Why feminism needs to ditch colonial attitudes to claim inclusivity

Welcome to the age of post-ism. Racism is over, ageism is over, classism is over and so is sexism too, or at least this is popular thought. However, feminism is needed more now than ever and yet our feminist movement is beginning to eerily reflect the sort of attitudes we should be striving against, and at times blatantly demonstrating racist and illiberal attitudes. Feminists have in the past seemed ill at ease with the religious, who have in some cases campaigned against abortions and gay marriage – the cornerstones it could be argued of modern feminist achievement. However with more dangers against women from the state than ever before, how can Western feminism become more inclusive of minority values, and in turn the religious? First we must reflect on what feminism has always been about – was it to focus solely on the individual of the day or to empower women to be able to make decisions about themselves, for themselves? Focusing on a specific religious action with little understanding of context can cause unnecessary divides, whereas uniting on common ground such as wage disparity, maternity rights, and homelessness is plain common sense. Women: the all too often disproportional victims [...]

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Islam and Sufism: the false dichotomy of mystics and jurists

It is too often erroneously claimed that Sunni Islam is divided into a legalistic conservative mainstream presided over by jurists, and a mystical, liberal marginalised minority comprised of mystics. However such a perception came to emerge, it is inaccurate. From the beginnings of Islam in the Qur’an and in the person of the Prophet Muhammad himself, through to his companions and the jurists who established the four Sunni schools of Islamic Law, the external application of the law and the internal cultivation of the spirit have always been intertwined. Consider the ritual prayer, performed by Muslims five times a day, as this most demonstrates the interdependence of the external and the internal. In the Qur’an it is said, “Perform the Prayer to remember Me.” In this it is made clear that the Prayer is not simply a series of movements and supplications performed in accordance with an established formula. Rather, its objective is the remembrance of God. The Prophet Muhammad elaborates that, “When performing the Prayer, one is conversing intimately with one’s Lord.” However, he makes clear that, “A man gets credit only for that part of his Prayer of which he is conscious,” and it is not sufficient to [...]

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Britain First Sympathisers Mock the Deaths of Refugees in Austria

Just when we thought that sympathisers of Britain First could not scrape the bottom of the social barrel through their postings on the Facebook page of the extremist group, statements and comments come along that are just breath-taking. 71 refugees were found dead in a lorry in Austria and may have died due to suffocation.

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Happy Onam! But what is this festival about?

The harvest festival of Onam is a moveable feast: it colours the landscape of Kerala in South West India in a rhythm of elaborate dances, music, sports and banquets. A festival of secular tradition, where different faiths and castes celebrate. It falls on the Malayee month of Chingnam, which coincides with Shavan Masa of the Indian calender. This ten day celebration falls between August and September 15. It honours the homecoming of the beloved King Mahabali, who makes a yearly return to Kerala. Legend dictates that the jealous king of the gods, Indra, hatched a plan to oust Mahabali. Indra begged Lord Vishnu for protection who then transformed into a Brahmin boy, or dwarf, named Vamana. The people of Kerala adorded the wisdom and generosity of King Mahabali; Vamana sought to exploit the latter. He approached King Mahabali and asked for as much land as his feet could cover in three steps. Upon granting what appeared a simple and humble request; Vamana grew at an exponential rate; one footstep covered the sky and the stars. The second step covered the netherworld. Vamana then turned to King Mahabli, who came to realise that a third step would destroy the Earth. To [...]

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Far Right Britain First, Rails Against South Yorkshire Police

This correspondence was sent into us and highlights the inflammatory nature and tone of e-mails sent out by Britain First. The text below raises the temperature with a threat to march to Rotherham town centre. This coming after communities in Rotherham are trying to get to grips with the grooming scandals, ongoing investigations and the

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Scholar’s corner: where does Islamic fundamentalism stem from?

Dr. Imam Mamadou Bocoum is a holder of two Masters and a PhD from The Muslim College, and Heythrop College, University of London. He is a lecturer in Islamic Studies; a Board member of the Muslim Law Council UK and an interfaith consultant. He is currently a consultant at Faith Matters and Tell Mama. Mamadou has authored a number of written works which have included: The Position of Jews and Christians in the Qur’an; Faith and Citizenship in Islam; The status of Women in Islam; Islamic Fundamentalism and the Qur’an. He can be reached at mbocoum@yahoo.com; Mamadou@tellmamauk.org. While delivering a talk on ‘extremism in the religion of Islam’, an audience member shouted: “Bush, Blair and Bin Laden are all f——s”. I pretended that I had not heard but this was to no avail as the same individual shouted again – but this time in a louder tone – “All of them are f——s”.  The heckler’s pronunciation was rather difficult to interpret (like mine!) and I thought that he meant the offensive six-letter designation. It proved a great relief when someone clarified that the ‘f word’ was fundamentalist. I then responded that besides sharing initial ‘B’ in their respective family names, [...]

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Mosque Attacked in Woodford Green, Redbridge

We have received a report from a member of the public that a brick was thrown through the front door of a proposed mosque in Woodford Green in the London Borough of Redbridge. A new mosque and community centre was recently approved by the local authority and local newspaper reports have suggested that a proposal

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Infographic on Racially Aggravated Harassment Offences Collected by BTP

This is an infographic that we have put together on racially aggravated harassment offences recorded by the British Transport Police (BTP) in 2014 and 2015. BTP have been pro-active in responding to hate crimes on public transport and we are proud of o...

Infographic on Racially Aggravated Harassment Offences Collected by BTP

This is an infographic that we have put together on racially aggravated harassment offences recorded by the British Transport Police (BTP) in 2014 and 2015. BTP have been pro-active in responding to hate crimes on public transport and we are proud of o...

IPSO Complaints Related to Muslims, Islam, Mosques etc

We thought that we would bring you a monthly round-up of cases that have been referred to IPSO, the Independent Press Standards Organisation. These are complaints made on topics including Islam, mosques, Muslim communities and events that have involved people from Muslim communities. 0048-14 Adams v Metro – Not Upheld (02/12/14) Daniel Adams complained that

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