Bad language, racism and dodgy votes at the Guardian

Guardian Cif had a field day the other week running several articles highlighting the BTL abuse thrown at Muslim writers and journalists. The first was by Mehdi Hasan who asked “who will stand with me” against this unwarranted hatred.

He was quickly answered by Jonathan Freedland in his article “I stand with Mehdi Hasan against the torrent of Islamophobic abuse” and added “By all means disagree with me below the line. But no one should have to put up with vile racism and bigotry”

Freedland’s view can be summarised by this passage:

... it is racism, of the crudest kind. That last quotation is the easiest example [Hasan was told "Get out of my country, goatfucker"], but the subtler ones are not much better. They can be confusing, because they often dress up in progressive, Guardian-friendly garb – slamming Islam as oppressive of gay and women's rights, for example – but the thick layer of bigotry is visible all the same. Call it progressives' prejudice.

His article attracted 885 reader comments (this is a high number even for Cif) and the one with the greatest number of reader recommends (a massive 4407) fully supports him. It has even been awarded the accolade “Guardian pick”. It says:

“The attraction of Islamophobia to bigots is that it provides them with 'plausible deniability', i.e. despite the fact that most Muslims are non-White, bigots can still claim that their hatred has nothing to do with racism, because Islam is a religion and not a race.

Whenever someone scratches the surface when it comes to groups like the EDL and BNP, beneath the Islamophobic exterior, there is often a racist motivation. If most Muslims were Anglo-Saxon, I doubt that Islamophobia would hold much appeal for the likes of the EDL and the BNP”. [islamophobiasucks (4407 votes) 10 July 2012 1:33PM]

No doubt some White people can pursue their hatred of non-Whites by attacking some other characteristic not to do with colour. But who are they, these bigots?

How did Freedland himself fare in his robust defence of Muslim fellow writers? Did he, in fact, attract comments from these bigots and was he in his turn subjected to this rampant BTL abuse? He must have stood out in their eyes as just as bad.

The comment critical of Freedland with the highest number of recommends (a lowly 1590 compared with the Guardian pick quoted above), says:

“I feel what you've written is very patronising. You seem to find it unacceptable that people can have strong views about Islam which in my opinion are understandable. For instance you state that critics of Hasan and Islam use language that ' they often dress up in progressive, Guardian-friendly garb'. But perhaps these people really are progressive but do not find Islam to be, probably because it isn't.

I found very little of the 'language and imagery so vile' that you spoke and I read them all, the moderator removes most such things and others which are not offensive anyway so not sure what you're referring to as they weren't there.

I don't know Jonathon I really don't know why you're so obsessed with calling anyone a racist who objects to the obvious unpleasantness of this religion. Also you may accept Hasan's explanation of his deeply offensive comments but that doesn't mean everyone else has to.

Let me add my own brief explanation of myself so as not to be labelled racist/fascist or whatever term is being used at present. My Grandfather came to UK from Germany (guess why?). My Grandmother is from a family of Irish Gypsys (usually referred to as Pikeys). My wife is the daughter of immigrants from Bangalore. I could go on …” [Stowlawn (1590 votes) 1st 10 July 2012 1:41PM]

The man who wrote this is not a bigot. He is not a racist. In fact, it is very hard to find any measure of bigotry or racism in the comments critical of Freedland (and indeed in the critical comments on the Mehdi Hasan article which set this ball rolling).

There are a good number that might have been better worded but then we don’t all possess the literary skills of a Guardian journalist such as Freedland who can produce brilliant non-bigoted phrases such as “.... the thick layer of bigotry is visible all the same. Call it progressives' prejudice.“

The fact is, despite the “Guardian pick” comment quoted above with its massive 4407 recommends, the great majority of Guardian Cif readers are critical of Islam and those that try to promote it, and they are not bigots or racists, and they show their disapproval without resort to abuse. The table below shows the numbers for Freedland’s article.

Analysis of first 250 published comments
Type of Comment	Readers Comments	% of comments	Readers Votes	% of votes
Critical of Mr Freedland	142	56	35608	66
Neutral/unclassifiable	55	22	4574	8
Supportive of Mr Freedland	53	21	13975	26
Total	250	100%	54157	100%

27, about one in ten, of all the commenters in the period examined had their comments removed. The only explanation given is “.... removed by a moderator because it didn't abide by our community standards”.

Typical published comments are:

“I agree that vile personal abuse is wrong, and has no place. It is a pity Mehdi Hasan has fled CIF. However, all Muslims must be able to take criticism of their belief and faith, and be prepared to uphold them intellectually, with reasoned arguments based on intelligence, detailed questioning and understanding.” [Existangst (1498 votes) 3rd 10 July 2012 1:33PM]

“.... Sorry, that sounds suspiciously like a means of dismissing any rationally argued point that happens to ask uncomfortable questions of the Islmaic faith.... “ [ToastandMarmite (1189 votes) 5th 10 July 2012 1:43PM]

And one commenter uses the f#### word!

“Muslims can quote insulting passages from their holy text which are rude about us, is apparently what you and he are saying, but we mustn't be rude about them back, is what this boils down to. I call that fooey. [southlondonerabroad (531 votes) 15th 10 July 2012 1:49PM]

“So is there a way that one can criticise the oppression of gay people or the inferior position of women in Muslim countries, or homophobic statements by high-profile Muslims in the UK, without being accused of merely "dressing up" bigotry?” [Heresiarch (167 votes) 63rd 10 July 2012 2:09PM]

I used to think I abhorred National Socialism. Now I realise I am just bigoted against Germans. [CruiskeenLawn (94 votes) 92nd 10 July 2012 2:47PM]

There is another dimension to all this. If you click rapidly enough on the recommend button you can rack up more than one recommend, even increasing the count by several votes. Anyone can fiddle the Cif readers’ recommends number.

