Calling The Kettle Black

Every day I awake and begin my morning ritual of brushing my teeth, making breakfast, etc; but the first thing I do before even crawling out from beneath the covers is reading the news. There are the same filler articles almost every day, a recycling of the previous day’s headlines with a minor variation in narrative. Inevitably, there is always a story regarding either Islam or a particular Muslim. There are only ever two stories being told in these articles, it is either the damnation of Islam, or the damnation of the damnation of Islam (with all of the racial and religious prejudice that each of these entails). The latter are the easier to read, as they are far less vitriolic, but they are also capable of inciting rage and hatred. Whether it is the bending of reality through portraying the ‘Boston Bombers’ as Arab rather than the Caucasians they are (or in the case of one of them, were)[1], the coverage of yet another right-wing bigot proclaiming that we should treat all Muslims as second-class citizens[2], or the reaction to organizations regulated by the former enforcing these kind of policies[3], the news is almost never good. Occasionally there will be a shining light, such as the hiring of bright and talented Muslims by the normally bigoted American right-wing; however, this light is almost always overrun by the darkness of the American politic[4]. It is no surprise that many of us fear Muslims and Islam when we are so constantly bombarded with the notion that they are coming for us, that they cannot be trusted, and that they are the root of all terrorism[5][6]. The root of this fear and mistrust is simple, most people are far too cordoned off in their own limited bubbles to have experienced the peace and love that can be offered by Muslims, and are far too ignorant of the roots and causes of terrorism (which by and large is an overwhelmingly Caucasian Christian activity).

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[1] Anon. "White privilege radically changes the appearance..." Brofiling. http://www.brofiling.com/post/49029017043/white-privilege-radically-changes-the-appearance.

[2] Frumin, Aliyah. "After Boston, we should put Muslims under surveillance, says Rep. King." MSNBC. http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/04/20/after-boston-we-should-put-muslims-under-surveillance-says-rep-king/.

[3] Markon, Jerry. "Tension grows between Calif. Muslims, FBI after informant infiltrates mosque." Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/04/AR2010120403710.html.

[4] Johnson, Drew. "Catching Hell for Hiring a Muslim." The Agitator. http://www.theagitator.com/2012/07/18/catching-hell-for-hiring-a-muslim/.

[5] Anon. "German poll indicates a widespread fear of Muslims and Islam." National Secular Society. n.d. http://www.secularism.org.uk/news/2012/12/german-poll-indicates-a-widespread-fear-of-muslims-and-islam.

[6] Csillag, Ron. "52% Of Canadians Distrust Muslims, According To Latest Poll." Huffington Post. n.d. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/26/canadians-distrust-muslims_n_1381239.html.