Sometime in 2008, a Muslim woman clad in a hijaab (head scarf) was verbally abused in the East German city of Dresden by a German-Russian named Axel W who called her an Islamist, a slut, a terrorist and some other politically erroneous nonsense. Marwa el-Sherbini, an Egyptian national who was married and working in Germany, sued him for defamation and won the case after Axel made clear his contempt “for people like her”. Axel was fined €780 for being a toss. But Axel filed an appeal and at the hearing in the first week of July 2009, he stabbed and killed el-Sherbini inside the courtroom.
El-Sherbini’s husband, Elwi Ali-Okaz, tried to intervene but he was also overpowered and stabbed. Their three-year-old son, watched in horror as both father and pregnant mother were each stabbed about 18 times.
The Polizei, or German police, so used to chasing bicycle thieves and Hollywood Hitlers, opened fire in the courtroom, and just when you thought the drama had reached its climax; el-Sherbini’s husband was shot in error.
Axel was finally whisked away and charged for manslaughter, while el-Sherbini’s husband was taken to intensive care in a critical state.
The German government remained silent for a week, while the German media focused on safety issues in German courtrooms since this was the second court case in a year that involved some uninvited gunfire, whips and chains.
It was a rather peculiar response.
If el-Sherbini was in court because of a dispute over a car sale or a break-in, and was then murdered, of course both government and media focus should naturally fall on safety issues in German courtrooms.
But this had hate plastered all over it; this was no ordinary murder by some Bavarian hillbilly.
In fact, if one considers that the same German media, just a month earlier, printed a press release from the Fundamental Right Agency (FRA) about a new report dealing specifically with the discrimination of Muslims in Europe, the response from both the state and the media becomes less peculiar and more ominous.
This report clearly demonstrated that Muslims were suffering enough discrimination in Europe to make them cranky citizens.
Crucially the report indicated that victims of hate crimes were not reporting such crimes to the authorities because of a lack of access and trust in the system.
Based on interviews with more than 8 000 Muslims across 14 European countries, the FRA found that 31% of all interviewees claimed to have suffered some form of discrimination in Europe between 2008 and 2009. Of these, 79% said they did not report it to the necessary authorities. It was further revealed that 80% of all respondents said they didn’t know how to report such abuse when it happened while 59% believed that nothing would change if they went ahead and actually did report the incident.
These are startling statistics, especially for a continent often too quick to point out human rights violations in other people’s backyards.
By default, it was the perfect opportunity for both the German government and the local media to put a human face to these heinous statistics and make it clear that such crimes were not going to be tolerated.
But both government and media performed a perfunctory piss on the issue.
In the victim’s home country, Egypt, the local Muslim population was naturally outraged by the incident and their response was unashamedly Muslim in character. They protested against the hate crime, Germany’s pathetic response and the impotency of their own Egyptian government in failing to adequately challenge Germany’s response. Not to be undone, citizens in Iran, still kitted in their tweeting-protest outfits, also rushed to the streets and demonstrated against the heinous crime.
El-Sherbini was immediately dubbed the “headscarf martyr”; her murder becoming the symbol of Muslim women’s struggle to wear hijaab in Europe.
It was a typically impulsive response from the Islamic world, lacking coordination and guile. As usual their passion drowned out the point of their passion.
Some Muslims do really strange things.
If you draw a cartoon depicting their Prophet Muhammad as a violent internationalist, they will burn down your embassy. If you say that Islamic schools are grooming terrorists, or that madressas are parochial they will threaten to kill you. Ironic really — especially if you consider that Islam really does mean peace — and some Muslims are just so prepared to kill you — to make you understand.
Every religion comes with a few loose canons.
Nevertheless, while calling El-Sherbini the “scarved martyr” is lyrical, even endearing, it shifts the focus away from engaging with Islamophobia as a social disease to the debates on the scarf in Europe.
So used to publishing Muslim stories about honour killings or husbands beating their docile wives for stepping out her cage after-hours or poor immigrants battling it out with unemployed Germans, German media appeared out of their depth in trying to deal with a story outside the easy stereotype of Muslim women being passive doormats.
Here was an educated Muslim women (a pharmacist) married to a PhD scholar studying at the Max Planck Institute, exercising her legal rights to defend herself using German law and yet she pays with her life (as well as the lives of her family) for her efforts.
In a media-obsessed country, not more than three publications picked up on the hypocrisy of Germany’s poor handling of the case as well as its failure to protect minorities.
Perhaps their silence was really a SOS message screaming of a severe machine dysfunction: “How do we report, or heaven forbid, analyse such an issue? No one has trained us to cover how a Western state failed a hijaab-clad-working-Muslim-woman who was actually ‘normal’. What is the angle exactly? Honour killings, enslaved women and burka stories fit the agenda. But what purpose would this story serve?”
But I tried to find out why they had been so quiet.
I mailed some of the biggest newspapers in Germany, bidding their editors to tell me why they didn’t give the issue its full due, and if this question was unfair, why so. And to ensure that they didn’t think I was some radical with a belt around my waist demanding answers, I explained that I had already done some work on the issue before the murder and I was merely doing a follow-up. I asked them to explain why the link between the FRA report (compared to a report printed on papyrus in Osama’s cave) and why this particular incident was not exploited by the media to motivate further debate towards taking a decisive stance against such hate crimes.