The process is however time consuming and it takes a very dedicated hacker to increase recommends by “hundreds” on just one comment. There is also supposed to be a programme which the technically competent can use to increase recommends.

There is a question mark hanging over all the recommends both those criticising and those supporting Freedland.

The comments themselves are on firmer ground as coming up with and posting a large number of original sounding comments from different identities is a much bigger challenge.

Though that does not rule out someone sufficiently infuriated with or in admiration of Mr Freedland having a go. In the opinion of the present writer who has read the first 250 comments and scanned the rest the comments are all or very nearly all from different people.

In this particular case there is another factor.

If a line of comment is popular, many comments repeating that line will get high recommend scores, even if a few especially at the beginning of the comment period get very high scores.

Now, amazingly, the top three comments (out of 53) in support of Freedland with 4407, 2594, and 1715 recommends respectively account for 62% of all his supportive recommends. After these top three all you get are a few low 100s and lots of 10s.

In contrast, the top three comments criticising him (out of 142) with 1590, 1520, 1498, recommends respectively account for only 13% of the total recommends going against him.

Somebody or something has been getting at those top recommends in Freedland’s favour. It sticks out like a sore thumb.

It doesn’t help that the highest scoring pro-Freedland comment with 4407 recommends has been given the label “Guardian pick” and that the second highest scoring comment with 2594 recommends , published only five minutes after Freedland’s article itself and first in the stream, is by a Guardian Cif employee who comes up with this:

“Excellent point [Freedland’s remarks quoted at the top]- it's easy to spot and dismiss out and out racist comments, a few of which are highlighted above, but the subtle hate speech is just as damaging.

Has Guardian Cif finally lost the plot? [LibertyPhile]

Muslims are well-integrated in Britain – but no one seems to believe it

In Britain today there is a mismatch between how non-Muslims often perceive Muslims and how Muslims typically perceive themselves.

This disconnect is down to a tendency by non-Muslims to assume that Muslims struggle with their British identity and divided loyalties. These concerns were challenged a few days ago,in a report by the University of Essex that found Muslims actually identify with Britishness more than any other Britons.

This study is just one of several recent studies that have consistently found that Muslims in Britain express a stronger sense of belonging in Britain than their compatriots. Consider the following examples:

[A COMMENT] What do you mean "strong sense". Enough to not marry someone "back home" and of a different racial and religious group without pressure to "convert"

Problem is this loyalty to Britain appears to be a Britain of their own creation and not necessarily one others would recognize.

As for fewer white people feeling a strong sense of belonging, could that be the result of decades of Guardian lectures on how rubbish we are and how all the worlds ills started here? [Guardian Cif] Read more

Further Information

The Cif article says: “This study is just one of several recent studies that have consistently found that Muslims in Britain express a stronger sense of belonging in Britain than their compatriots. Consider the following examples:

• 83% of Muslims are proud [1] to be a British citizen, compared to 79% of the general public.
• 77% of Muslims strongly identify [2] with Britain while only 50% of the wider population do.
• 86.4% of Muslims feel they belong [3] in Britain, slightly more than the 85.9% of Christians.
• 82% of Muslims want to live in diverse and mixed neighbourhoods [4] compared to 63% of non-Muslim Britons.
• 90% of Pakistanis feel a strong sense of belonging [5] in Britain compared to 84% of white people.”

The numeric notes have been added by Islam Surveyed and signify as follows:

[1] This is a link to a Daily Mail article on a survey by Demos (2011)
The Demos survey is reviewed here: A Place for Pride (or Not) N.B. The statistic of 83% of Muslims is based on a sample of 48 Muslims!

[2] Daily Telegraph article on Gallup Coexist Study (2009)
The Gallup Coexist Study is reviewed here: The Headlines You Didn’t See

[3] Link to extract from book/report “Muslims in Britain” (2008)
Anyone who thinks there is a statistical difference between 86.4% and 85.9% doesn’t know what he is talking about!

[4] Euro-Islam.info website article on Gallup Coexist Study (2009)
See [2]

[5] Daily Telegraph article on a “Government study” (2008)
There is no link to the referenced study.

Women’s rights not blocked by religion in Arab world, claims survey

Religious views do not stand in opposition to women’s rights in the Arab world, says a survey of men and women from across the Middle East. The survey, conducted by the Gallup Center for Muslim Studies, shows that no correlation exists between people’s attitudes towards Shariah law and their level of support for women’s rights.

.... “The biggest challenge facing women wasn’t so much the rise of Islamist parties but the rise of a sense of insecurity and the plummeting economy,” said Dalia Mogahed, a senior analyst who oversaw the study.

The study asked questions that broadly defined women’s rights, such as: “Do women and men have the same right to education and employment?” and “Do women have the right to initiate divorce?” In fact, survey participants who advocated for Shariah law were more inclined to support a woman’s right to initiate a divorce. [AL ARABIYA NEWS] Read more

Arab Women and Men See Eye to Eye on Religion's Role in Law

Many observers of the Arab uprisings are growing concerned about women's rights as Islamist parties that generally favor a more assertive role for religion in public life gain influence across North Africa. Gallup surveys in five Arab countries found Arab women are as likely as Arab men in their countries to favor Sharia as a source of legislation.

.... The majority of women and men across countries experiencing political upheaval do want some level of religious influence in law, though people's views of the specific role for Sharia vary widely from one country to another. Those who want no legislative role at all for Sharia are in a small minority in every country. [Gallup] Read more

52% Of Canadians Distrust Muslims, According To Latest Poll

A new poll shows that more than half of all Canadians distrust Muslims.

The nationwide survey indicates that as many as 52 percent of Canadians feel Muslims can be trusted "a little" or "not trusted at all." The poll showed that 48 percent of respondents said Muslims can be trusted "a lot" or "somewhat."

