Libelous Labels
By Dr. Mahjabeen Islam
Toledo, Ohio
After a while one
gets inured to the defamation of Muslims in western
media. Whilst it is invariably an "Islamic" terrorist,
fundamentalist or extremist, any non-Islamic semi-violent
person or group is always secular or agnostic
enough to never need religious qualification.
One cannot entirely blame the West for these labels,
for the perpetrators of 9/11 permanently damaged
all things Islamic. It is when Muslims themselves
echo these slurs and invent new ones to boot that
it hurts. And it hurts not just the insulted but
the Muslim community as a whole.
Fundamentally speaking
Fundamentalism was an organized militant Evangelical
movement originating in the late 19-early 20th
centuries in opposition to Protestant liberalism
and its thrust was inerrancy of the Scripture.
In common parlance it had acquired the connotation
of rigid adherence to fundamental principles,
opposition to secularism and most importantly
intolerance. And then Islam came along radar screens
and even though "fundamentalist" was born a Christian
it is now any devout Muslim, man or woman, violent
or peaceful, bearded or clean-shaven, fashionable
or head-covered. To be Muslim one must believe
in the fundamentals of faith that is belief in
God, the angels, the prophets, the Books, the
Day of Judgment and fate and predestination. This
iman-e-mufassil causes entry to the fold of Islam
and by definition a billion of the world's people
are fundamentalists, excuse me, I mean "Islamic
fundamentalists".
Not only have we
accepted this slur without protest, we propagate
and add to it. An objection to the denigration
of Islam in social conversation can earn you that
title and the Pakistani accent already hard on
the ears, in this emphasizes the D, and you are
suddenly a fundo. A hapless email correspondent
abbreviated it to funda. At least get the colloquial
right thought I. But then perhaps he does know
it is fundo, and that funda carries more punch.
It does indeed and actually verbalized by him
would definitely send my heart into fibrillation.
Reeling under this fundo-funda onslaught, I felt
balmed by Khusro Mumtaz's article "Attack of the
Liberal Fundos" that appeared in The News in January.
That the ultra-liberal
set in Pakistan has its own deep-rooted prejudices
and mindsets is a point very well taken. And yet
here the word "liberal" is a misnomer for the
word "liberal" carries connotations of open-mindedness,
progress and freedom from prejudice. Mumtaz illustrates
well the blinders of bigotry that these pseudo-liberals
carry, making them as much the fundos they denigrate
albeit at the other end of the moral/social spectrum.
Until 9/11 all things relating to Islam were Islamic.
Since that had no oomph the word Islamist has
been coined and though dictionary definitions
are gentle and relate Islamism to the faith and
practice of Islam, in my mind it is a hybrid of
the words "Islam" and "extremism". If you are
shy and retiring you get to being called a Muslim,
if you get hot and bothered by the assaults on
your religion and speak up, you are an Islamist.
Actually the air headed socialite of Pakistan
calls the religiously inclined Muslim a fundo,
the Western media and brown-sahib sycophants call
them Islamists.
Like the Americans
say: same difference. As though fundo and Islamist
were not slurs enough, Muslims and, I believe,
Pakistanis have coined the word "jihadi". Contrary
to popular thought Jihad-e-Akbar or the major
jihad is the constant, daily struggle against
our base instincts (nafs-e-ammara) so that nearness
to God is achieved through observance of the five
pillars of Islam as well as constant zikr or remembrance
of Him. After returning from battle of Khyber
the Prophet (pbuh) said that he had returned from
Jihad-e-Asghar, the minor jihad to now Jihad-e-Akbar.
Jihad-e-Asghar is harb or war with the enemies
of Islam. Interestingly by scholarly tradition
Jihad-e-Akbar is to be far more brutal than Jihad-e-Asghar,
and with the continual onslaught of our inner
desires coupled with the magnetism of the material
world it is indeed the greater battle. Pronouncing
the name Mahjabeen has been a challenge for most
non-Pakistanis. An Arab gentleman introducing
me for a presentation stumbled all over it and
called me "mujahideen". Evoked laughter and was
affectionate. Labeling another a "jihadi" however
is not funny, and actually in this day and age
of The Patriot Act a potential ticket to deportation
or Guantanamo Bay for the one thus labeled. Hapless
Muslims use these slurs to avenge themselves and
sadly their purpose is not achieved and in the
larger analysis they have only contributed to
the steady disenfranchisement of Muslims in America.
Whilst the world
was busy in 2004 with the fallout of the Iraq
war and the War on Terror, legislation was passed
in the US Congress making anti-Semitism a punishable
offense. After 9/11 hate crimes, at times homicidal,
against Muslims and those resembling Muslims have
risen exponentially. Muslims outnumber Jews in
the United States but in terms of political maturity
they are in virtual infancy. Whereas a backlash
against Muslims for the crime of one group is
understandable it should by no means be condoned.
The irony is that instead of mobilizing a political
voice for representation of Muslims targeted by
the ignorant as well as the government, Pakistani-Americans
are busy hurling insults and pursuing petty personal
vendettas. The Qur'an advises against judging
others and specifically against mocking them:
"O you who believe let not one group mock another
for it may be that the latter are better than
the former" (Hujarat 49:11). Additionally unity
is enjoined on us by the Qur'an "and hold fast
together to the rope of Allah and be not divided"
(Imran 3:103) just as it was urged by Quaid-i-Azam
Muhammad Ali Jinnah and became part of the motto
of Pakistan.
Ironically one sees
historically that Muslims are typified by their
difference of opinion with another Muslim, the
"deyrh eent ki masjid" syndrome. Throwing around
fundo, Islamist, jihadi and other variations of
the same are irresponsible at the minimum and
endangering at the extreme. The day should dawn
that Muslims should protest Islamophobic slurs
the way that our Jewish friends have objected
to anti-Semitism and legislation protecting them
has been passed. Infighting typifies Muslims but
it's time that we graduate beyond petty domestic
politics and work together toward protecting and
enhancing our community. Not just in America but
the world over. (Mahjabeen Islam is a physician
practicing in Toledo Ohio. Her email is mahjabeenislam@hotmail.com)
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