No one responded. I know my mail was circulated in Deutsche Welle (the BBC of the German world), only because of a contact, but even then, it got dumped on a freelance journalist who made it clear that her responses were her views and were not be attributed to Deutsche Welle.
So to Die Welt, Die Zeit, The Local, Berlin Online and a host of other German publications — thank you for not replying.
I mailed the FRA and asked them why they thought German media had failed to make the link between their report and the woman’s murder — especially since one of the key findings of their report was that victims of abuse chose not to report the crimes — 79% to be precise — and here was one who did report and ultimately lost her life.
I suppose they need mass murder to make a statement.
To be fair, Muslims aren’t mauled at every street corner, and wearing a scarf isn’t like talking on a cellphone in Hillbrow.
But even though violence is rare, the frequency of racist and Islamophobic incidents are increasing and the perception of some sort of persecution is on the rise.
Crucially, there is blanket denial that any of this even exists.
This doesn’t mean that there is going to be an Islamic holocaust in Germany or in Europe, for that matter. The Europe of the European Union, ie those places a Schengen visa would take you without much bother (and obviously not forgetting holes like Bosnia or Chechnya) is a very different place to the Europe of the twenties and thirties.
Today, Europe doesn’t believe in war mongering. Today it isn’t politically correct to wage war. You won’t meet a German who subscribes to the invasion of Iraq or any of the rhetoric around Iraq needing a democratic whipping. But German troops are nevertheless still in Iraq Afghanistan to “support” the war; their businesses quite happy to apply for tenders to rebuild “democracy” and the “market” in tatters.
And this is not hypocrisy?
But if you asked the Roma people (the minority who suffer the most discrimination in Europe), Muslims, blacks and other sub-humans about living in Germany, they will tell you about being spat at, of workplace discrimination, of being denied housing or being asked to pay unreasonable amounts to secure a flat and of being targeted like lepers in trains and trams.
What do they do about these not-so-serious crimes? Wait until they become a tad more passionate?
This is the new Europe. It is tacit in its prejudice and crafty in its zeal as it carefully brands itself as the vanguard of human rights and human dignity and bids the world to aspire to its standards.
You would have thought things would have changed by now.
But they haven’t.
Meanwhile, let’s pretend that its curry wurst dripping through her scarf?
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55 Responses to “Let’s pretend it’s curry wurst dripping through her scarf?”
You write: “But German troops are nevertheless still in Iraq to “support” the war; their businesses quite happy to apply for tenders to rebuild “democracy” and the “market” in tatters.”
This is simply not true - there are no German troops in Iraq - there are German troops in Afghanistan and just killed 125 people last Friday - what a screw up!!!
And your claim that the German media didn’t cover the story is simply also not true - if you need some links to posted stories in the German media about the heinous attack - please let me know.
Maybe you just wrote e-mails to the wrong people.
I like your story - but if you think things in Europe haven’t changed - well maybe do a reality check.
In my experience Germany is pretty poor when it comes to religious tolerance. Even putting aside the obvious example - they are not an open and tolerant people so no surprise. And the rest of Europe is going the same way unless they are pressured otherwise. “Never again” may well be a soft wimper from a forgotten post.
Wonder if it’s coincidence or not that France and Germany, the most Islamophobic countries, are the ones where anti-Semetic violence is most common, too?
“31% of all interviewees claimed to have suffered some form of discrimination in Europe.”
Funnily enough, I would think 100% of all people everywhere have experienced discrimination every year of their lives. So 31% for Muslims is Europe is pretty positive.
“This report clearly demonstrated that Muslims were suffering enough discrimination in Europe to make them cranky citizens.”
I do wonder what the author is inferring by the words “cranky citizens”. Does this mean the 1/3 who claim to experience “discrimination” are justified in: complaining, filing lawsuits because their feelings were hurt, or blowing up subway trains?
“especially if you consider that Islam really does mean peace”
Wonder where you get this idea. As far as I know Islam means “submission”.
“But even though violence is rare, the frequency of racist and Islamophobic incidents are increasing and the perception of some sort of persecution is on the rise.”
Across the United States and Europe, the top victims of hate crimes continue to be Jews. Muslim incidents don’t even come close.
In any case, I struggle to comprehend how a religious group consisting of over 22 countries and 1 billion adherents could possibly become “persecuted” to any reasonable measure.
I found your article to be a brilliant exercise in doublethink. Muslims portray a persecuted victim mentality, citing “human rights”, in order to garner additional and excessive rights for the continuance of their decidedly anti-egalitarian religious system.
god, europe. i’m honestly not sure if i could live there again. [yes, again.] part of it is, of course, my fault: i’m a black person with a us passport, which makes me a “different” kind of black in the eyes of “most” europeans, except i tend to screw up the advantages gained from this because, oh, i prefer to socialise with black people. “you’re educated. why would you date someone black?” was something i heard regularly from my white landlord.
in this blog post, i mention some of the issues that i’ve had in europe — but i would write a book about the messes i’ve gotten into in france, italy and spain because, as in the german case, the police thought *i* was the problem/criminal and not the other [read: white] people trying to cause the actual problem.
and even though i can speak very good french and passable italian, i never speak either of those languages to the police, preferring to rub in my american-accented english down to their points of annoyance.
of course, unfortunately, the supreme place where i’ve needed an american accent as a means of self-preservation has been… south africa. i *look* like an extra from any movie on africa magic. the street vendors in the cbd speak to me in yoruba first, and *then* english. it’s really ridic.
