Is it time to stand up for what's right, and for Canada?
Dear Readers,
Today's article, presented verbatim is entitled 'Moderate Muslims show courage speaking out against extremists', by Peter Worthington of the Toronto Sun, based upon a book report. My response is below with room for your comment below that, unless you prefer to send an email but please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack others personally, and keep your language decent.
Farzana Hassan's latest book, Unveiled.
It's somewhat misleading to
compare Farzana Hassan to Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the extraordinary woman from
Somalia who fled to escape an arranged marriage to a Toronto man, and
became an MP in Holland and a powerful voice against Islam's treatment
of women. Hirsi Ali sought refuge in the U.S. as Islamists vowed to assassinate
her, as they killed a Dutch movie producer who filmed her story.
Courage, integrity and insight distinguish Hirsi Ali.
Those same traits could be used to describe Hassan, who writes a
column in the Toronto Sun on themes similar to those Hirsi Ali explores.Just as Hirsi Ali wrote books about her Muslim background (Nomad and
Infidel), so Hassan has written about her background and concerns
involving Islam (Prophesy and the Fundamentalist Quest and her latest
book, Unveiled). Unveiled is important because much of it deals with Canada and
Toronto -- especially the closing chapters. Hassan is more restrained
than Hirsi Ali, and seeks to reconcile differences between Muslim
newcomers and other Canadians. But she, like Hirsi Ali, is repelled by
the oppression of women by the Islamic faith.
And even moreso by Muslim women who think Shariah law is enlightening. A practising Muslim who grew up in Pakistan, she says, "Perhaps 9/11
was the starting point in my public career as a reformist Muslim." She was appalled at the jubilation in Pakistan at 9/11, that someone
had "stood up to America, the big bully and 'Great Satan.'"
Palestinians, too, danced in the streets. Even so, she recalled Jewish women coming to the mosque in Mansfield,
Mass., to sympathize with Muslims who were experiencing a backlash of
New England opinion. Even U.S. President George W. Bush went on TV to
say Islam was "a religion of peace" -- a debatable issue, but a view
devoid of knee-jerk Islamophobia. Still, Hassan questioned Islam's values, and has been labelled an
apostate. She questions Islamic fanaticism, as does her colleague
(mentor?) in Toronto, Tarek Fatah, president of the Muslim Canadian
Council (MCC), who opposes Islamists and jihadists. Canadians are encouraged to view the Canadian Islamic Congress (CIC)
as a middle-road representative for Islam. Yet, she notes its positions
are "pro-Palestinian, pro-Shariah law, pro-orthodoxy." One wonders if
CIC plays a double-game? Most Muslim organizations (including CAIR-Can) have ties to the
Muslim Brotherhood now in ascendency in the Middle East. Only MCC
challenges the Brotherhood. That makes MCC -- and Fatah and Hassan
potential targets. In Canada, Islamists uphold Shariah and "insulate their children from
Western influence "¦ demand outrageous faith accommodations in public
schools, engage in surreptitious polygamous relations," perform genital
mutilation on girls, indulge in "honour killings" for infractions as
minor as girls refusing to wear veils. Hassan recalls Toronto's Valley Park Middle School turning its
cafeteria into a prayer hall on Fridays, and girls barred from attending
swimming or gym classes at other schools unless they wore long clothes
that fully covered their bodies. As for Muslim prayer rooms in schools, Farzana quotes Liberal MPP
Kathleen Wynne (a leading contender to be Ontario's next premier):
"We've had religious accommodation in our schools for many years. We are
simply providing space. It's a practice that's making us stronger." Maybe that's a signal that more school cafeterias will become Friday prayer rooms if Wynne wins the premiership. Muslim girls are the big losers -- confined to the back of classes
and all that. Even Catholic secondary schools in London and Kitchener
now provide Muslim prayer halls. Freedom of speech and tolerance are being exploited by Islamists to
impose restrictions and dogma -- with even moderate Muslims fearful of
speaking out. Women are rendered invisible and anonymous by the burka, and by
"upholding the uncontested guardianship of the husband over the wife."
Plus other aspects. These are some of what Hassan, Fatah and the MCC oppose. And that makes them apostates and subject to threats -- and requires
both courage and conviction to stand up for what's right, and for
Canada.
Genghis Khan
my response....
According to Uzaer Ahmed of Toronto, Genghis Khan was one of the most brutal rulers in history. One of the
keys to his great conquests was his use of horses in the battle field.
But would you say that the Mongolian horses were evil, or that the way
they were used was evil? It would be preposterous to say the horses were
evil. Well, crazy as it sounds, that’s what today’s media is doing. Even though it’s clear that certain terrorists are using Islam as a
vehicle to achieve their own evil desires, the media never fails to link
them to Islam with Orwellian propagandist terms such as “Islamist
Toronto
Uzaer, who wrote this for the National Post is a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, which has been spreading
the message of love and peace for over a century and finds it extremely
disturbing when the media refers to any terrorists as “Islamic". Islam is not evil, the way it is being used by these terrorists is evil.
If Anders Breivik were Muslim, the headlines would’ve been scattered
with references to Islam, yet not if he were of any other religion. We
need to examine this troubling truth.
Peter Worthington has gone on record since as saying that Premier-elect 'Wynne tends to see things differently. For example, only McGuinty’s veto
when she was education minister prevented her from authorizing a
version of Shariah law in Ontario to the horror of many Muslims who
came to Canada to escape Shariah'.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Prime Minister Stephen Harper gets it! Will Premier-elect Kathleen Wynne get it, too? Only time will tell!
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