“Islamophobia” has certainly swept the globe due to the recent attacks on Paris, in the United States and in other areas of the world, which has resulted in those who genuinely fear the religion of Islam as a whole. While it is legally an acceptable practice to challenge and criticize an ideology because it is the foundation of a free speech, the freedom to practice ones religion and the freedom to practice no religion is invaluable in a free society.

Yet, sometimes these two foundational freedoms don’t mix well at all. When criticizing an ideology, it is important to maintain a certain level of respect for its followers, especially when it comes to a more interpretive form of ideology such as religion. Sadly when it comes to Islam, a religion that has been under the microscope for years, many refuse to have an consideration at all.

It’s actually quite ironic when the Christian Right accuses Islam of being an inherently violent religion. While I would tend to agree that the negative, violent aspects of the Koran are grounds for serious criticism, the bible is by no means any better. The Old Testament is one of the most violent, inhuman, genocidal, and xenophobic pieces of literature ever written. The Koran itself contains 109 verses that mention violence. While this violence is graphic and disturbing, it is nothing compared to what the bible promotes. The truth is there is no religion of peace, there are only people who believe in making peace a reality.

Almost all religions contain within themselves the ideology of totalitarian belief – one must follow the same god as I do or else.Yet, the average individual practicing his/her religion does not follow this violent sentiment. The idea that all Muslims are terrorist is misinformed and unintelligent. This is where a distinction needs to be drawn. The term Islam refers to the actual religion and ideology of Islam, the term Muslims is refers to the individuals who follow the Muslim faith.

In my opinion, it is okay, to be critical of Islam but it is in no way acceptable to be “Muslimophobic.”

What I mean by this is that it is perfectly acceptable to criticize Islam, just as it is perfectly acceptable to criticize all religion. The ideology that the Koran represents is something that can be interpreted as violent. One has a moral responsibility to speak out against this sort of fundamental violence – in every ideology, not just Islam. To claim that Islam is a religion of peace is debatable at best, yet to label all Muslims under the guise of violent extremist is not only misguided, but equally as dangerous as Islamic violence itself.

Instances of religious violence are not unique to Islam. Avoiding the low hanging fruit of Christian history, almost all religions have violent extremist. It is those violent ideologies that should be subjected to ridicule. However, the vast majority of all religious people do not have this extremist sentiment. That is true throughout all religions.

Christianity itself is no better than Islam. The violence that the ideology of Christianity has caused far out weights Islamic terrorism. Furthermore, political motivations must be taken into consideration as well. One cannot immediately dismiss acts of violence as the result of religious brainwashing when they stem from a destabilized, tornadic part of the world.

Comments like those made by Donald Trump on the so called “Muslim problem in the US” only exemplify the importance of separating a person from an ideology. This sort of Nazi-like generalization is why an honest conversation on the tenets of Islam and its effect on society cannot be had.

One the other hand, no religion should believe itself immune to criticism in any form. This is where Islam falls drastically short. There have been multiple murders and attacks on media outlets and writers who call out the fundamentals of Islam for what they are. This includes the more recent attacks on Charlie Hebdo. Yet, one must keep in mind that those attacks are caused by extremist as well, not the average Muslim.

Sources

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/01/14/are-all-terrorists-muslims-it-s-not-even-close.html

http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/quran/023-violence.htm

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124494788

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-30708237

http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/19/politics/donald-trump-barack-obama-threat-to-country/