I am quite amazed that it is breaking news when an american/british soldier is killed in Iraq or Afghanistan or wherever ‘civilised’ society deems it necessary to poke their noses. However when an innocent family is torn apart and a child is now forced to grow up without a mother while living in this so-called-civilised society (nogal) the world is silent. Its sad but it really does show that silence speaks volumes. from what i gather you have to look and behave a certain way for your life to matter! My heart goes out to the little boy.
But I bet you this ‘Alex wHatever his name is’ will be given a lenient sentence because his ‘Alan Shaw-like’ lawyer will probably plead “temporary insanity”
Dont you just love our ‘civilised society’?!?!?!
I enjoyed reading this article… What I have found amazing living in Spain is the media and publics refusal to acknowledge racism as a problem in their society. People from different cultures and races barely mix in the country. And while the rest of the worlds media are shocked at the sight of racism at so many of their sports events (where guys like Samuel Eto have to put up with banana peels being thrown at him) their own media doesnt cover it at all. The worst though is when an Algerian teenager getting murdered in the centre of Barcelona barely gets a mention in the local newspaper (it was given a small paragraph hidden in the middle), but when it happens to a Spanish teenager (the Marta case) it gets covered on every news station for six months.
Many European countries seem to be just fine refusing to acknowledge racism as a problem in their country.
The morethings change the more they remain the same. My heart goes to this poor woman and her family. what happened to her should never happen to anyone.A peace loving woman taking the correct procedure in a dispute cut in the prime of her life by an EXTREMIST.
The papers - someone owns them and they will respond to what the readers want. A paper in Mississippi will not report on racism as eargely as the Huffington post will.
Papers are the ame everywhere and good on you to take them on.Let me ask you how much coverage is the OPPOSITION to the FATWA on Sulman Rushdie is given in islamic newspapers. How many have gone out on a limb to say t fatwa is wrong and Mr Rushdie should be allowed freedom of speech (and how many of them are still operating today).
My point is the muslim world has more than its fair share of fanatics and very few in the muslim world want to reign them in perhaps for fear of a fatwa placed on them!.
My point is you are doing your bit for the islamic world- these papers are simply doing their bit for whatever they represent. Islamic papers are also doing their bit to publicise the injusice that occured here.
Challenge to you.Tell us what is wrong in the Islamic world and how it can change to assist the non muslims understand it better.
welcome to east germany,anything to do with mistreatment of people considered foreign(africans/muslims/arabs),they just put a blanket over it and pretend that its not there,you dare complain.What are you doing here anyway?…that’s the first question you going to be asked..if not worse
Very intriguing article, it is true that the horrific incidence was not reported widely in German media, for me a blatant case of hypocrisy. One factual inaccuracy is however the statement that there a German troops in Iraq, they are in Afganistan instead and are defending the virtues of first world thinking there!ß!
It is truly awful when non-Muslims discriminate against, marginalise, caricature, oppress and humiliate Muslims who have come to live in their homeland. They should be allowed the same rights as all other citizens: freedom to practice their religion; to purchase land and build mosques; to wear what they like; to proselytise and to accept converts into their faith.
You are correct to point out the duplicity of a western press which cannot reach beyond stereotypes when Muslim rights are violated. After all, a decent and innocent woman was murdered by a fanatic!
But it is equally awful when Muslims discriminate against, marginalise, caricature, oppress and humiliate non-Muslims who live in Islamic countries. They, too, should be allowed the same rights as all other citizens: freedom to practice their religion; to purchase land and build churches; to wear what they like; to proselytise and to accept converts into their faith.
IMHO, at least some Islamaphobia can be attributed to the blindness of the Islamic establishment to the patent lack of symmetry in what they demand for themselves, and what they allow others. To be persuasive to western thinking, Muslim intellectuals should address this matter. Because, for the most part, they ignore it, they are generally written off as propagandistic partisans.
Azad, I too abhor the discrimination experienced by certain minorities in Europe, but your selective reasoning does not make sense to me.
Last year, I remember you writing about the need to “normalize xenophobia” and basically excused it as “Xenophobia is a release valve for growing discontent in South Africa;” ( http://www.thoughtleader.co.za/azadessa/2008/06/13/normalizing-xenophobia/ ) I bring this up in the hope that you will help me better understand your views on Islamophobia as a social disease. The underlying cause you offered was that of government neglect to service delivery. Some of us however saw this new phenomenon of xenophobia differently - more as a reflection of a deterioration of our underlying values as a society (”social disease”) since xenophobic violence was inexcusable in a country that only recently liberated ourselves from discrimination. You on the other hand, by citing economic causes as the underlying issue, put a different spin on xenophobia and was roundly praised by commentators for your insight into this new SA phenomenon.
