The Parkfield school controversy was all about homophobia

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The Parkfield school controversy was all about homophobia

By Saima Baig   The only reason to tell children that having two mommies or two daddies in a family is ‘not appropriate’ is if you are a homophobe. Talking about safe and healthy relationships, without considering the gender of the parents, is not something that should ever be considered unsuitable.   However, this is exactly what happened in Birmingham, UK, when Parkfield Community School introduced the No Outsiders programme, the brainchild of its assistant head Teacher Andrew Moffat.  Issues addressed include gender and gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, disability…

British authorities are not equipped to deal with jihadis returning from ISIS

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British authorities are not equipped to deal with jihadis returning from ISIS

By Khadija Khan   In 2004 the British government secured the release of Jamal Udeen al-Harith from Guantanamo Bay, after strenuous diplomacy with the Americans who had captured him in Pakistan, where he was believed to be an al-Qaeda operative. Al-Harith carried out a suicide bombing in Iraq in 2017 after joining ISIS. He was born Ronald Fiddler and raised in Manchester, UK, and was reportedly radicalised in the local mosque. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s Labour government reportedly lobbied “intensely” for his release from Guantanamo Bay and he was given £1…

Shamima Begum was a minor when she travelled to Syria but she must face the consequences of her actions

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Shamima Begum was a minor when she travelled to Syria but she must face the consequences of her actions

By Tehmina Kazi   Of all the reprehensible things said by jihadi bride Shamima Begum in her notorious Times interview, what sticks out the most is her callous indifference to seeing “severed heads in bins” in ISIS territory, “because they were enemies of Islam.” In a follow-up interview with Sky News, she admitted that she knew of this aspect of ISIS’ practice even before she left for Syria in 2015 as a 15-year-old, alongside her school friends Amira Abase and Kadiza Sultana.  In her own words on beheading, “from what…

Shamima Begum, the ‘Jihadi Bride’ and the moral dilemma we face

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Shamima Begum, the ‘Jihadi Bride’ and the moral dilemma we face

By Saima Baig There are an estimated 400 British nationals (there could be more), who left for Syria to join the Islamic State caliphate. Some have died, some are in refugee camps and there is no information about the rest. Here is the dilemma. What do we do when some of them want to come back to the UK? The Islamic State are some of the most barbaric psychopaths to exist on this planet, who have committed extremely heinous crimes since they launched their “caliphate” in 2014. All those who…

The myth of the hijabi woman’s agency

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The myth of the hijabi woman’s agency

By Saima Baig   Let’s clear one thing out from the beginning. This blog is not about banning women from wearing the veil. Freedom of religion necessitates that people are able to practice their religion the way they are required to. People are free to make religious decisions, even if those decisions are stupid, so long as they are personal and not harmful to others. This blog is also not about the false equivalence between veiled women and the so-called “scantily-clad” women. There is no equivalence. Yes, women should dress whichever…

The case of Rahaf Mohammed is a wake-up call for us all

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The case of Rahaf Mohammed is a wake-up call for us all

By Aliyah Saleem   Saudi teenager Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun showed tremendous courage as she barricaded herself into a hotel room in Bangkok, Thailand, to prevent being sent back to Saudi Arabia, where she could have faced prison and death for renouncing Islam. Her case demonstrated the power of social media as people such as the journalist Mona Eltahawy joined in to gather as much attention as possible for her. Rahaf has now been provided asylum by Canada where can she build a life for herself on her own terms. We…

The case of Syrian refugee Jamal and bullying in British schools

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The case of Syrian refugee Jamal and bullying in British schools

By Khadija Khan A bitter reality: British children feel unsafe in their schools. They become targets of bullying in one way or another. The education system lacks the teeth to rescue these children from the suffering they face, despite knowing the negative and, often, lifelong impact on them. A recent incident that has caught everyone’s attention is one that took place in Almondbury Community School in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, where a teenage boy’s despicable demonstration of power over a vulnerable, Syrian boy soon drew media attention and caused uproar amongst…

Asia Bibi is trying to escape the bloodlust of the same blasphemy law that European courts are endorsing

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Asia Bibi is trying to escape the bloodlust of the same blasphemy law that European courts are endorsing

By Kunwar Khuldune Shahid   On October 31, Asia Bibi, a Christian woman falsely accused of blasphemy, was acquitted by Pakistan’s Supreme Court. The nine-year horrific jail sentence that she undeservedly served was rooted in a glass of water that she was deemed ‘impure’ to touch, while the death row she escaped was founded on Pakistan’s blasphemy law, which deem that insults to Islam and Islam alone are a crime worthy of Constitutionally sanctioned death. While Pakistan’s apex court has established that Bibi did not utter any insulting remarks for…

Female Muslim politicians need to be champions for Muslim women not patriarchal organisations

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Female Muslim politicians need to be champions for Muslim women not patriarchal organisations

By Khadija Khan   The victory of the first two American-Muslim women in the US midterm elections — Michigan’s Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota — is unprecedented. Many people are celebrating their success as a victory against President Donald Trump’s anti-Muslim policies and the empowerment of hijab-wearing Muslim women in Western societies. Only a few seem concerned with the status of ordinary Muslim women, who are often still treated as second-class citizens int heir own communities. Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is illegal in the United States but many…

In the Name of Religion

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In the Name of Religion

By Ammara Mustafa Allahu Akbar they chant in a frenzy, In vain our men are slain in the name of religion Take off your rose tinted spectacles Dare to ponder and look around yourself. You – my dear, average Pakistani are not free,   Chaos is the disruptive violin playing in the air, Scare tactics are on the rise once again, Men in disguised robes have hijacked our country, Will the military intervene, will this noise end? Will the foundations of Islam be shaken so easily, Will humanity and justice…