What's more, 42 percent of Canadians said discrimination against Muslims is "mainly their fault."

Muslims registered the lowest levels of trustworthiness of the religious groups asked about in the survey. [TheHuffingtonPost.com] Read more

This is Why - Part 7

A continuous survey of causes of “Islamophobia”. It concentrates on news concerning Beliefs and Practices, Freedom of Speech, Religious Freedom, Integration or Multiculturalism, Organisations and Politics, Sharia, and Women and Islam. The “War on Terror”, Terrorism, the Israeli/Palestinian issue and ongoing conflicts in Muslim countries are excluded. See here for explanation of survey.

April 2012

American Muslim Group Warns Muslims Against Working in Law Enforcement, Becoming "Pleased with a Legal System That Does Not Come from Allah"

Imam speaks against Women's Day

Kuwait MPs okay death penalty for cursing God

Tunisian jailed for desecrating the Koran

University to have alcohol-free areas for Muslims

12 Christians in Iran await verdicts after Easter Sunday apostasy trial

'A Koran in every home' project makes waves
A project by Salafist Muslims to give away 25 million German-language Korans across the country – by post and in town centres, has been slammed by a conservative politician calling it a disturbance of the religious peace.

Mosque in gay-hate row opens a new fee-paying school where pupils will memorise the Koran and speak Arabic
Pupils will be expected to memorise the Koran and wear traditional Pakistani uniforms when it opens in Birmingham this September, with fees of £3,500 a year.

Handshake Muslim loses court case
Enait had applied for the job at the social services department but said he would not shake hands with women on religious grounds. However, he would greet them in another respectful fashion, he said.

Religious right in Egypt hoping for Islamic law
The men gathering outside the yellow mosque agreed: Adulterers should be stoned to death, the hands of thieves cut off.

Egypt: Christian jailed for insulting Islam
An Egyptian Christian teenager has been sentenced to three years in prison for allegedly insulting Islam.

Arab Christians are being driven from places where they have lived peacefully for centuries

Leicestershire councillor facing probe over message criticising Muslims

Two Tunisian men sentenced to seven years in prison for blasphemy

Islam Conquers European Football
.... Real Madrid, has removed a Christian cross from its official logo as a way to strengthen its fan base among Muslims in Europe and the Middle East

Muslim Brotherhood candidate says introducing sharia in Egypt is his main goal

Egypt jails Christian student to three years in jail for insulting Islam

'Toulouse killer is one of us’
.... grandchildren of North African immigrants are turning to Islam as a form of social protest.

British Muslims define themselves according to foreign policy

Sex and Sharia: Muslim women punished for failed marriages
... her gender prevents her from unilaterally divorcing her husband, instead the Imam told her to return to her husband, perform her wifely duties and maintain the abusive marriage that she was forced into.

Two teachers arrested over blasphemy
Police in Bangladesh said yesterday they had arrested two school teachers on suspicion of staging a drama containing blasphemous remarks about the Prophet Muhammad.

March 2012

Extremists control hundreds of Tunisia’s mosques: religious affairs minister

Cashier uncomfortable handling handling pork or alcohol
.... They’ve put up a sign asking customers buying pork or alcohol not to use a particular checkout line when a Muslim teenager is on duty as the cashier.

Malaysia in religious row over 'threat of Christianity'

Forced marriage: Girl aged five among 400 minors helped

Italy: Man who beat daughter for reciting Koran incorrectly broke law, court says

And not a woggle in sight: The new Scout uniform for Muslim girls
Looks like integration has gone out the window then, along with Scouting tradition. Bending over backward to appease the minority, yet again, how typical.

MPs [in Kuwait] move to toughen penalty for blasphemy
.... “the death penalty or life imprisonment to those who publicly insult God Almighty (Divine Entity) or Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) or his wives by words, writings, drawings, or pictures or any other means of expression ....

Kuwait arrests man over Prophet Mohammad tweets
Kuwaiti authorities arrested a man late on Tuesday for insulting the Prophet Mohammad via his Twitter account

400 women and girls held in Afghanistan for 'moral crimes'
The report by Human Rights Watch found many inmates had fled a forced marriage, or violent husbands and in-laws.

Muslim girls must swim with boys: Swiss court
A Muslim family in Basel has been fined 1,400 francs ($1,550) for refusing to let its daughters participate in mixed swimming classes.

We will insist on applying Sharia in Egypt, Islamist MP says

Letchworth taxi driver cautioned after refusing Stevenage blind man’s guide dog
.... he was told by Mr Hasan he would not take the dog because he was a Muslim and wouldn’t breathe in dog hairs.

Thousands rally in Tunis to demand Islamic law

Now they'll have to tell us if we're eating halal: Ministers prepare to change law

'Pull her by the ear, beat her by hand or stick': How the Islamic guide to a happy marriage advises husbands to treat their wives

Tariq Ramadan: Mohamed Merah not “driven by racism and anti-Semitism”
.... Any Western failure to make the adjustment, acceptance and recognition is proof of misunderstanding of Islam and victimisation of Muslims. Islam has nothing to learn from the West, but the West must learn from Islam.

Book tells Muslim men how to beat and control their wives

Danish school fined for forcing Muslim to eat pork

Woman died after Muslim nurse refused to help as he was praying

‘Destroy All the Churches’
.... Abdulaziz ibn Abdullah Al al-Sheikh, the grand mufti of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, declares that it is “necessary to destroy all the churches in the Arabian Peninsula ....

Bangladesh to shut Facebook pages for blasphemy

Sharia Law in the UK: Threat to Women and Children
.... 'Polygamy is already happening,' she said. 'It means Britain has two parallel legal systems, one which does not permit bigamy and the other which does.’