Now, applying your reasoning, don’t you perhaps think that Islamophobia can also be similarly “normalised” to just another passing phenomenon - a “release valve” to the economic stress that immigrants place on the European countries? Do you think its justified to apply different standards to our African brethren?
@ Peppi. you are right! It is Afganistan! my mistake! German BUSINESSES are operating in Iraq, but their troops arent in Iraq. Thank you for correcting me.
German media were silent. Of course they finally reported it, but the focus was on safety in the courtrooms and not the issue at hand. I mailed the right papers including the Taggespiele who carried an excellent op-ed on the issue (later it was translated in The Local.de) But even they didnt respond.
You are right. In Europe there is also fight over resources especially in the poor areas and immigrants/native Europeans tend to step on each others’ toes. For sure.
The difference however, to SA’s xenophobia is that there is
1) a rhetoric of Islamophobia in the media (ie the press is not independent of the dangerous sterotyping of Islam)
2) there is a fear of these foreigners’ (ie Muslims) lifestyles/culture/religion. Europeans see Muslims as a threat to their lifestyle (I dont mean every single native European, I refer here to the rhetoric)
There is no such thing in South Africa. Yes there was (and still is) a xenophobic language on the street but the poor were killing the poor. There is no media rhetoric (except perhaps the Daily Sun) that propogates such hate. No fear of a Zim or Rwandan belief system.
If it was “Zimbabweans want to impose shariah” - then it would be a different story altogether.
@ Hard Rain: Islam, a derivtive of the root “salama” means peace, so when Muslims greet (which you often hear in movies just before the bad guys leave each others company to hi-jack or blow-up) they are in fact saying “peace be with you”, you are only partially correct in translating it as “submission”, but that is a “willfull submission” to the laws of God and nature, of which peace is both and objective and means. Submission (Islam or to Islam) is NEVER coercive (or should never be coercive).
Ubuntu-Fundamentalist on September 8th, 2009 at 12:13 pm
Truly horrible and tragic story at the personal level but…
The coutries protesting barely offer a quarter of the rights demanded by the Egyptian woman in Germany to the women in their own countries. It seems that Islam will rise up like an over-sensitive child and wail for attention when there is some West-bashing available. I hardly remember protests in these countries when Taliban thugs executed innocent women in Afghanistan for flashing ankle or some other such pathetic crime. How did the Egyptian press handle that?
How did the Libyan press handle the Muslim bomber of the Lockerbie plane? Not with a harsh criticism of the insensitivity of the Libyan celebration of a convicted mass murderer sent home to die in a rather surprisingly mature and kind gesture by a Western country I suggest.
The German press are perhaps smarter than the sensationalist press elsewhere. Why judge an entire country and the state of it by the actions of one crazy skinhead? Only South Africans would be so offensively paranoid.
So instead of observing these things case by case you feel the need to generate mass hysteria and whip all the Germans into shape. Make them all tow the line and act in a PC manner so as not to offend any Muslims as they should.
Perhaps they may even oblige…the day every Muslim country acts in a PC manner so as not to offend any Christians or Jews or Bhuddists. Don’t hold your breath buddy.
@Azad - Andrea Nüsse is working for tagesspiegel - and islamophopbia/the arab and mulsim world is her resort - if you would contact her i am sure she would respond.
and i also agree with your claim that there is a rhetoric of islamophobia in some of the media in germany - you just have to look at www.achgut.de - the point is simply that not all media is islamophobe - there are some and especially one group.
your claim that europeans (or the rhetoric of the press) see muslims as a threat to their culture - well some do! but not all - not all south africans are racists - but some are - to generalise here is simply wrong!
what we got in europe is a sort of “kulturkampf” some simply agitate against muslims because it serves their interests - this is sad but true.
therefore i like your article - but your materialistic (or marxist) explanation of xenophobia or islamophobia simply doesn’t work in this case.
The unfortunate consequence of discrimination is that it creates an even bigger wedge between the 2 cultures, even creating blocks that weren’t there before. Western-leaning moslems become angry, moderate moslems become radical, and radical moslems take up arms.
“Islam, a derivtive of the root “salama” means peace…”
Incorrect. al-Salaam, “peace”, is not the root word. al-Silm is the root word in Arabic for Islam, meaning “submission” or “surrender”.
“Submission (Islam or to Islam) is NEVER coercive (or should never be coercive). ”
Incorrect and idealistic. Not only has the “no compulsion in religion” verse in the Quran effectively been abrogated, but forced conversions into Islam and honour killings for converting out of Islam continue across the world today. Both are completely justified by the Hadith and contemporary Islamic jurisprudence.
I hear you Azad, but if you claim the primary difference is the irrational fear of the Islamic belief system, how do you explain German acceptance of Turkish immigrants, UK’s acceptance of Pakistani immigrants, French, Spain and Italy accommodating various Muslims immigrants from North Africa etc. for generations! These immigrants are counted in the millions! Couldn’t Islamophobia just be that like that “release valve” that you speak about - just like xenophobia in SA?
