Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool with GU-Q Associate Professor Karine V Walther during the Q&A session.
Doha, Qatar: With the rising scourge of Islamophobia, engaging other forms of oppression like racism, xenophobia, hate speech, bigotry and others alongside Islamophobia as a common cause would create an ‘irresistible’ force.
Speaking to the media on the sidelines of the two-day “Global Histories and Practices of Islamophobia” conference, hosted by Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q), which kicked off yesterday, Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool, Founder of the World for All Foundation, said monopolising victimhood and ignoring other forms of oppression while fighting Islamophobia would be a big mistake.
“In South Africa, we learned that the best way to fight Islamophobia against Muslims was to fight racism against blacks. Suppose we compartmentalise phobias and isms and monopolise all victimhood because we are Muslim and denigrate the suffering of blacks. In that case, we make a big mistake and become part of the problem,” Ambassador Rasool said.
“When we say the perpetrator and purpose are the same, we make this a common cause with others. It would be compelling if Muslims in America who face Islamophobia, Black Lives Matter who face racism, and Latinos who face deportations and xenophobia -- and in India, if the Dalits and the Muslims came together to fight the common enemy, it would be irresistible.”
Ambassador Rasool also disclosed that making the fight against Islamophobia a religious issue with other religions would play into the hands of those who want to portray the religion as backwards. He added that there must be a coalition that transcends religion, race and ethnicity.
“I do think, as we found in South Africa, that there are resources in your religion that impel you to justice, fairness and equality. So, you must use the resources of your religion without confirming the stereotype, and we run into the same problem. For example, when we religionise the Palestinian struggle, we create the fear of Islamism. If we humanise the Palestinian struggle, we make the case for liberation and democracy and freedom and human rights,” Ambassador Rasool stressed.
Meanwhile, during his keynote remarks, Ambassador Rasool detailed the rise of Islamophobia in South Africa and the effects of creating ‘isms and phobias’ for every difference. He noted that attributing these differences as anxiety of the unknown, activating the surveillance state, sophisticating punishments at every event, and perfecting the policies of immigration have morphed into mainstream extremism today.
According to Ambassador Rasool, creating ‘other’ through Islamophobia, racism, and other forms of oppression places the burden of deconstructing the phobia on the victims and proving that they are not so fearful.
While addressing Islamophobia today, the Ambassador said there is no longer a mono-cultural phenomenon in the West, with 25% of the Muslim community globally finding themselves as a minority. “Islamophobia is no longer a Western phenomenon. It has taken root where there are Muslim minorities in India, China, Myanmar, and other places. Whether in the West or the East, they are confronted with all manners of populisms and mainstream extremisms,” he added.
Ambassador Rasool also lauded the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 as a powerful tool that pushed back the effects of Islamophobia. The GU-Q conference also hosted several panels which discussed the dynamics of contemporary anti-Islam sentiments with a clear message to build solidarity in the global fight against Islamophobia and other forms of discrimination, bigotry, and racism. The conference also examines Islamophobia and its rampant discourse in political, social, educational, and other contexts.
