An Analysis of the Norway Terror Attacks, the Influence of Islamophobia and How We Label Terrorists by Moein Khawaja
Two very important themes have emerged from the terrorist attack in Norway this past weekend, both of which require analysis and offer some interesting conclusions. One, some media have demonstrated a desire to jump to the conclusion that if an act of terrorism occurs, then there must be some Muslim involvement. Moreover, others have shown a clear double standard after learning the attack was committed by someone who is not a Muslim. Two, the attacker, Anders Behring Breivik, has revealed himself to be a right-wing, extremist Islamophobe. The question then emerges, why did he attack a government building and a youth camp, and not a mosque or Muslim institution?
The tension began to unwind once Katz contacted Moein Khawaja, executive director of the Philly chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "I called him out of the blue," said Katz, who is a vegan. "This would not have happened without him." Khawaja, who named the cow Casper for its white coat, said he appreciated the passion the animal lovers showed but that Madina's owner was only following the rules about the sale of livestock by a slaughterhouse.
CAIR-Philadelphia would like to congratulate youth of Voorhees Islamic Center for the successful completion of a MYLP workshop last Sunday. Participants were very engaged and asked many questions. One point of discussion was properly dealing with religious bullying and teasing. How should a student go about reporting being bullied because he or she is Muslim?
"In a general sense it's relief," said Moein Khawaja, executive director of CAIR. "He was a major threat, who tarnished and smeared our entire faith." Will bin Laden's death spell the end of America's Muslim paranoia? Muslims are hoping it will since it wasn't until after 9/11 that they began to be scrutinized and suspected in the U.S. amid growing hostility.