Posted on: 27 November 2020
Aslam-u-Alaikum my name is Shakeel
Aslam-u-Alaikum my name is Shakeel (many of you will know me as Shak) and I would normally start any such piece with ‘hello my name is…’. Hello my name is a seen as a global movement that espouses compassion. However for over 1400 years Muslims have used the greeting I opened this piece with to say ‘peace be upon you’.
The very core of our religion is about being the best human possible and purity is half of our faith. In these times of frequent hand washing, I hear some Muslims joke about how often they have to wash their hands anyway for religious purposes. But that purity isn’t just about keeping yourself clean from a hygienic perspective, but also purity of thoughts and purity in how you deal with others.
Keeping things topical, earlier this year a saying from the Prophet Mohammed went viral and has been seen on billboards globally. “When you hear that [a plague] is in a land, do not go to it and if it occurs in a land that you are already in, then do not leave it, fleeing from it.” Stay at home, travel restrictions…
While anyone who knows me will say I’m not a practicing Muslim my value base of being honest (maybe sometimes too honest), treating people fairly (many have probably caught me on a bad day – you’re not the only one if that helps!) and social justice come from my religion and my parents. For those who may experience me putting in a challenge in a meeting or any other for a, I hope you know that I do this from a position of feeling a sense of responsibility. That responsibility is to ensure that I bring the voice of others to the meeting. My starting point will always be how would this affect my parents, family and friends, what would they think if I was complicit and stayed silent because that was the easier option and what does my religion tell me to do.
I don’t want this piece to be purely about the Islamophobia I witness on an almost daily basis, my fellow Muslims who have shared their personal reflections during Islamophobia Awareness Month have covered this eloquently and with really powerful personal stories. In this era of fake news, conspiracy theories and mind-boggling myths, my appeal is for you to look beyond the media headlines and the keyboard warriors on social media to really understand what it means to be a Muslim and how it feels like to be consistently scrutinised. That feeling that you can’t bring your whole self to work or any other public space and how you must monitor what you say and how you say it just in case you are misconstrued or misrepresented. The quote that accompanies this piece (please note I’m not able to credit a source), perfectly sums up what it is like for many Muslims.
The following three paragraphs come from something I have written previously but seem very topical right now as the Government looks at ways to help us celebrate Christmas with our families. Oh and by the way, no I’m not offended by any Christmas activities in fact it is one of my favourite times of the year and I cringe when I’m asked should we say ‘happy holidays’ or ‘season’s greetings’.
As a Muslim the environment we live and work in appears to lurch ominously to the right and, as this Muslim Council of Britain report shows, we need to understand the impact of the current narrative that is associated with Muslims and Islam. With around two million Muslims in the UK, contributing £31 billion to the UK economy and boasting spending power of £21 billion, we have a powerful and upwardly mobile consumer base. Work in charity PR? The Muslim community donates over £500 million to causes around the world, including the UK. In the month of Ramadan alone, Muslims last year (2019) gave an average of £38 per second.
Not only do we see the negative perceptions being perpetuated by the media, as a Muslim I note the increasingly hate-filled language being directed towards those of the Muslim faith on a daily basis on social media. Some readers may recall that the Government announced local coronavirus lockdowns two hours before Eid was about to be celebrated.
Just imagine two hours before Christmas, being told you had to cancel your plans, turn your car around and instead of meeting your family and hugging them after months apart it was back to video calling. Rather than people recognising the significant emotional impact this was going to have on those who had to change their plans at the very last minute, Muslims were subjected to vile abuse online.
I’d like to thank you for taking time to read this piece and I hope that together we can work towards a mutual understanding in these challenging times. As we head towards Christmas, I really hope we have a season of goodwill and I end as I started by wishing peace upon you.
Shak