Islamophobia Watch

At least 1,000 people have taken part in a demonstration in Amsterdam against the planned release of a film expected to be highly critical of Islam. Protesters objected to the planned internet release of the film by Dutch right-wing politician Geert Wilders. Mr Wilders says the 15-minute film deals with Islamic ideology which he describes as "the enemy of freedom".

Some protesters in central Amsterdam carried signs that said "Stop the witch hunt against Muslims". "We can no longer remain silent. There is a climate of hate and fear in the Netherlands," said Rene Danen, a spokesman from anti-racism organisation Nederland Bekent Kleur (The Netherlands Shows its Colours), which organised the protest. 

BBC News, 22 March 2008

See also Canadian Press, 22 March 2008

And "Web host suspends site planned for anti-Koran film", Reuters, 22 March 2008

In the UK the fascists rally to the defence of their co-thinker Wilders: BNP news article, 23 March 2008

"Will it take an act of terrorist barbarity before this Government bans the wearing of the burka in public?" the fascists demand. Of course the BNP are unable to distinguish between the burka and the niqab. But then, they've never exactly been noted for their intelligence.

BNP news article, 22 March 2008

"On Thursday 13th of March between 5pm and 8 pm in Dudley Hill in Bradford, West Yorkshire, a Madrassah was attacked. 20 white youths wearing hoodies rushed the madrassah armed with hammers, axes and baseball bats. They attacked everyone in the madrassah. There were young kids in there aged between 9 and 19 who were also attacked and beaten by these thugs. And the teachers were also given a kicking. Most of the students from the madrassah have been hospitalised. It was just sheer luck that no one was killed."

MPACUK forum, 21 March 2008

The Olympics is meant to promote solidarity – but the 2012 Games has become a question of faith for some in East London as Christianity and Islam vie to become the most visible religion around the 500-acre park.

Muslim leaders have begun a charm offensive with residents in the borough of Newham over controversial plans to build a 12,000-capacity "super-mosque" on the edge of the Olympic Park. Trustees of the Abbey Mills Mosque conducted tours of the 18-acre site in West Ham last week to show they had "nothing to hide", say their Westminster lobbyists.

The Kingsway International Christian Centre, which claims to be the fastest-growing church in western Europe, wanted to build a church capable of holding 8,000 people – or five times the size of Westminster Abbey – after it was evicted from its home on the Olympic site.  The congregation is still homeless and “crammed” into a 1,000-seat cinema while it plans its appeal, according to Pastor Dipo Oluyomi.

Alan Craig, a local councillor and leader of the Christian Peoples Alliance Party, is fighting their cause. "The symbolism of the largest church in Europe coming down and the largest mosque going up is powerful," he said. "The whole world will come to East London and they won’t see a church or a cathedral, they will see a mosque."

He is accusing officials in Newham borough, where Christianity is the dominant religion, of bias towards the Islamic project after they invited 250 community groups to the mosque's open weekend.

Times, 22 March 2008

Socialist MP Maria Roth-Bernasconi said it was irritating that she had angered feminists in Iran. Ms Calmy-Rey said she was observing protocol. "When you are a guest you respect local customs," she said.

Social Democrat MP Liliane Maury Pasquier accepted that customs had to be observed. But she was quoted by one newspaper complaining that the minister should have shown solidarity with "the women who fight against wearing the headscarf". Swiss daily Le Matin said on Wednesday it was shocked that Switzerland's "icon of a liberated woman" had been transformed into an image of one who was oppressed.

BBC News, 20 March 2008

CHICAGO —  An Illinois high school senior is threatening to file a discrimination lawsuit against his school district after he says a teacher told him he fit the stereotype of a terrorist and humiliated him in front of his peers.

Maysam Amanishourbariki, 17, who was born in the United States and is of Iranian heritage, claims his Italian language teacher told him last semester that he fit the stereotype of a terrorist during an exchange in class over his clothing.

"Right after she said it, one of the students – a freshman – got up and gave her a high five," Amani told the Waukegan News-Sun. "I was like, 'Is this kid serious?' They treated it like a joke, but it's not a joke."

Fox News, 18 March 2008

"It is just a few days until Easter, the most important date in the Christian calendar. But for 700 Muslims who have gathered in a rural caravan park, this week has a different religious significance. And to some of their neighbours, the thrice-daily calls to prayer are proving a strain on a harmonious relationship. The Iranian Muslims have converged on the Trevelgue Holiday Park in Porth, Cornwall, to celebrate yesterday's Persian New Year."

Daily Mail, 20 March 2008

The original headline was "700-strong party of Muslims provoke fury after broadcasting call to prayer".

The East London Mosque replies to the Sun article "Mosque fiend: Muslim who raped girl claimed he was preaching". Read pdf here

A report published today (19 March) found that nearly half of minority ethnic residents, including Muslims, said they had experienced race discrimination and 30 per cent of recent Muslim migrants had experienced religious discrimination. This was cited as a key barrier to a sense of belonging in Britain.

The report – Immigration, faith and cohesion – published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, was written by a team at the Centre on Migration, Policy and Society (COMPAS) at Oxford University. It looked at what factors contribute to, or undermine, community cohesion in three urban areas in England with large migrant and Muslim populations.

Most migrants felt there was no conflict in having a sense of belonging to both Britain and their country of origin. Sixty per cent of long-term Muslim residents born outside the UK said the people most important to them were in Britain.

Co-author Hiranthi Jayaweera from COMPAS said: "Evidence suggests that it is discrimination and the perception of being unwelcome, rather than attachment to their country of origin, that reduces migrants’ sense of belonging in Britain."

Joseph Rowntree Foundation press release, 19 March 2008

See also Daily Mail, 19 March 2008

Controversial plans for a Muslim community centre in Solihull have been withdrawn amid calls for greater acceptance towards minority groups. Solihull Muslim Community Association (SMCA) applied for planning permission to establish the centre, complete with prayer hall, in Dog Kennel Lane, Shirley, with 50 parking spaces. Now the group – which has been searching for a home in the borough for 25 years – has announced that it has withdrawn the plans for "technical reasons".

Fears were rife that racial tension could erupt in Solihull following a leaflet campaign by the BNP against plans for the centre which also included a wudu for washing before prayer. The leaflet, posted to homes near the proposed site, claimed there was an "Islamification" of Solihull and said the centre would lead to "conflict" and "discontent".

A mother-of-three, who lives near the proposed centre and had objected to it, said she had mixed feelings about news of the application being withdrawn. "I objected to the centre because of where it was on a busy road and I was concerned about overspill parking and I know other people objected on the same grounds," said the woman, who did not wish to be named. "However, on the other hand I'm disappointed it's been withdrawn and just hope it isn't because of people with narrow minded views like the BNP. I felt sickened when their leaflet came through my door. I would hate the BNP to think it had won."

Birmingham Mail, 18 March 2008

Meanwhile the fascists are crowing that "Solihull BNP has won a famous victory on behalf of local people".

BNP news article, 18 March 2008