| | Cabinet Minister and Chairman of the Conservative Party, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, delivered the 2011 Sir Sigmund Sternberg Interfaith Lecture yesterday at the University of Leicester in which she highlighted that Islamophobia has become widespread and socially acceptable in Britain. |
She told the audience that she wanted to use the opportunity to “make the case against the rising tide of anti-religious bigotry.” Among the many other themes addressed in her speech were the role of the “sensationalist media” in framing the discourse around discussions of faith; the idea of ‘unity through diversity’; the impact of Islamophobia; and the actions which both leaders and individuals can take in response to the challenge of Islamophobia.
Her speech has been welcomed and supported by commentators such as Peter Oborne and Mehdi Hasan, as well as by Muslim leaders.
Excerpts from Lady Warsi’s speech are highlighted below and you can read the full text of her speech here. She said:
“…there is a large, untapped appetite for a more mature discussion of faith in this country.
“I sensed that people were fed up of the patronising, superficial way faith is discussed in certain quarters, including the media…
“….and that sadly there has been a rise in a sloppy kind of religious illiteracy.
“So it was important to take stock of where Britain is with faith.”
Lady Warsi addressed the rise of “unreasonable, unfounded, irrational bigotry.” She said:
“In my last speech I made the evidential case for faith in our country.
“I showed that contrary to popular belief, faith in this country is certainly not fading away;
“I explained that faith inspires many people to do good things which help build a bigger society;
“Today... I want to make the case against the rising tide of anti-religious bigotry.”
“What I am opposed to is the rise of unreasonable, unfounded, irrational bigotry.
“Where religion itself becomes a loaded word……where free discussion is drowned out by a sensationalist media…and where there simply is no room for fair-minded debate.”
“Controversial stories are inflated by the media…detracting from serious faith-based debate…and leaving us with a situation where instead of philosophy, we’re fed anti-faith phobias.”
Commenting both on how Islamophobia has become socially acceptable and on how Islam is perceived, Lady Warsi said:
“Indeed, it seems to me that Islamophobia has now crossed the threshold of middle class respectability.”
“For far too many people, Islamophobia is seen as a legitimate – even commendable – thing.
You could even say that Islamophobia has now passed the dinner-table-test.
“Take this from Polly Toynbee: ‘I am an Islamophobe, and proud of it.’”
“But of course, Islamophobia should be seen as totally abhorrent – just like homophobia or Judeophobia – because any phobia is by definition the opposite of a philosophy.
“A phobia is an irrational fear.
“It takes on a life of its own and no longer needs to be justified.
“And all this filters through.
“The drip feeding of fear fuels a rising tide of prejudice.
“And what’s particularly worrying is that this can lead down the slippery slope to violence.”
Speaking on some of the ideas that lead to bigotry, she said:
“You need to delve deep into the Dark Ages to find a time when the state was under the exclusive control of one tribe or ethnicity.”
“This idea of unity from diversity runs through our own history.
“It has helped to forge the values of pluralism, tolerance and diversity which define our society.
“But the British battle against bigotry will always be an ongoing battle.”
“Why is bigotry so resilient?
“A big part of the problem is the intellectual challenge of reconciling religious and national identities.
“One of the most frequent arguments made against Islam in Britain is the idea that all British Muslims want to overturn British sovereignty and obey a transnational, Islamic authority.
“Let me repeat again: extremists are a minority of a minority.
“But from this flows a steady drip of suspicion and sense of sedition…all feeding the rise of a wider Islamophobia.”
On Islamophobia:
“Ultimately, Islamophobia challenges our basic British identity.
“One of the most important aspects of our identity is our belief in equality before the law.
“But deep, entrenched anti-Muslim bigotry challenges that tradition…because it implies that one section of society is less deserving of our protection than the rest.”
“I know that there is also a perverted line of argument which says that Muslims have only got themselves to blame for this hatred.
“After all, they’re the ones who blow up tubes and aeroplanes…..so treating them differently is actually ok.
“But think about it for one second, and you see that this argument is self-defeating.
“The deeper Islamophobia seeps into our culture, the easier becomes the task of the extremist recruiting sergeant.
“Those who commit criminal acts of terrorism in our country need to be dealt with not just by the full force of the law…they also should face social rejection and alienation across society….and their acts must not be used as an opportunity to tar all Muslims…or divide our society on the basis of faith.”
Lady Warsi then spoke of the role of political leaders, faith leaders and individuals in responding to the challenge of Islamophobia, as well as the dangers of labelling the Muslim community in terms of ‘moderates’ or ‘extremists’. She also stressed the important role which British Muslims have to play in addressing anti-Muslim bigotry.
“First and foremost, we need political leadership.
“Government has got to show that it gets it.”
“We need to think harder about the language we use.
“And we should be careful about language around religious ‘moderates’.
“It’s not a big leap of imagination to predict where the talk of ‘moderate’ Muslims leads:
“In the school, the kids say ‘the family next door are Muslim but they’re not too bad’.
“And in the road, as a woman walks past wearing a Burkha, the passers-by think: ‘that woman’s either oppressed or making a political statement’.
“So we need to stop talking about moderate Muslims, and instead talk about British Muslims.
“And when it comes to extremism, we should be absolutely clear:
“These people are extremists, plain and simple, because their behaviour has detached them from the thought process within their religion.”
“Second, we need a response from society.
“It doesn’t take rocket science to know what that means.
“‘Love thy Neighbour’ may be a cliché, but it’s a cliche’ because it’s eternally relevant.
“Ultimately, that’s the test for everyone in society:
“‘Do I treat my neighbour the way I want to be treated myself?’”
“Muslim communities must speak out against those who promote violence.
“And above all, not stand on the sidelines, but step forward and help to lead a progressive, united fight.”
“Second, British Muslims need to learn from and build on the work done throughout history by other communities.”
“The first step in addressing the problem is to measure the scale of it.
“And I hope that this project will support the work of the newly formed All Party Parliamentary Group on Islamophobia, chaired by Kris Hopkins MP.
“…and above all, British Muslims needs to remember that with rights come responsibilities.
“That means no burying our heads in the sand and denying the problem…but standing up and doing something about it.
“The reason I came into politics is because I felt my country can be better.
“I want more Muslims to do that same thing and help ease the relationship between their country and their faith.” |
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