More than half of Canadians mistrust Muslims, poll says

Muslim juror removed from jury after refusing to take off veil

French women's match called off over headscarves

Massacre of emos in Iraq goes to core of a damaged society
.... Starting last year, mosques and the media both began raising the alarm about youthful immorality, calling the emos deviants and devil worshippers. In early February, somebody began killing people.

Keep corrupt regimes out of British culture
.... The British Museum's current Hajj exhibition charts the history of Mecca as a destination for pilgrims with the wariness of a conscript crossing a minefield. The exhibition sticks to the authorised version of "religious scholars".

Hundreds of Muslim lawyers block blasphemy alleged Christian victim’s lawyer entering court in Egypt

Court gives life-term for blaspheming

Muslim Persecution of Christians
.... some 100,000 Christian Copts have fled their native Egypt since the overthrow of the Mubarak regime; and in northern regions of Nigeria, where the jihadi group, Boko Haram, has been slaughtering Christians, up to 95% of the Christian population has fled.

Europe's failure to integrate Muslims

Swedish court disallows teen's Sharia marriage

Islamic halal meat: It 'slams against Quebec values'

Assembly of Muslim Jurists of America Cautions Muslims Against Participating in American Legal System; Urges Them to “Hate It in Their Hearts”

Christian woman arrested for blasphemy as petition goes to UN on Asia Bibi's behalf

One rule for Jesus, another for Muhammad?
.... the satirical musical depicted Jesus as a petulant overgrown baby in a nappy, I put it to him that the BBC wouldn't dream of broadcasting something comparably satirical about the Prophet Muhammad.

Egyptian MP proposes Sharia punishments for murder, theft crimes

Moroccan girl commits suicide after being forced to marry her rapist

Sharia Law and Middle Class Feminism
.... the quotes condoning domestic violence and marital rape from 'judges' of both the Islamic Sharia Council and the Muslim Arbitration Tribunal

Muslim Cab Drivers Claim Employer Barred Them From Praying

Message to Iran: Free Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani

Proposal of Islamist MP forces hijab on all women

At least 14 youths stoned to death in Iraq for wearing Western-style ‘emo’ clothes

Freedom of speech under fire?
.... a man from Gainsborough has been given a one year prison sentence for displaying posters critical of Islam. It is claimed that he ‘plastered his front window with vile anti-Islamic hate literature’:

Towering new Derby mosque may be blocked by city planners

Doublespeak from the East London Mosque

Imam detained for preaching violence against "errant" wives

Freedom of speech according to the BBC
.... "for a Muslim, a depiction…of the Prophet Mohammed might have the emotional force of a piece of grotesque child pornography." He added that "secularists" fail "to understand…what blasphemy feels like to someone who is a realist in their religious belief."

Spanish imam under investigation after calling on Muslims to ‘discipline’ misbehaving wives

French PM criticises halal as campaign heats up

Founder of Tunisian 'religious police' explains how to promote Islamic behaviour

Sharia law in Australia already a reality
.... A Muslim man who divorces his wife is supposed to give her a financial settlement but many ignore this; while a woman who seeks a divorce against her husband’s wishes has no financial rights and, worse still, has to pay back the dowry he paid when they married

Fireman Sam and the day freedom went up in smoke
.... Here are the words: ‘If I was wearing this scarf over my face, I wonder what would happen.’

Olympic mega-mosque opposition campaign relaunched in West Ham

Australian Muslim women must show faces for identity checks under new law

Halal - are non-muslims losing the right to choose?

Fears for imminent execution of Iranian pastor

Woman tortured for ‘anti-Islam views’ in Pakistan

No special consideration for Muslims like halal meat in schools

Saudi culture to blame
It seems that when the green flag of Saudi Arabia is paraded at the London Olympic Games opening ceremony, it will be followed by men alone

Egypt jails Christian for six years for religious contempt

Moroccan Muslim sentenced for beating his wife for not wearing her hijab

February 2012

Saudi women seek right to play sports despite Muslim clerics’ veto

Tattoo photo puts Malaysia newspaper on defensive
The publishing of a photo that included an American singer tattooed with the Arabic word “Allah” has forced Malaysia’s the Star newspaper to apologize after anger fomented in the country.

Father tries to set 23-year-old daughter alight
.... The father was apparently annoyed that the woman planned to go out with a group of friends that evening and considered her "too emancipated". The newspaper quoted a source describing him as a "Muslim fundamentalist."

Christianity gets less sensitive treatment than other religions admits BBC chief

Censorship persists: Egypt authorities ban screening of 'taboo' movie
Egyptian film-makers and critics denounced the authorities on Monday for blocking the screening of a "taboo" film about a love story between a Christian woman and a Muslim man.

Nearly half of Europeans see Islam as a threat to their identity

The terror continues in Iran
…. the security authorities of Iran have been taking action against the growth of Christianity and house church movement in Iran and have arrested many believers.

Marseillais: 'Muslim culture is definitively taking over the lower levels of society'

Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani to be hanged

Is Sharia Law Compatible with Democracy?
.... The question has arisen of whether legal decisions based on cultural values at odds with democratic principles be accepted and incorporated into laws of democratic countries in the name of religious freedom.

A Global War on Christians in the Muslim World?
Inter-religious and inter-communal tensions and conflicts from Nigeria and Egypt and Sudan, to Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Indonesia have raised major concerns about deteriorating rights and security for religious minorities in Muslim countries.

The London-based campaign to hang a Pakistani Christian

How "Islamic" government works in London
.... The PCC ruled that it was "not misleading" to describe Rahman as “closely linked” to the extremist Islamic group, the Islamic Forum of Europe (IFE), who control the East London Mosque.