@ Azad All wars in Europe were cause by religions, one even lasted over 30 years. Germany experienced Hitler’s terror followed by a communist dictatorship in the eastern part, hence the sensitivity in Dresden and former east-Berlin. It took a decade to clean up the last mess. Germany is a secular state with a democratically elected Coalition-Government (certainly NOT a one-party set up). Any totalitarian display such as neo-nazis in brown shirts with Swastika, skinheads or religious garb doesn’t sell well in a rapidly progressing society, even school uniforms are out. I am pleased to see that race does not seem to be a major issue. An increasing number of Africans blend in very well and adjust to the lifestyle and language in just a few months. A black & White couple couple pushing a pram doesn’t even cause heads turning unlike here. Most Muslims are trapped in their tradition and have created their own ghettos not only in Europe but also here. Next time you are in the multi-culty-society of Germany don’t miss to have a chat with some Iranian refugees to get a balanced perspective, also the ex-Muslim web-page from the UK is an eye-opener.
Of course this does neither justify the terrible incident in Dresden nor the regular roadshows of public executions in the middle east.-
By the way, Curry Wurst is pork and unlikely drip out of a hijaab.
dave, i hate to point this out to you, but if there were *acceptance* of the non-white populations in various european countries, the political islamists wouldn’t be getting any recruits.
acknowledgement of non-white populations’ presence is in no way indiciative of acceptance. you can tell from a) the amount of non-white people who have gone through the educational system who go on to university, and b) the amount of non-white people in places of importance in business, politics and industry. if you are the german-born child of ghanaian immigration, until four years ago, university was not an option; let me know if you need this explained to you.
…and after 65 years [in some places, such as france, the presence has been much longer than that, but we’ll just say since the end of world war 2], the near-lack of people of color *anywhere* in europe in Very Important Positions just further cements the fact that they are tolerated, but neither wanted nor accepted.
next, dave, you’ll be showing the makeup you used to aid in your being a Non-White Person In Europe[tm].
We are speaking of the basic human rights with respect to the acceptance of immigrants into Europe - killing and persecution of immigrants like xenophobia in SA and “Islamophobia” in Europe that Azad claims is a different from xenophobia. Go back and read Grant’s comments above and at least try to understand my point of contention with Azad.
We are NOT speaking about how they integrate and assimilate into the society. Thats a HUGE problem in Europe but another topic of discussion.
um, the “basic human rights” exist only as far as the police are willing to enforce them, which is the same bottleneck that exists here. and here, as in europe, it’s far easier to get the immigration authorities involved than to, oh, enforce “human rights”…
funnily enough, i’ve been treated with minimal respect by the police both here and in europe until i went nuclear — well, i didn’t have a choice, they [the police in both south africa and europe] were so convinced that i was a nigerian that they were going to show the door, but then suddenly they saw my passport and did all but fellate me on the spot.
so, no. i *see* what you’re saying. what i’m saying [and also azad] is that the mistreatment and the lack of respect is just as ingrained *there* as here. [god, the german police, in that situation, shot the *husband* ffs.]
the kum-ba-ya touchy feely loveliness does not exist in europe to the extent for non-whites that it does for white people.
[half the people in british jails are black. considering that black people are only *FOUR* percent of the population, there’s some serious “profiling” and “guilty until proven innocent” and a whole bunch of other rubbish going on. and yet you’re saying that’s not a form of xenophobia…oh-kay.]
Grant, point noted and I agree Egypt and other countries should definately speak out more but tell me, alternatively where are those voices fighting for the rights for when a woman is murderd in Afghanistan for ‘flashing an ankle’ Because I know, there are many horrified voices out there. The media are quick to raise their voice against it. And it is correct. But why the silence now? It’s the same thing - just in another country.
@ Chico - your comment is fair. Extreme ideas/approaches help no one!
@ Dave. I am slightly confused. The “Islamophobia” I refer to in this article is to do with integration/assimilation. How can you seperate the lifestyle issue from their xenophobic sentiment? I do understand your question - and perhaps this release valve explanation can work for the struggles between the lower income groups. But as an ideology I really dont think it may be explained through this release valave analogy. Europe has been anti-semetic, anti-Roma, racist in their colonial conquests for centuries. They didnt welcome the Muslims to Spain. Today they welcome dissident Muslims. European get on well with European-like-non-practising-Muslims. The Human Rights concerns of Europe towards Refugees coming in (mind you, EU can be very harsh with refugees) is something new. You are engaging me, I appreciate it.
@ Peppy. You provide much food for thought as well - though I still dont think I have reduced this “Islamophobia” to a materialistic explanation. And I did try to contact Andrea, through Die Taggespiele. I will try again.
@ Grant. Buddy, Muslims are hypocritical creatures also. You are quite correct. But my focus here is the hypocricy in Europe, I cant write about everything at once, can I? pity you find it sensationalist.
@ Frank. Do you have a brother? Do you also live in the Black Forest? If so, I suggest you start writing fairy tales. Brothers Wilking?
@ Azad. I’ve got black partner here in SA and not a brother in the black forest. I could write a book about the clashes we had with the authorities in the eighties.- So far Grimm’s fairy tales caused less damage to human minds than the book you are trying to sell. Get a real life bru! click on www.faithfreedom.org and perhaps act less superior toward the indigenous majority on this continent.
P.S. Andrea works for “der Tagesspiegel” meaning daily mirror. Is Currywurst the only German word you know?
