THE AUSTRALIAN: 2011—How I lost faith in multiculturalism Discussing these issues is very difficult. It goes without saying that most Muslims in Australia are perfectly fine, law-abiding citizens. The difficulty with discussing Muslim immigration problems is that you dont want to make people feel uncomfortable because of their religion. Muslims are not only individuals, wholly different from each other, but national Islamic cultures are very different from each other. The Saudi culture is different from the Turkish culture, which is different from the Afghan culture. So generalisations are dangerous. Then there is the ever present risk of being labelled a racist. No matter how calmly the discussion is conducted, that is a big danger. But the only people who dont think there is a problem with Islam are those who live on some other planet. The reputation of Islam in the West is not poor because of prejudiced Western Islamophobia, still less because Western governments conduct some kind of anti-Islamic propaganda. Instead, it is the behaviour of people claiming the justification of Islam for their actions that affects the reputation of Islam... Does Islam itself have a role in these problems? The answer is complex and nuanced but it must be a qualified, and deeply reluctant, yes. Many Australian Islamic institutions receive funding from Saudi Arabia, but I know from my work in Southeast Asia and Europe that the Saudis almost always fund an extremist interpretation of Islam. To have concerns about these matters is not racism or xenophobia. It is reasonable. READ MORE (excellent comprehensive article): theaustralian.au/national-affairs/how-i-lost-faith-in-multiculturalism/story-fn59niix-1226031793805
Posted on: Sat, 19 Jul 2014 20:41:26 +0000
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