Muslim University's library out of bounds for undergraduate girls

France: 'Suburbs becoming Muslim land', says journalist

The Mega Mosque - Tablighi Jamaat casts on a new application

Kuwaiti MPs call for ban on construction of churches

Egypt’s Baha’is face more attacks from Salafists

British cleric in heated debate, tells Muslim apostate he should be killed

First Islamic Version of Facebook Aims to Create 'Halal' Field for Muslims

Toronto’s million-dollar ‘radical mosque’

After surviving sectarian mob, Egyptian Christians expelled from village

Purifying girls
…. over 90% of women in Egypt have undergone Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) - the highest rate anywhere in the world.

Religious police swoop on Valentine's Day lovers
.... The religious authorities say Muslims who take part in Valentine's Day are in fact weak, lacking imagination, and far removed from the "sublime and virtuous" objectives of their religion.

The bloodlust faced by the 'blaspheming' Saudi journalist

After revolution in Egypt, women's taste of equality fades

Top Muslim scholar says any one who insults Prophet should be killed

Saudi writer may face trial over Prophet Mohammad tweets

The toxic legacy of British Multiculturalism

The Problem of Sharia Law in Britain
.... deep concerns about the discrimination Muslim women suffer in Sharia courts, particularly in cases involving child custody and domestic violence.

Saudi writer Hamza Kashgari faces charge of blasphemy after tweets about Muhammad

Morocco: Weeklies Censored for Depicting God, the Prophet Muhammad

Muslims jailed over gay-hate leaflet
Three men have been jailed after becoming the first to be convicted of stirring up hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation for handing out a leaflet calling for gay people to be executed.

Muslims told Valentine’s Day can invoke wrath of God

Taj Hargey renews attack on Tablighi Jamaat over Newham 'mega-mosque'

Prison sentence for man who attacked Muslim girls for wearing bathing suits

Islamists in Egypt halt filming of TV series
The students had objected to the "indecent" clothing, it said, and "categorically refused" to let the filming continue unless the costumes were changed.

Islam and Free Speech: Islamic countries vs. Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Egyptian Presidential Candidate Says No Freedom in Islam
.... being a Muslim is like being a member of the military; you must obey all its dictates, including dress codes.

Journalist Flees Saudi After Tweet on Prophet

The Global War on Christians in the Muslim World

Saudi activists sue government over driving ban
Two Saudi female activists have filed law suits against the government for refusing to issue them driver's licences and banning them from driving a car.

Islam, honour, murder
.... the Shafia case and the murder of four innocent women, some of them mere girls, by their Muslim father, their Muslim mother, and their Muslim brother.

Iranian Court Upholds Death Sentence for Software Designer
.... Malekpour is charged with "insulting the sanctity of Islam" and "corruption on earth," two regularly invoked grounds for execution in Iran ....

Muslim arbitration in Germany
Mediating disputes is an age-old tradition in the Arab world, which is also practiced in Germany. But experts warn of the danger of a parallel, Muslim judiciary.

Egyptian film star sentenced for insulting Islam

Veiled Muslim Woman Denied Gas Wants Chevron Apology

Calls to Behead Indonesian Atheist Alexander Aan
.... Muslim extremists have called for Aan to be beheaded but fellow atheists have rallied round, and urged him to stand by his convictions despite the pressure

Muslim cab driver refuses guide dog in Letchworth

January 2012

Muslim teenagers must not mix with non-Muslims

Sharia creep at the LSE
.... “The London School of Economics [LSE] Student Union has passed a motion effectively making it impossible for students on campus to criticize Islam.”

Canadian jury finds Afghan family guilty of 'honour killings'
Prosecutors said the defendants killed the three teenage sisters because they felt they had dishonoured the family by defying its strict rules on dress, dating, socialising and using the internet.

Indonesian atheist might embrace Islam after arrest, police say

Saudi Arabia: Christians Arrested at Private Prayer

Saudi Arabia to allow women into sports stadiums

Over 3000 Muslims Attack Christian Homes and Shops in Egypt, 3 Injured

Death threats for singer of burqa song

Totalitarianism of Yusuf Al-Qaradawi’s Islamic utopia

Muslim car-pool service
.... he thought of the idea because of complaints he heard that regular carpools don't implement gender discrimination.

Why Salman Rushdie's voice was silenced in Jaipur

'Strict Muslim' raped four women at knifepoint to 'punish them for being on the streets at night'

Tunisia’s Blasphemy Law Sparks Mob Violence
Karoui .... is charged with “violating sacred values” and “disturbing public order” for airing Persepolis, the award-winning animated film about the 1979 Iranian revolution that depicts God as a bearded old man.

LSE Students Union “being manipulated by determined activists” over Mohammed cartoon

Islamophobia is used to scaremonger people into silence

Norway: Two Iranian converts attacked, called 'kuffar'
Two Iranians who converted from Islam to Christianity were stabbed by masked me in Haugesund last week. The attacker shouted 'Kuffar' (Arabic for non-believer) during the attack.

Strong religious belief is no excuse for intimidation
.... Most people in the UK don't condone violence, but a worrying number think we should be careful around individuals with strong religious beliefs

Indonesian atheist attacked, charged with blasphemy after denying God’s existence on Facebook
Indonesian police say a civil servant who posted “God does not exist” on Facebook faces a maximum penalty of five years behind bars for blasphemy.

Rushdie cancels India visit after death threat warning

Islamist hatemongers face jail for saying gays should be killed

Denmark: Schools drop Christmas traditions out of consideration for Muslim students

Why British Muslim women can’t find a Muslim marriage partner
As a white male, if my essential criteria for marrying someone was that they be white and of the same religion then the Guardian would consider me something of a bigot would it not?

Iranian actress told not to return home after posing naked for magazine

Dangerous tightrope that Saudi women walk
A woman must carry around a permission slip from a man to function in Saudi society.

