John Esposito
Some months ago, at a European meeting of intelligence officials from the US and Europe, a Swiss participant commented on this referendum on minarets. He was sure it would go nowhere since, as he said, Switzerland is a very pluralistic society, its Muslim population is relatively small and there were few mosques with minarets.
However, this stunning Swiss vote (57%) approving a referendum to ban minarets, was really not all that surprising, considering the growing power of Islamophobia. In both Europe and America right-wing politicians, political commentators, media personalities, and religious leaders continue to feed a growing suspicion of mainstream Muslims by fueling a fear that Islam, not just Muslim extremism, is a threat. The rise of anti-immigrant far right political parties in recent European elections has emboldened many of its leaders to applaud the Swiss vote and encourage similar prohibitions. Geert Wilders, leader of the anti-Muslim Freedom party, in the Netherlands who has supported the mass deportation of Muslims, called for a similar vote to stem the tide of Islamization" in the Netherlands
The far right persistently refuses to face a 21st century reality: to acknowledge and accept the fact that many Muslims are integrated citizens and that Islam is now a European religion, and, in fact, the second largest religion in many European countries.
Fortunately, many Muslim and Christian leaders across the world, major European politicians and human rights experts have condemned the ban, and the Vatican has denounced it as an infringement of religious freedom.
However, the Swiss ban, like some other European countries' policies, highlights a failure of Western liberalism and raises fundamental questions about religious discrimination and freedom of religion. While there are only four minarets in Switzerland, a country that is home to approximately 400,000 Muslims, supporters of the referendum mindlessly charge that the minaret is a political symbol of militant Islam. This makes about as much sense as saying that church steeples symbolize militant Christianity.
Where do we go from here? Western political and religious opinion-makers and the media will need to resolutely address the dangers of Islamophobia as aggressively as they do other forms of hate speech and hate crimes, ranging from racial discrimination to anti-Semitism. European Muslims will need to continue to speak out publicly, demanding their rights as European citizens and residents and also denouncing religious discrimination and violence as well as limits placed on constructing churches in the Muslim world.
All are called to challenge far right hard-line interpretations of scriptures, religious and political exclusivist theologies and ideologies. They breed intolerance, impede healthy religious pluralism, and threaten the fabric of our societies.
However, this stunning Swiss vote (57%) approving a referendum to ban minarets, was really not all that surprising, considering the growing power of Islamophobia. In both Europe and America right-wing politicians, political commentators, media personalities, and religious leaders continue to feed a growing suspicion of mainstream Muslims by fueling a fear that Islam, not just Muslim extremism, is a threat. The rise of anti-immigrant far right political parties in recent European elections has emboldened many of its leaders to applaud the Swiss vote and encourage similar prohibitions. Geert Wilders, leader of the anti-Muslim Freedom party, in the Netherlands who has supported the mass deportation of Muslims, called for a similar vote to stem the tide of Islamization" in the Netherlands
The far right persistently refuses to face a 21st century reality: to acknowledge and accept the fact that many Muslims are integrated citizens and that Islam is now a European religion, and, in fact, the second largest religion in many European countries.
Fortunately, many Muslim and Christian leaders across the world, major European politicians and human rights experts have condemned the ban, and the Vatican has denounced it as an infringement of religious freedom.
However, the Swiss ban, like some other European countries' policies, highlights a failure of Western liberalism and raises fundamental questions about religious discrimination and freedom of religion. While there are only four minarets in Switzerland, a country that is home to approximately 400,000 Muslims, supporters of the referendum mindlessly charge that the minaret is a political symbol of militant Islam. This makes about as much sense as saying that church steeples symbolize militant Christianity.
Where do we go from here? Western political and religious opinion-makers and the media will need to resolutely address the dangers of Islamophobia as aggressively as they do other forms of hate speech and hate crimes, ranging from racial discrimination to anti-Semitism. European Muslims will need to continue to speak out publicly, demanding their rights as European citizens and residents and also denouncing religious discrimination and violence as well as limits placed on constructing churches in the Muslim world.
All are called to challenge far right hard-line interpretations of scriptures, religious and political exclusivist theologies and ideologies. They breed intolerance, impede healthy religious pluralism, and threaten the fabric of our societies.
Source : newsweek.washingtonpost.com