The Backlash Against The Backlash Against Muslims

I’ve been noticing lately a lot of articles in the western media that are trying to restore sense about Muslims and Islam. The articles are coming in reaction to the ascendancy of anti Muslim sentiments in the US (Tea Party) and in Europe (Extreme right).

There are two good articles in The Economist on Sharia that I recommend you read:

[Sharia] can refer to many things, ranging from a pious way of life to a system of corporal and capital punishment, laid down in Islamic law but practised in only a few places. It can also refer to the ideas underpinning Islamic finance (which eschews interest) — and, most significantly for public policy, to a form of family law.

There’s also a good article in Newsweek about the difference between “Islamic” and “Islamist” and how it is wrong to confuse the two:

The confusion over Islam has real consequences. When was the last time you read a piece by a leftist intellectual criticizing how the AKP is trampling media freedoms in Turkey? Or the Muslim Brotherhood’s refusal to recognize equal rights for women and Christians in Egypt? By defending Islamism, liberals are strengthening one of the biggest threats facing Muslims and Western liberalism alike. Meanwhile, by targeting the Muslim faith, the right is alienating potential allies in the Muslim community: conservative Muslims who want to practice their faith and despise Al Qaeda’s vision.

If you have friends who are confused with and perhaps slightly afraid of Muslims but who sincerely want to understand more, I recommend you pass along these articles to them.