How Islam supresses Muslim women’s rights in the United Kingdom

Haitham Al Haddad’s Sharia “Court” in the News
.... the senior cleric of Britain’s main Islamic sharia court, Abu Sayeed considers it “not Islamic” to classify non-consensual marital sex as rape and prosecute offenders.

Islamist stops university debate with threats of violence

Iran's morality police crack down on Barbie

Growing use of Sharia by UK Muslims
''We have spoken to many women and all of them tell us the same story; Sharia law is not providing them with the justice they seek. The councils are dominated by men, who are making judgements in favour of men''

Criminalizing Religious Criticism: UN Resolution Threatens Freedom of Speech

British worker faces jail in Abu Dhabi for making comment “insulting Islam”
A British engineer is facing a month in jail after he told colleagues in a meeting, 'When will we finish with the damn mosques?'

Hundreds protest plan for new Sunderland mosque

Scientific proof that women cannot talk and remember at the same time
.... under Sharia law a woman’s testimony is worth half that of a man’s so you always need two women for every man, not just in financial transactions – as its proponents deceptively say (as if that’s not bad enough)....

Egyptian Islamists Demand "Morals Patrols"

Blasphemy law is at the rotten core of Pakistan

Large numbers of young Muslims in jail because imams are out of date and some don’t speak English

Egypt Copt tycoon faces trial for religious tweet
.... faces trial for insulting religion after tweeting a caricature of Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse in Islamic garb.

How Punjab governor's killer became a hero
"We are just grateful that God chose a member of our family to protect the reputation of the Prophet."

Religiously Sanctioned Paedophilia
The Director General of the Census Bureau in Hormozgan announced that there had been five marriages of girls under the age of 10 in the Iranian province.

Muslim jailed for holding ex-wife prisoner on the toilet – he saw her western knickers as SATAN

Secular Egyptian leader to stand trial for cartoons of Minnie Mouse in a burka

Iran Begins Internet Crackdown, Preps Countrywide 'Halal' Intranet

Iranian cleric calls Facebook 'un-Islamic', membership a 'sin'

Iran Mounts New Web Crackdown

Battle over bikinis looms for Egyptian tourism

Maldives luxury resorts face ban on spas after Muslim protest

Christians face waves of persecution

Islamic preacher calls for ministry for 'promotion of virtue'

MPs and peers reject demands to serve halal meat at Westminster

December 2011

Christian student jailed in Egypt for anti-Islam images on Facebook

The joys of multiculturalism: Christian head of Muslim school claims he was dismissed because of his religion

Veiled woman given driving fine

Egypt Muslim group orders Christian TV station off air

Bosnia's Muslims urged to "boycott New Year"
By taking part .... they would "violate Allah's boundaries, and do something their master hates and despises".

Muslim Extremists in Uganda Throw Acid on Bishop

Nigerian man’s hand amputated for theft

Iran does not have necessary facilities to stone Sakineh to death so want to hang her instead

Women are not for battering
The physical chastisement of a woman is widely regarded in our society as a man's entitlement and a woman's just desert.

Iran Detains Sunday School Kids Celebrating Christmas
Iranian authorities raided a church that was celebrating Christmas and detained everyone in the building, including children attending Sunday school, a U.K.-based Christian charity said.

Ahmadinejad steps into Iran’s dress-code debate
Though leading Shiite Muslim clerics advise women to wear chadors — the traditional head-to-toe cloak, usually black — Iran’s urban fashionistas increasingly prefer tight-fitting coats and scant head scarves.

Muslim cadets WILL be allowed to wear hijab after 14 year old forced to quit

Arabic school textbooks show children how to chop off hands and feet under Sharia law

Muslim man jailed for punching nurse who tried to remove his wife's burqa during childbirth

The persecution of Christians sweeping the Middle East

Extremist Teachings Remain in Saudi Textbooks Despite Kingdom's Claims of Reform
…. the textbooks call for homosexuals to be put to death "because they pose a danger at society, as the Saudi school books teaches.

Quebec accused of caving over guard’s hijab, will allow Muslim head scarf in prisons

Muslim kindergartener permitted to block out music
.... the principal of Bienville School decided to grant the accommodation request made by a Muslim family and allow their daughter to block out music at school.

Denmark: Schools drop Christmas traditions out of consideration for Muslim students

Saudis urged to stop amputation sentence

Clinton says women sidelined in Egypt transition

A happy extremist Christmas at the East London Mosque
One of his previous appearances there was at an event to pronounce music a “social ill.” Haitham has also described music as a “prohibited and fake message of love and peace.”

Bangladeshi Muslim cuts his wife's fingers off because she wanted an Education

Islam’s abominations are too obvious for you to excuse
Proponents will dishonestly say that stoning is not mentioned in the Koran knowing full well that is mentioned in the Hadith and that it is part and parcel of Sharia law

What’s Islam Got to Do with It?
He advocated that Muslims begin by transforming the states in which they live into “Islamic states.”

It’s his culture; he can’t shake your hand

Indonesian police crackdown to promote strict moral values

Senior adviser to Iran’s supreme leader says Turkey’s secularism not suitable for Arab states
Turkey’s model of “secular Islam” was a version of western liberal democracy and is unacceptable for countries going through an “Islamic awakening”

Free speech mustn't be squelched to protect religion

Top Islamic scholar objects to women running in election

India: pastor who baptized Muslims appears before sharia court

Salafist party vows to ban alcohol, beach tourism in Egypt

Pakistan Blasphemy Law Continues to Victimise Christians and Others

Inside a Muslim primary school
Jonathan Romain of the Accord Coalition tells Khan of his fear that such schools ghettoise children and fail to prepare them for a multicultural society

Saudi woman beheaded for 'sorcery'
A Saudi woman was beheaded Monday after being convicted of practising sorcery, which is banned in the ultra-conservative kingdom, the Interior Ministry said.

