“Islam is a religion which is experiencing a crisis today, all over the world,” asserted the poised French President, after the gruesome beheading of a school teacher charged with blasphemy.
Billions across the globe gawked, gasped, and groaned. The West was at it again, spewing anti-Muslim propaganda left and right.
Some defenders-of-peace became keyboard fighters, speed-typing how France and Macron were famously Islamophobic.
Others went on a self-imposed boycott of French products, called upon by the venerable Turkish President, in hopes of gutting their EU-supported economy.
Others took a completely different approach, instead choosing to storm a church in Nice and kill 3 innocent Christians in retribution. Two days later, a gun show near an Austrian synagogue followed killing 4 bystanders and injuring 22.
Meanwhile, Macron stood by his stance unfazed. He continued advocating for stricter religious regulation, all under the guise of building an ‘Islam of Enlightenment.’
Does that make Macron the evil, intolerant, anti-Islam dictator – A Hitler for Muslims, if you will – and the West his allies? Does it make the Muslim community the victims?
Maybe.
But, the one truth underlying all these discussions of minority rights, inclusion, and morality is this:
Today, Muslims are their own worst enemy.
A harsh statement, but one alluding to a raw truth we barely ever acknowledge.
The American mission of counteracting terrorism (or is it just oil?) throughout the world has led to it digging its paws in nations such as Afghanistan and Iraq, inciting wars that have caused thousands of innocent deaths and dislocations. However, the Western intrusion is only one part of the equation.
Beyond the existence of radicalized terror outfits hell-bent on destroying those they consider ‘kafirs’, inner conflicts have also thrust the Islamic community into chaos.
Whether it’s Saudi Arabia and Iran clashing swords at the expense of Yemeni lives, or Sunni belligerence against Shia Muslims in Pakistan, these wars have created an influx of refugees to the West.
It’s Muslim on Muslim violence, derailing Muslim lives.
But war isn’t the immediate problem. The root of all evil is the outlook.
Specifically, the ‘I’m right, they’re wrong” outlook.
The majority of Muslims today don’t condone violence. But unknowingly, they apply this very ideology in their day-to-day lives.
As a child, I hated dogs and felt disgusted that non-Muslims loved and cherished them as pets. After all, wasn’t this a dirty, impure animal that you couldn’t let inside your house?
It was only after I grew up that I was able to distinguish between the harmless animal itself and any religious commandments regarding it.
This is just a small example of how religious misinformation turns so many into radical hardliners. They squash any view that’s different, new, or opposing to maintain their superior integrity.
But what integrity is that?
Acts of violence against innocent people in a country that was generous enough to welcome you in its arms are undignified, weak, and pathetic. They drip of an unspoken self-righteousness:
“We are the chosen, and you owe it to us to be good to us.”
Such blatant use of force signals dictatorship. And the simple, uncolored truth is that religion cannot be directed.
There is no denying, of course, that the French’s stubbornness in displaying caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is abhorrent and a very transparent attempt at vilifying the Muslim community’s sentiments.
But, so is killing and injuring people in cowardly acts of terrorism.
Whenever there is a terrorist attack by radical Islamist organizations, there are two sets of victims:
Firstly, the innocent pedestrians, who were just at the wrong place at the wrong time.
And the entire 2 billion strong Muslim community, then looked at with disgust and fear.
Often, this hostility forces young Muslims to feel alienated from their society and pushes them into the hands of those who manipulate them for their agendas.
And thus, the cycle continues.
Hostility against Muslims is a very real problem in the West. But, instead of rushing off to label someone as “Islamophobic,” the Muslim community should self-analyze.
Ordinary citizens can’t put an end to decade-long wars.
But they can certainly put an end to their internal prejudices against other Muslims, other people, and other ideas.
2 thoughts on “Why Muslims Need to Stop Blaming the West”
I agree with you to an extent. Yes muslims, their rigidity, their inability to accept change has hurt us. But the country that took these people into their arms did it for its own benefit. England, last year, posted many stellar offers for doctors from Pakistan as they are enamoured by their skill. Yes muslim leaders are also to blame, especially Saudi Arabia, many of them are small minded, others like UAE at present, traitors. We muslims have never presented our best side forward. But you also have to acknowledge that a lot of the hate for muslims comes from how they are projected on the media and who controls the media? Ofcourse muslims are more to blame and they need to pick up themselves fast.
Everything aside you should check out the facts on the church and attack – muslims werenot involved.