London, UK - The third anniversary of the tragic bombings on July 7, 2005, reopens the very difficult discussion about the place of Muslims in Britain today.
Quite rightly, we Muslims are asked what we are doing to deny theological oxygen to those who wish to harm others. The overwhelming majority of us argue that terrorism is against religion and outside religion, regardless of any claims otherwise. Many Muslims have worked hard to dissuade those who choose the futile path of violence. Our best defence is found in the traditions of our faith and the higher principles of justice and humanity embedded in it. Yet we are told that condemnation and community action are not enough. We are seeing the emergence of a powerful narrative that presents many young British Muslims as susceptible to terrorism, and presents Islam itself as leading to radicalisation. The most extreme form of this narrative is found in the idea of “Eurabia”, an incendiary term that asserts the Muslim hordes have already breached fortress Britain and are now contaminating the nation’s very DNA.
The recent Dispatches TV documentary on anti-Muslim bias in the UK by the journalist Peter Oborne was timely. Broadcast to coincide with the anniversary of the London Tube bombings and within days of the Lord Chief Justice’s assertion that aspects of Islamic civil and family law should be recognised by English law, it provided a powerful insight into the relationship between Muslim communities and mainstream British society.
Oborne found a pervasive bias — ranging from misunderstanding to outright hostility — against Muslims in the UK, in newspapers, among ordinary people and even in government. A study by the Cardiff University School of Journalism found that around two thirds of all news “hooks” for reports about Muslims involved terrorism or highlighted cultural differences or Muslim extremism; only 5 per cent of reports concerned the problems facing British Muslims.
It was heartening to see an independent, well-researched documentary address the issue of Islamophobia. We have argued for many years that the climate of hostility towards British Muslims is damaging community relations and persuades some Muslims that they will never be regarded as fully British by their compatriots.
Our efforts have often been criticised as an attack on free speech or as ingratitude and disloyalty to Britain — even as a failure to understand what being British means. I hope that Oborne’s critique, coming from the heart of the British mainstream and backed by the University of Cardiff’s research, will not be so easily dismissed.
The 7/7 bombings were a shock to many Muslims in this country, and we were forced to acknowledge the cancer of extremism in our communities. We believe that all communities in Britain owe it to those who lost their lives to prevent the seeds of division sown by the perpetrators of that awful crime to take root.
This summer affiliated bodies of the Muslim Council of Britain are organising a series of grassroots events under the title of “Looking Beyond the Terror Narrative”. We need to provide aspirations for our young people, we want to offer hope and we are aiming to initiate a national conversation among British Muslims who will work towards achieving a cohesive, just and successful British society
This initiative is part of Muslim Council of Britain’s strategy of challenging the peddlers of hate and bigotry wherever they may be. We believe this can only be done by addressing the sources of extremism within Muslim communities and the outside factors that exacerbate it. This includes the anti-Muslim bias that Oborne describes, but it also includes the social exclusion, low literacy and life expectancy, high unemployment and poverty of aspiration that afflict Muslim communities across the UK.
Finally, we are encouraging Muslims to reach out to their neighbours on a personal level and challenge the idea that we are extremists or separatists — to show that we do not want to ban Christmas or piggybanks and that we are not asking for special treatment. All we are asking for is for an equal stake in Britain’s future.
Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari is the Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Britain