A couple of weeks ago I organised an event for Islam Awareness Week. A member of the local Islamic Society came and gave a presentation on the basics, addressed some of the “hot topics” and invited questions. About 35 people came to the event which pleased me- we're talking about a very...un-diverse town known for small town mentalities and unfriendliness to strangers.
Anyway..this guy volunteered to come and give this talk. He was the only non-white person in the room, the only Muslim, out numbered 36 (including me) to 1. His presentation was interesting and entertaining, yet... when it came to asking questions or making comments the people there reacted with a defensiveness that shocked and embarrassed me. People twisted his words and mis-understood very simple concepts. It felt to me that most people there had come with pre-defined ideas about Islam and were twisting his words to fit their prejudices. The discussion quickly turned to Muslim women and how oppressive it must be to have to wear the headscarf. Personally, I think it says more about our own attitudes towards women that when we talk about their oppression we focus on what they're wearing...but it also illustrated our lack of empathy towards, or willingness to even listen to those from different cultures or faiths. Most people had come to that talk with their minds made up that all Muslim women are all oppressed...
It kinda depressed me...luckily the speaker seemed un-fazed and we're planning our next event sometime in the new year...inshallah...
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