@frank how am I acting superior? I am not superior. I write for free. Read my stuff closely Sir.
I am also not interested what colour partner you have. What does that prove?
If you know what curry wurst means, but still you cannot understand the use of curry wurst in this article, then you can keep on pretending that its curry wurst dripping through her scarf.
@ Azad It really doesn’t matter if YOU don’t grasp my message, others do. So, click again on www.faithfreedom.org or on many other assossiated pages. Thanks for this opportunity to air my view. happy clicking and enjoy your Currywurst mit Kartoffelsalat.
@azad - you write: “Europe has been anti-semetic, anti-Roma, racist in their colonial conquests for centuries. They didnt welcome the Muslims to Spain. Today they welcome dissident Muslims. European get on well with European-like-non-practising-Muslims.”
well i have more than 10 mosques in my (european) neighbourhood and play pool with practising muslims - europe also welcomes practising muslims - i have thousands in my neighbourhood! i doubt they are all dissidents.
currently there is a debate going on - if the muslims in europe are the jews of the 21 century - and to be honest i think this is ridiculous.
i know many muslims who came to europe exactly because here they can practice their religion live a western lifestyle and enjoy human rights - in many predominantly muslim countries this is simply not possible - is this europes fault? i doubt it.
@Ubuntu-Fundamentalist,
There are plenty of verses in the Quran where killing of infidels is encouraged. Don’t be fooled by this Islam is a religion of peace nonsense. Mohammed only preached peace when islam was weak in Mecca. Later in Medina when it was more powerful he changed his tune, and infidels were fair game.
@Peppi, Muslims “are the new Jews” because they tend to scream “victim” often. Muslims tend to scream foul. There is “an Islamic Question” so to speak. “What do we do with Islam and Muslims and their lifestyle?”
I am happy that you live in this sort of neighbourhood; which city are you in?
But we both know about the immigration tests for Muslims, the hostility to new Mosques (even though ppl can over do it but all religions are crazy about places of worship), EU love for Sufism because it is less confrontational etc etc.
I didnt say Islamic countries are awesome, I didnt say that living in Europe or Germany is akin to being persecuted everyday.
I am saying there is a denial that there is such a thing as Islamophobia - in the media, & in society in general.
Just today I got an email from a Turkish lecturer complaining of discrimination at work. He is a sociologist; he isnt particularly fond of Muslims, having left Islam himself some years back. But he is not going to deny that there are some creepy things going on.
You play pool with these people, what about those who dont integrate in a Western way? Who wont go into bars? Who have strict ideas of dress etc? Are they accepted so easily?
I have a feeling you not going to like part 3 of this series.
Azad, all I’m saying is that Islamophobia exists in your head - its a matter of perspective and an adoption of a victim mentality. Its a fact that MILLIONS of Muslim immigrants have been “taken into” European countries. I won’t use the word accepted otherwise we will get into the same integration/assimilation debate. Once again, I’ll reiterate that I fully agree that there is systemic racism in Europe that serves to economically oppress darker skinned people. However, only when violence is unleashed en masse on Muslims, as it was against immigrant refugees right here in SA, then and only then, will your view of Islamophobia sound more plausible.
I have difficulty accepting your DOUBLE STANDARDS where you causally minimize xenophobia in SA where 60+ were killed and thousands fled their homes, by referring to it as a mere “release valve” but then scream loudly when at some unfortunate isolated killing of a Muslim in Germany.
@azad. i live in berlin-neukölln. and just last saturday there was a panel discussion about islamophobia in a mosque just around the corner.
members of all local political parties (LINKE Grüne, CDU,SPD,FDP aso.) discussed the issue with the community. i agree with dave that i think this whole thing is in your head.
there is no denialism - and by the way - who should deny it? we have a more or less pluralistic press and as i mentioned before - it has been discussed in the media.(even if you don’t believe it) and some are islamophobe - but not all!
and on the immigration test - what is wrong about them? 98% past them anyway and these tests are not only for muslims but for all immigrants. if you live in this country you have to accept the constitution - religious freedom is part of this constitution - what is wrong about it?
and the people who don’t integrate in a western way - well we don’t put them into camps - to answer your question: “What do we do with Islam and Muslims and their lifestyle?” i live with them and i am sick and tired of this whole clash of civilisation nonsense. we tolerate them.
hey and by the way did you mention that the guy who killed the woman was an ethnic german immigrant from russia? i think daves last point is very valid.
@peppi,
Perhaps you accept them but there are plenty of us who don’t. Whether they dress as “traditional” muslims or in Western dress, they have no place in any non-Islamic country. Their first loyalty is to the ummah. In fact for practicing muslims it’s their only loyalty. How can you trust someone who accepts a faith that all people should be muslims or they may be legitimately killed? It’s all there in the Quran and ahadith.
if you pay attention closely, which you aren’t, you would know that it’s not the F0 generation [the immigrants themselves] that’s the “problem” in europe. it’s the F1 and later generations, who have citizenship but are treated like dirt, self-fulfilling low academic expectations, no openings in the workplace, etc. adecco in france got *sued* over this — many of their more clients wanted only “white” people to interview/hire, and adecco went along with it. [all of the employment agencies probably went along with it; but it was only adecco that got sued.]
