Islam vs. The world after Paris attacks
The attacks in Paris occurred two weeks ago. Every aspect of that tragic day, the timing, location, the degree of planning and intent, have been discussed endlessly in every possible corner of the globe. No news organization, social media outlet, politician or humanitarian has been able to escape the debate that has followed the events of November 13.
One thing that is agreed upon is that ISIL seems to have ‘changed tactics’ or employed a new international strategy that we previously thought was not possible. Days before the events in Paris broke out, Barack Obama stated in an interview that he was proud to say that ISIL had been ‘contained’. Oh how things can change in a matter of hours.
Still, the international community debates the direct goals of the attack. Whether it was directed and commanded by top leaders, or was a lone-wolf attack that emerged in the suburbs of Brussels. There is debate whether this was an act of desperation from the group, as their losses in Syria and Iraq may have caught up to them.
The refugee issue unsurprisingly has come to the forefront of the debate. A Syrian passport was found near the body of one the attackers, which doesn’t make much logical sense considering the how the rest of his body looked.
We can be sure of one thing, if anything resulted from these most recent attacks, it would be polarization and division, on a global scale I’ve never seen before in my lifetime.
People all over the globe are at each other’s throats over what happened that day. All across Europe, people are ferociously debating the threat posed by refugees coming from Syria. Right-wing leaders have become so paranoid of these ‘radicals’ and ‘terrorists’ that any genuine solution to their concerns seems impossible.
Never in my lifetime as a Canadian citizen have I heard of hate-crime’s occurring on such a drastic scale. From a veil-wearing Muslim woman being attacked while picking her children up from school, to Molotov cocktails being flung through the windows of a mosque.
Today in Australia, dissension broke out between right-wing groups trying to purge the country of Islam, and others who justifiably did not see want racism to be associated with their beloved country. Since the Paris attacks, the UK has had 115 islamophobic attacks, an increase of more than 300%.
The United States House of Representatives has implemented legislature that would make it nearly impossible for a genuine refugee to enter the country. Donald Trump is calling for a national database to be created to keep track of every Muslim that steps foot in the country. Even Facebook has fallen under scrutiny for its French-flag display picture design that was intended on showing empathy for the victims of the attack. However, individuals from countries who have to see this kind of violence all the time are criticizing it.
Does anyone remember the photo of Alan Kurdi’s body washed up on a Turkish shore? The photo brought worldwide media attention to the refugee crisis, and actually attributed to appreciable action on the parts of politicians and humanitarian organizations worldwide. In the summer the world took two steps forward toward helping the Syrian people, and tragically the Paris attacks have sent us a hundred steps backward.
In this regard, the Islamic State has already won the ultimate victory. In the coming months, the international coalition will bomb ISIL strongholds into oblivion. If the big players can come to terms for a military program that involves boots on the ground, we may see places like Mosul and Raqqa fall back into ‘secure’ hands. However, the rationalizations and disputations that were born two weeks ago will live on.
All over the world Muslims are being forced to choose between their country, and their faith. Innocent peoples, who practice Islam in the most harmless ways possible, are being accused of being terrorists. Now more than ever Islam is being dubbed as ‘violent’ and ‘backward’. ‘Radical Islam’ is being hailed as the greatest threat to world safety.
As a people we have to fight back against the threats that have been thrust upon us. We have to continue living our lives without fear turning us into bigots and racists. We have to remember that we are all human, that no child was born a terrorist or a martyr, and the manifestation of these things is only produced in places in the world where the marginalization I speak of thrives. After 9/11, the world changed. I believe that the world has once again changed after these recent attacks. How the world reacts will be essential to the outlook of a peaceful future.
Author: Mitchell Flett