What Does The Erroneous Term Islamophobia Mean?

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 16 June 2022 Muslims, Not Only Of India but From All Corners Of The World, Need To Introspect As To What Went Wrong Main Points: 1. Whether it's perceived Islamophobia or presupposed Islam-bashing, there's no denying the fact that Muslims across the world are suffering from an ' imaginary ' Belittling/Dwarfing Complex. 2. Islamophobia is a classic example of the Fallacy of Victimhood. 3. Muslims across the world have suffered, esp. after 9/11, but they're NOT the ONLY sufferers. 4. Religions that advocate violence must be condemned. ------ "The suffix ‘phobia’ implies a delusional or irrational fear that is analogous to a mental illness. Attacking the person in this way, rather than their argument, is a classic ‘ad hominem’ (attacking the person) fallacy. A fourth problem is that we rarely use these phobia terms to protect any other religion. We practically never describe atheists who make jokes about Christianity as ‘Christophobics,’ or describe critics of mindfulness meditation as ‘Buddhophobics.’ Both terms have almost never been searched on Google in the past 17 years." -Courtesy, ' European Academy on Religion & Society ' (In short, EARS) Whether it's perceived Islamophobia or presupposed Islam-bashing, there's no denying the fact that Muslims across the world are suffering from an ' imaginary ' Belittling/Dwarfing Complex. In other words, Muslims labour under the ' misconception ' that they're suffering from the universal scourge of Islam-belittling, aimed at them by a partisan and ever-vindictive world. Let's delve into this phenomenon in a dispassionate manner to see whether it's imaginary or real. Any educated and thinking person will object to the term Islamophobia because it suggests as if the rest of the world is perpetually at fault and on the prowl to pounce upon 'poor and peace-loving' (!) Muslims and their innocuous religion. Islamophobia is a classic example of the Fallacy of Victimhood. Now the million-dollar question is: Who's at the receiving end? Are Muslims the perpetual victims and the rest of the non-Muslim world an eternal perpetrator? If it's a black and white conflict of Islam versus Non-Islam then what about the mutual opposition between Shia and Sunni Muslims? It therefore remains an interesting question whether Muslims have actually suffered the most from the ‘Islamophobia’ of other Muslims (from different denominations). Agreed, Muslims across the world have suffered, esp. after 9/11, but they're NOT the ONLY sufferers. If you look at the religio-anthropological history of religions, all religions at some point in time, in the past or present, suffered miserably. This is the age of much advanced communication and connectivity, so the 'crying babies' (read Muslims) get far greater and quicker attention and also sympathy. But what about the followers of Zoroastrianism, the most peaceful among all major man-made religions? There's no prize in guessing as to who were the tormentors who tortured (fire-worshippers) and drove them out of Iran and Central Asia a millennium ago? Does any fire-worshipper or Parsi still cry and condemn Muslims who kicked them out of their motherland where they had been living for nearly 4,000 years? Have they coined a stupid term like Zorostrophobia on the lines of Islamophobia? Do Jains and Buddhists still dwell upon how badly Brahminical Hinduism treated them for centuries? The point is: it's a term, coined and circulated by Muslims themselves. Abdur-Rahman Muhammad, a former Islamist, claims he was present at the meeting where members of the International Institute for Islamic Thought (IIIT) decided to “emulate the homosexual activists who used the term ‘homophobia’ to silence critics (source: EARS).” Now when the whole civilized world is witnessing how Muslims across the globe are reacting and running amok over a woman's FACT (though disputed and controversial) about their prophet Muhammad, can Muslims still say that the world suffers from Islamophobia? Who issues edicts to behead a person for condemning a revered figure in the post-medieval times and post-modern ethos? I'm afraid, only MUSLIMS can stoop to this level, yet wailing that the world is being unfair to them. How can civil society be fair to you when you cannot go beyond your religion, messenger and a book of the 7th century? Muslims, not only of India but from all corners of the world, need to introspect as to what went wrong. Why the rest of the world doesn't think of them as collectively evolved? This is a quintessential Damascene moment (used in reference to an important moment of insight, typically one that leads to a dramatic transformation of attitude or belief) for the Muslims belonging to all denominations, but especially to Sunni Islam. They should also learn from a 20-something Muslim boy, Saad Ashfaaq Ansari, from Bhiwandi, Bombay who supported Nupur Sharma and wrote in his post that ' No one is above reproach. Religions that advocate violence must be condemned. We all need humanity, the essence of all faiths.' Such a meaningful post angered Muslims who attacked and made him recite Kalma! ---- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. Related Articles: Countering the Islamophobia Industry The Islamophobia Network Funding Islamophobia: $206m went to promoting 'hatred' of American Muslims Report: Islamophobia is a multimillion-dollar industry Fear, Inc. - Center for American Progress US Charities Donated $105 Million to Anti-Muslim Groups Islamophobia is a billion-dollar industry in the US; it's time to uproot it The US Islamophobia Network: Its Funding and Impact The Islamophobia Industry: How the Right Manufactures Fear of Muslims Islamophobia in the United States URL: https://newageislam.com/muslims-islamophobia/erroneous-term-islamophobia/d/127257 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism