Sun News Network at its best in distortion, with Tarek Fatah, not necessarily known for soft views on Muslim extremism, trying to provide Sun host Brian Lilley with some needed context:
However, Lilley admits that he is no expert on Muslims or their faith, and asks his guest on the show, liberal activist/author Tarek Fatah, author of The Jew is Not My Enemy: Unveiling the Myths that Fuel Muslim Anti-Semitism, to explain the play to him, asking if it was similar to Catholics teaching their children about Jesus by having them conduct a play on his crucifixion.
Fatah replies that the scenarios are actually quite similar, as the play depicts the martyrdom of Muhammad’s grandson and brother.
“It’s a Shiite school, and it’s commemorating one of the great tragedies in Islamic history, which is the slaughter of the Prophet Muhammad’s family by the caliphate of the time,” says Fatah, who also notes that he himself watched these plays as a boy growing up in Pakistan.
“The children really go out to participate,” he explains. “Looking at it from a Canadian context, I was deeply disturbed because it means that the indoctrination of 3, 4-year-olds that has been going on for centuries – and which even I as a child in Pakistan thought it to be perfectly normal – how much damage it would do in desensitizing me or my friends or buddies who are now in their 60s as to what is ‘martyrdom’ and why would anyone wish death was a good thing.”
However, Fatah notes that he does not believe that the parents, or teachers, at the Islamic Jaffari Centre are “trying to make the kids into radicals.”
“After all, these are the victims of radicals,” he says. “Most Shiite Muslims today are being slaughtered by fellow Muslims. So that context has to be there. This was not some ISIS or al-Qaida or Taliban type of people.”
…..In the news segment, Fatah acknowledges that someone needs to talk to the leadership of the community – particularly the Islamic Jaffari Centre – and explain to them that “celebrating death, no matter what, is a bizarre experience. It desensitizes bloodshed among kids.”
Fatah is right. We need to start a dialogue so that leaders do not expose young children to such scenarios. But by that rationale, is it not equally detrimental for children to conduct a play on the Crucifixion of Christ?
If this centre is indeed spreading propaganda that compares Jews to Nazis, or are indeed teaching children to behead others with the intentions of becoming radical jihadists, then news agencies, condemn away. But to publish misleading headlines that will only add fire to the flame and ostracize Muslims from Western society – just as during this summer Jews and Israelis were ostracized ample times for supporting an “apartheid” state – is wrong.
Violence and discrimination against Muslims today, whether in the West or in Iraq and Syria, is real, just like such violence and anti-Semitism against Jews is real, and taking place right now. We cannot blame the entirety of Muslims for the threat of ISIS, just as we cannot blame the entirety of Jews for the murder of Mohammed Abu Khdeir.
Despite the percentages, despite the terrorists, despite Jihad, it is unfair to accuse an entire religion of people for what a group of individuals do. There may be a higher percentage of Muslims who support joining religion and state as opposed to other religions, and there may be even more Muslim terrorists than there are Jewish, Christian, Hindu, etc., but that doesn’t justify always assuming the worst of Muslim people,
That goes against the fundamental principles of what makes Canada and the United States a haven for open-mindedness and democracy. Worse, it goes against everything we are supposed to stand for.