[and, by the way, the F1 generation in the uk hasn’t necessarily had citizenship since 1981, and in france since 1993].
the *exception* is germany, where the F1 generation has *never* had citizenship; this kept the protests that happened in the 1980s in britain and in the 90s and 00s in france from happening there — they always knew they were second-class residents. [can’t call them second-class citizens when, by and large, they aren’t.]
the mistreatment by the education system and greater society is a PERFECT RECRUITING TOOL for extremists, and Nobody in Power Really Cares[tm].
i mean, shit, that was the whole point of “la haine” — and that movie came out, what, 15 years ago?
@ mundundu. The German constitution does not allow dual citizenship (e.g. Mozambique) I had to renounce the SA citizenship in order not to loose my native one. I was naturalized without my knowledge and only found out when my passport expired.- Most Muslim migrants refuse to switch (their tradition might clash with the uncomfortable human rights treaty). They also reject the secular, compulsory and absolute free education with even social assistance. Perks you only dream of to have here. Isn’t it amazing that most free-thinking African immigrants fully embrace their opportunity and excel their ‘faithful’ fellows. E.g. many Ghanaians make their name in medicine and technology e.t.c, not as factory workers. I guess most Muslims wait till German is replaced by Arabic. Breading, not educating as a solution? In the meantime the western free bees are better than what they can expect back home.
@ Dave Please read my articles more closely before you comment. This is getting boring now. “release valve” does not mean that it is the only reason and it does not mean there wasnt a build-up or that ppl were not talking/thinking a language of hate before the attacks.My hypothesis is that the issue is more an ideological one than a material one in EU. This does not rule out material issues. Do I have spell it out to you?
@ Peppy Make up your mind. Islamophobia is in my head but people met in Berlin for a forum to discuss Islamophobia? So you admit Islamophobia exists or were they meeting for tea? I know you are disagreeing with my denial claims - but i am saying still saying that there is denial in the mainstream, as in its not more than a passing thought. Civil Society and political parties meet to discuss Islamophobia. Good start but so what? What next? Denial exists in the mainstream, in the media and on the street. No good just progressives like you, living in Berlin talking about it. The converted exist everywhere. Also, while parts of the far-flung East Berlin might be dodge, we both know that the inclusivity of Berlin does not speak for the rest of Germany.
@ Jeff how are you different to that which you criticise? Funny, you sound more extreme than any Muslim I know.
secondly, germany does allow dual citizenship. so much so that it pays russia billions a year to *keep* the russians of german descent in russia. [but not enough of them, so it seems].
germany has messed up citizenship laws. merely being born in germany has *never* meant german citizenship unlike any country in the world… except china. the vast majority of germany’s “turkish” population was born in germany. few of them have german nationality [and most of those who do have a white german parent].
now, these days, the uk, france, and ireland have changed their laws so that birth doesn’t mean automatic citizenship — you have to apply for citizenship at age 18. germany has also [finally!] changed its laws in a similar manner. the problem with this is that 18 is more or less when you are finishing high school, and then it takes a year [or more] for the nationality [and the passport] to come through.
in france and germany [but not the uk and ireland] it means that you are INELIGIBLE FOR FREE TERTIARY EDUCATION until your citizenship clears. france is about to have a big, big problem with this in 5 years [it changed its rules to take effect for those born after 1 jan 1994].
as i have said before, the problem isn’t with the muslim immigrants themselves. it’s with the societally excluded children of said immigrants who are in a nationality limbo.
german citizenship is based on ius sanguinus [ie of being of “german blood”] rather than ius soli [born of the soil].
wikipedia has a very good entries on both jus sanguinis and jus soli [make sure you use “j” and not “i” when you searching on wikipedia.]
these are very big problems for the *assimilation* of subsequent generations. the problem isn’t with the people moving there; it’s with the children who are born in the country but are made to feel like foreigners in their countries of birth. such people become led to extremism through their disillusionment with the country and the people of the countries of their birth, making them perfect recruits for extremists of all stripes.
–
citizenship in europe is far more complex than it needs to be. if you are born in a country, you should be a citizen, regardless of your parents’ immigration status. [only *two* “major” countries give citizenship in this manner, no questions asked: the united states and canada.]
@ Jeff and @Frank
jeff - you write:”Their first loyalty is to the ummah. In fact for practicing muslims it’s their only loyalty. How can you trust someone who accepts a faith that all people should be muslims or they may be legitimately killed? It’s all there in the Quran and ahadith.”
how do you know? and isn’t it quite normal to have a (bindestrich identität) multiple identity (which means that you are loyal to a few identities?)?
you for example seem to me to be a white south african - so where lies your primary loyalty? at the “white race” or at south africa?
this identity game only creates and reinforces division - and if you think all muslisms are only loyal to the ummah - well it is you who has a problem.
i can trust someone if he keeps his word - i don’t care if he or she is a jew, muslim, christian or agnostic aso.
Mundundu
It sounds like sour grapes. Are you still waiting for your maroon document. Mozambican friends of mine had no problem to get it. They now need a visa to enter their home country since both countries do not allow dual citizenship, and Russia is no exception. Thanks for correcting me.
