to this day.

So, here we are, cannot change the past, where do we go from here.

I think the fact people focus so much on immigration from Muslim countries rather than from the EU (especially pre-Brexit) proves that Islamophobia and racism are at the heart of many people's objections.
Re the housing crisis - it's horrific, and, I'm personally affected, as a non-homeowner. But, once again, as with so many issues, immigration is being scapegoated for government failure (successive governments dating back decades). The selling off of council homes by Margaret Thatcher is now having a huge impact on housing shortages. The failure of several governments in a row now to introduce proper rent controls, and other legislation to keep both rents and house prices down. Among other things. Many politicians are part of the landlord class, and they don't care about the homeless and vulnerably housed. But, they don't want to admit that, and it's easier to blame immigrants, so that's what's happened. Very unfair and totally predictable unfortunately. Throughout history, minorities have been 'othered' and blamed to cover the cracks of government and societal failure.

@mids2019
Eids aren't going to become a national holiday, don't worry. They're on different days each year, it'd be too confusing to organise.

Easter varies?

Would you object to the threads about how the conflict has contributed to a rise in antisemitism?

A thread about anti-Muslim hate associated with the conflict has just as much right to be here.

If you disagree, report it.

There was a lot of upset at a local healthcare facility that a major project was scheduled over Eid and a lot of staff accused the organisation of religious insensitivity.

It is these questions that do become more high profile with changing demographics.

This is also the issue …… you can not keep reaching back in to ancient history to justify what is happening today. Henry VIII for goodness sake!

Always on a Sunday and within a particular timeframe.

So what you’re saying is that we people like op who was born in the UK deserves the hate because some people she shares the faith with? Stupid idea isn’t it? Well that’s what I get from your comment

also , please remember , not 100% British people are perfect. Many have committed crimes abroad , so you’d not want to be attacked when visiting a foreign country or living in there just because you’re British too

TBF Brit tourists often get labelled as boozy, sex crazed troublemakers in some quarters.

They do as some are but it’d not be fair for locals to attack / harass innocent British using this as an excuse. Hence, why should op be harassed because some people she shares faith with have committed terrorist attacks in this country?

Calling geniune concerns of a large part of the population (excess imigration being one of the top two issues of the country) "Nonsense from the right wing press" and a "myth" is sticking your head in the sand. People aren't racist or bigots for being concerned about housing for their kids, public services being overwhelmed, jobs etc. There are different forms of living in bubbles. Walthamstow is very different from the North East of this country for example where your form of naivety would be given short shrift I'm afraid.

That issue is very different from talking about UK Muslims living in this country. You keep conflating them with immigration and Gaza for some reason. It must be tedious to read constantly.

Do you feel the same way about the Jewish people that are afraid to go to London when there are pro Palestine marches? Isn’t that in their head as well then? Oh sorry according to you there are no attacks against Muslim community, it’s all in their head.

Really weird that you don't believe it to be true when there's a report saying that Muslims are assaulted more than people from any other religious group.

And how can you say "In the same way, I don’t believe the average Muhammed or Fatima regularly experiences fear because of their religion. It just doesn’t happen." with such confidence? You don't know how other people feel. I'm friends with our local Imam and he told me that several Muslims have experienced verbal abuse on the way to his mosque. One woman was shoved and spat at. These people are most definitely frightened. It's not for you to say they're not. You don't walk in their shoes.

And to add, I've seen people harassing Muslims in the street. Just the other day I saw men in a white man yelling at two Muslim schoolgirls who were walking home from school. They looked really frightened.

Islamophobia isn’t imagined and there are definitely places I wouldn’t want to go in the UK wearing a hijab. In terms of the marches , I’ve seen pictures of the Israeli flag being flown on some of these far right marches which is indeed very intimidating given that many people feel a genocide is being committed. Religious stereotyping can be very harmful and intimidating. Terrorism isn’t unique to Muslims. People have short memories and have forgotten already about the millions of people killed in Iraq and other countries because of the Bush and Blair war which triggered that particular wave of terrorism. People need to be mindful of religious and racial stereotyping.

Absolutely not saying that at all. No individual should ever be in fear or be subjected to abuse because of their faith, race, sexuality or sex. But in order to achieve this utopia, hard questions and answers should be sought rather than the usual platitudes as if the leaders and people of the Muslim faith are all just victims of racist white europe/US. And I find it interesting that this report and the Op are happy to tar white British people with the same brush of racist oppressors because a small section of the population are racist abusers who commit hate crimes; the extrapolation of that to white British people creating a dystopian future for Muslims is as extreme as it is me calling all Muslims terrorists.

No individual is to ‘blame’ but I have no problem in saying that for a long time Christianity was an absolute blight on large parts of the world, responsible for almost every war and the mass killing of millions and that was down to both the monarchs/politicians and faith leaders and people (Protestants & Catholics happily slaughtering each other for centuries) that is not the case by and large these days. The world’s problem is now Islam. Almost ever war is warring factions of Shia and Sunni or another faction of the faith. And to pretend otherwise is ridiculous. Their religion - their problem to sort because they do have a problem and pretending otherwise is ridiculous.

The worlds problem is now Islam? Do you not see your own bias?

9/11 preceded the second gulf war, the first gulf war was to come to the aid of Kuwait after it was invaded by Iraq.
Prior to that Iraq's biggest conflict was externally with Iran or internally with it's Kurdish people.

'In the same way, I don’t believe the average Muhammed or Fatima regularly experiences fear because of their religion. It just doesn’t happen'

Pretty offensive @Yerushalmi

Really weird that you don't believe it to be true when there's a report saying that Muslims are assaulted more than people from any other religious group.

Because the stats don't bear this out. The article states % reported hate crimes, if you apply this to population numbers the picture changes.

The threads on antisemitism invariably deteriorate into lurid posts outdoing each other on how sad the posters are about terrible descriptions of death and suffering. I don't believe the war is the reason for antisemitism either, it's just the current excuse. There are better boards.