Independent Muslim schools are not divisive says headmistress
Yes, religious based schooling worked so well in Northern Ireland when it came to healing the divides in society.

Face veils banned for citizenship oaths
The government is placing a ban on face coverings such as niqabs for people swearing their oath of citizenship, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said Monday.

Muslim Brotherhood's Yusuf al-Qaradawi calls for "gradualism" in applying Sharia
.... after all, now that you have allowed this, why not that? Or, oh, wait: we can't fully exercise the power we've been allowed without this or that additional authority.

Protesters calling for religious tolerance attacked with stones, threatened with death

Contrary to Sharia
.... a number of clerics issued a fatwa .... which stated that defining an age for marriage is contrary to Sharia and that “God had legitimized marriage to safeguard births and their protection.”

Turkish government's filter censors "evolution"
Sites that include the words "evolution" or "Darwin" are filtered if parents select the child-friendly settings on the filter, as though it's porn.

Hertz to fight Muslim workers' suit over prayer breaks
Hertz says the drivers, all of them Somali natives, refused to clock in and out for the 10-minute paid breaks they took twice daily, as required under their union contract, and abused their breaks by failing to return to work promptly.

Can traditional Islam adapt to the needs of western Muslims?
.... Muslim clerics have a long way to go in order to make Islam relevant to the needs of the diasporic communities of the west.

How calling someone a "white bitch" is not racist and being a drunken Muslim saves you from jail
They were spared a jail sentence after their defence lawyer claimed that as Muslims they were unused to drinking.

Malaysian Muslim thought police ban Lee Kwan Yew's book that suggests that Muslims should be 'less strict'

Democracy is heresy, says Salafi Nour Party

Silent Victims: Apostasy and Blasphemy Laws Worldwide
Numerous Islamic clerics have declared that if the government will not follow through on her death sentence, they themselves will finish the job.

Niqab case: Religious freedom vs. right to fair trial?
During the preliminary inquiry, she asked to testify with her face-covered, based on her Muslim beliefs - a request denied by the judge.

Australian man sentenced to 500 lashes for blasphemy
An Australian man has been sentenced to 500 lashes and a year in prison after being convicted of blasphemy by judges in Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi 'study' that finds all women drivers on the road to immorality

Australia's Victoria state says no to Sharia courts

Belgium: Teacher suspended for discriminating against students without headscarves
One student said that Mohammed had told her that her mother would burn in hell because her mother was Catholic. Another that the teacher reproached her, a Muslim girl, for walking hand-in-hand with a boy.

A French minister of Arab origin says ‘there is no such thing as moderate Islam’
“There are no half measures with sharia,” she added. “I am a lawyer and you can make all the theological, literal or fundamental interpretations of it that you like but law based on sharia is inevitably a restriction on freedom, especially freedom of conscience.”

BBC reveal huge scale of honour attacks in Britain, fails to mention "islam"

Islam, evolution, and the denial of science

Muslims call for women only exercise facilities
MUSLIM women are calling on Hounslow Council to provide more female only exercise facilities. They say that due to religious constraints they can not exercise when there is a man about, even if he is the instructor.

Saudis fear there will be ‘no more virgins’ and people will turn gay if female drive ban is lifted

Tunisian secularists protest at Islamists on campus
Tunisian universities went on strike and nearly 3,000 people protested against Islamist influence Thursday after religious hardliners occupied a campus to demand segregation of male and female students.

November 2011

Thousands of Muslims Attack Christians in Egypt, 2 Killed, Homes and Stores Torched

Appeasing Islamist radicals imperils Western freedoms
The source of this growing movement against free speech is the anti-blasphemy laws that are being passed in predominantly Muslim countries.

'Excessively strict' discipline problem in UK madrassas
Researchers said the imposition of hard-line rules on behaviour instilled a sense of “spiritual fear” in young people, marking them out from mainstream schools.

Should animals be stunned before slaughter?
A study of the issue commissioned by the Dutch government in 2008 concluded that "ritual slaughter has a number of negative aspects for the animals when compared to conventional procedures where a stun is performed prior to slaughter".

Egyptian shaykh says it is forbidden for women to participate in the Olympics
He also described it as a slippery slope which could lead to women taking off their hijabs or tightening their clothes.

Muslim medical students walk out of lectures on evolution because it goes against the Koran

Sweden Democrats adds opposition to Islam to party program

Democrats must welcome the rise of political Islam
This is a bit like saying in the 1930s that the nazis were going to be a major force in Germany so we should all learn to "work with them".

Azerbaijani critic of Islam and Iran dies after stabbing

Arab Spring turning into a winter of Islamic jihad
For far from paving the way for freedom and pluralism, the uprisings have led only to more intolerance, authoritarianism and division.

Man avoids jail after religiously aggravated attack on sister’s non-Muslim boyfriend

Muslim handbook is divisive
.... there is no similar handbook for other religious or ethnic groups, not for Buddhists, Taoists, Germans, Greeks, Sikhs, Mormons or vegans. Why encourage one group of people to maintain an identity separate from other Australians?

Islamism, tolerance, freedom of speech and so-called 'honour culture'

‘Jesus Christ’ among words banned in text messages

Even among men?
In general, singing is completely prohibited. Islamic law prohibits singing because it constitutes falsehood. Singing includes all kinds of lyrics that attribute false things to the other…

Kashmir pastor arrested for baptising seven Muslims

“Don’t Vote for Those Who Don't Accept Allah as their God, Islam as Their Religion and Mohamed as Their Prophet”- Qaradawi

Saudi Islam and the abrogation of personal responsibility
Where clerics demand the covering of women’s eyes – their eyes – because this is supposedly the only way to stop men from committing sin, they have effectively admitted that the entire belief system they promote is utterly ineffective.