Your French and German must be perfect, I bet, but your information is not. Check on social grants many Turks live on and the fraction they earn for working in Turkey. Many relatives flood in as “welfare- tourists” hence their ‘limited popularity’ and the EU’s resistance of integrating Turkey.
@ Peppy.
My partner since 26 years is black and so are most of our friends. We avoid hoity-toity whites and the other tribe of bling. Otherwise it’s great to be here.
i was born automatically eligible for american, french, dutch, irish, and two other passports, and at varying points in my life travelled on three of those plus a canadian one. nice try though.
you really need do more reasearch on the atatus within russia of both the volga germans and the konigsburg germans. under *german* citizenship law, both sets of them are eligible to live in germany. however, germany pays russia enough money to keep it from happening. now that both poland *and* lithuania [which surround kaliningrad] are part of the eu, germany is pretty much going to have to give up on keeping the konigsburg germans at bay. but since stalin shipped most of the volga germans to siberia, those folks won’t be leaving en masse any time soon.
i’d rather be able to get free tertiary education than a “welfare grant”. if i were born in germany, educated in german schools and despite the constant “these fields aren’t for kids like you [read: non-whites]” from teachers and guidance counselors, became eligible for a university place, only to be denied a university because i don’t have the “right documentation” despite HAVING BEEN BORN THERE, i’d be mighty pissed off.
you see this happening throughout europe, btw. many of those who are citizens of their perspective countries end up going to uni in the uk so they can improve their english and then move to the united states. imagine that.
and, by the way, their popularity started to wane during the recessions of the late 70s and early 80s [also known as the beginning of reagan/thatcher].
the german government *way back then* was trying to figure what to do with the german-born-and-raised children of their post-world war 2 largely turkish and yugoslav gastarbeiten. most of the yugoslav ones were okay [gee, i wonder why], but the turks and especially the ghanaians, not so much. so it’s not like this is anything new. the sad thing, really, is that it took 20 years to pass a law that is still pretty abysmal in the eyes of people born in countries where citizenship is conferred at birth [regardless of the immigration status of the parents].
i never thought i’d be trumpeting the horn of the united states, but the gist of immigration/naturalization in the usa is thus: you may have come illegally, but if you’re paying taxes, we can work something out. [it really helps that birth certificates are local, not national, and thus extremely easy to copy/falsify.]
most other places in the world: “you’re the wrong color, where are you from-from? wow, these are really nice fakes. sorry we don’t want you here, even if these are real documents.”
it actually reminds me of this clip [it helps to be able to understand french]:
@Azad
“This is getting boring now. “release valve” does not mean that it is the only reason”
Its a matter of perspective, isn’t it? You called it a “release valve” , while many of us regarded the xenophobic violence as a crime against humanity!
“My hypothesis is that the issue is more an ideological one than a material one in EU”
By minimizing xenophobia in SA in your previous blog you did a disservice to the 60+ deaths and thousands of refugees that still fear for their lives and live in squalor in our own country. Why aren’t you screaming about this? Is it possible that you don’t feel the same kinship with those infidel refugees?
@peppi,
In the quran a muslim is only allowed to have one identity, that of being a muslim.
What is the law for various European countries is immaterial. I am entitled to a British and a South African passport.
A muslim’s passport has nothing to do with his identity as a muslim. The quran insists his one true identity is as a muslim, someone who submits to the will of allah, and accepts mohammed as allah’s prophet, that his identity is as a member of the ummah. He leaves islam under pain of death, no matter what his nationality.
@ Dave Of course it is a crime against humanity! I didnt mean to trivialise it by framing “release valve”.
I did scream and shout about it, alot of my work in 2007 and 2008 dealt with foreigners in Durban/xenophobic attacks. We had Projects/Seminars/Special Coverage in our newsletters etc etc.
I dont think I need to respond to the infidel thing because you know that is not the case.
i want to apologize - after the votum in switzerland and all the similar polls in german newspapers i have to conclude that i live in a deeply islamophobic country - you were right.
but one issue is already the question if there will be more referendums like the one in switzerland in other european countries - which raises questions about direct democracy a.s.o.
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Azad Essa is a journalist at Al Jazeera.
He is also the author of a book called "Zuma's Bastard" (Two Dogs Books, October 2010)
Yes, it is the name of a book. A real book. With a kickass cover.
Click on the cover to find out more.
You know you want to.
or join the revolution:
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http://www.azadessa.com/about
Accidental Academic won best political blog at the South African Blog awards 2009 and is a finalist for 2010.
Azad's links
IOLS-Research Industrial Organizational & Labour Studies Research Unit, UKZN
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You write: “But German troops are nevertheless still in Iraq to “support” the war; their businesses quite happy to apply for tenders to rebuild “democracy” and the “market” in tatters.”
This is simply not true - there are no German troops in Iraq - there are German troops in Afghanistan and just killed 125 people last Friday - what a screw up!!!
And your claim that the German media didn’t cover the story is simply also not true - if you need some links to posted stories in the German media about the heinous attack - please let me know.
Maybe you just wrote e-mails to the wrong people.
I like your story - but if you think things in Europe haven’t changed - well maybe do a reality check.
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