Very Little to Debate at ‘Human Rights in Islam’ Discussion

"Women Are Deficient in Intelligence and Religion, and It Is Not Permissible for Them to Be in Authority"

Brussels: One of Europe's largest Muslim cities
25% of the residents of Brussels are of Muslim origin, which makes Brussels one of the European cities with the largest Muslim presence, comparable to Birmingham in the UK.

'Muslims need to assimilate into Europe'
European culture and Islamic culture have different ethos and both are bound to collide unless there is assimilation and compromise.

Nude photo of Egyptian blogger is a scream against Islamism
.... posted naked pictures of herself on her blog to show her “screams against a society of violence, racism, sexism, sexual harassment and hypocrisy”.

Luxembourg: Ministry proposes allowing separate gym classes, prayer rooms

Saudi moral committee threatens to cover “tempting” women’s eyes

Turkey: many violations of freedom of expression

Baroness Warsi: Anjem Choudary and co are not Muslims
.... the argument that there is somehow a "proper" form of Islam that can be contrasted with extremist forms....

Sharia warning
...The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that sharia law is not compatible with democracy.

Women-only swim beginning of Sharia law in America

Saudi woman to be flogged for driving car

Arab Women Face an Uphill Struggle for Equality

Judge rejects Sharia push
Sharia Law would not take into account what Australian family law regards as "the child's best interests".

Combating Islamic Apostasy & Blasphemy Codes

Cairo Islamists protest French paper's prophet cartoon

Malaysian states with Islamic law eye harsher punishments for Muslim gays

Police Detain, Beat Converts from Islam in India
Police in India’s Kashmir Valley detained and beat converts from Islam and were expected to arrest Christian workers after Muslim leaders alleged that Muslim youth were being “lured” to Christianity.

US Commission: Pakistan Schools Teach Hatred
The report specifically said Pakistani teachers view religious minorities, especially Hindus and to a lesser extent, Christians, as "enemies of Islam."

Extremism is a problem and we need to get better at discussing it
.... There is an element of truth to the claim British Muslims have traditionally been reluctant to publicly condemn extremism unconditionally.

Americans Suddenly Discover That Pakistani Schools Inculcate Hatred Of Hindus (And Other Non-Muslims)

The Penalty for Apostasy Is Death; Only "Boozers and Druggies" Say Otherwise

Airline rules Muslim women don’t have to remove burqas on plane despite nationwide ban

Denmark: Muslim women face trouble getting divorced
.... The report confirms that there are Muslim women in Denmark who experience violence, harassment and social isolation because their husband won't give up on the religious marriage.

Charlie Hebdo & the taboo on criticising Islam
.... Islam will continue on its present retrograde path, increasingly dominated by conservatives and those who use the religion as a vehicle of political power.

Death threats increase as newspaper escalates Mohamed cartoon row

FOSIS has 'failed to challenge extremist ideologies'
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg made an unexpectedly strong attack on the Federation of Student Islamic Societies (Fosis) during his speech to the Community Security Trust.

Muslim students “demanding that the school provide them with prayer rooms without Christian symbols"

French paper reprints Mohammad cartoon after fire-bomb
A French satirical weekly whose office was fire bombed after it printed a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammad has reproduced the image with other caricatures in a special supplement distributed with one of the country's leading newspapers.

Commissioner blocks Muslim sacrifice of goats and lambs

'Be God's curse upon you!': the dangers of mixing satire and Islam

October 2011

“Moderate Islamism?” Does It Exist?

Unstunned slaughter to continue in Australia
On the agenda was calls by animal welfare groups for the removal of exemptions that allow 12 Australian abattoirs to slaughter animals without prior stunning on religious and cultural grounds.

Warning! The Organistion of Islamic Countries Wants to Silence Free Speech Around the Globe

MP 'threatened at mosque surgery'
…. it happened at North Finchley mosque in north London as he met constituents on Friday afternoon. Mr Freer said about 12 people forced their way inside, with one of them calling him a "Jewish homosexual pig".

mypeace on TV - "islamic values"
.... this verse is followed by and conjoined to a verse which calls for killing, crucifying, and chopping off fingers and limbs of those who oppose Allah and Muhammad 'in the land'.

Swedish court bans niqab-wearing women

Malaysia's minorities fear Islamic law changes
There are two Malaysias. One for the Muslim majority - the other for Christians, Hindus, Buddhists and non-Muslims.

It's not bigotry to criticise Islam
.... some Muslims in Britain are creating enclaves governed largely according to their own rules; and that smaller, more radical elements are advocating an Islamic society under sharia law.

Tunisia's secular women fret over rise of Islamism

Pakistan judge Pervez Ali Shah 'flees death threats'
A Pakistani judge who convicted a Muslim extremist of murder has fled to Saudi Arabia after getting death threats, his colleagues say.

Britain's mosque schools - beatings, humiliation and lessons in hating Britain

Call to ban Elton John Malaysia concert

In The New Libya, Polygamy To Be Legalized

Students protest after Hackney college bans segregation curtain used by Muslims

More than half of Canadians mistrust Muslims, poll says

More than half of all Canadians believe Muslims can't be trusted and nearly as many believe discrimination against Muslims is ``mainly their fault,'' according to the results of a new national survey released ahead of Wednesday's International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

The online poll of 1,522 Canadians, commissioned by the Montreal-based Association for Canadian Studies and Toronto-based Canadian Race Relations Foundation, also highlights how Canadians see the Internet as by far the leading conduit for racism in the country, and that more than one-third of respondents say they've ``witnessed a racist incident'' in the past year. [Postmedia News] Read more