Ayan Hirsi Ali's Attack On Islam Is Unfair And Unjust. How Can An Educated Woman Not See The Beauty Of Islam?
How can an educated woman like yourself not see the beauty of Islam?!
Let me start off by saying I am not defending Islam just because I am a Muslim, but because people like Ayan Hirsi Ali are the catalyst to creating 'a clash of civilizations' as described by Samuel Huntington. Her one-sided and delusional perspective on Islam has led people to believe that Islam has deprived the lives of many, when in actual fact it has fulfilled them.
I have just finished reading her book 'NOMAD', which explicitly describes Ali's journey from Islam, to the Netherlands and then to her final destination, America. Tears, suffering and strength are the core themes explored within the personal memoir, in contextualization of Somali clan culture, a mis-interpreted Islam, freedom vs oppression and activism and empowerment. Despite her vicious remarks about Islam, I salute her stoic nature and her willingness to ensure women are emancipated from patriarchy and its branched out injustices.
I do sympathise with the injustices she faced at the expense of belonging to such a family who stifled Ali's freedom and choice. I can only imagine what its like being beaten up your grandmother to go milk the cows and to having a fatwa placed on you which ultimately means your life is at risk and so you have to go everywhere with bodyguards. Somewhat empathetic towards the ordeal she underwent, my heart feels for her upset but it also hurts due to Ali aiming to tarnish Islam and Muslims. It is important to note that her experiences are typical of many cultures and the ability to justify practices according to mis-interpreted principles of religion, be it Christianity or Islam. How then .. can an entire religion be blamed on the evil inflicted by people?
Ali starts the memoir off by vividly describing her family life, she brands her kinship as a 'problem family'. A specific reference is made to her father wanting her to marry an unknown man, a distant cousin of hers, which resulted in her fleeing to the Netherlands, where she was later granted asylum in 1992. Very often Muslim women are victim to forced marriages, not because this is what Islam allows or promotes, but because certain individuals have placed their ethnic culture above religion in importance and manipulated many with this tampered and interpreted version of Islam. Ali blames Islam for her misfortune throughout her memoir, how can you blame an entire religion for the horrible and inhuman actions of individuals towards you? The woman is a politician and author, who after migrating to the US, landed a role as a fellow for the American Enterprise Institute, the epitome of a researcher, how dare she vigorously slaughter Islam with biased reasoning and no rationality or proper evidence.
She says "We need to push the situation of Muslim women to the top of the agenda .. we need to challenge and bring down the tribal honor-and-shame culture as codified in the Islamic religion." Nowhere in the Islamic religion does it command parents to kill their daughters for dishonoring the family and nowhere does it justify unjust treatment for women who commit shameful acts. It is obvious that Ali hasn't looked at the wider picture, nor adjusted her glasses or her mentality, as she would've come across a beautiful Hadith (a collection of the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad PBUH), describing how a prostitute was forgiven by Allah and granted paradise, as a result of her showing compassion to a dog by taking it to a river and quenching its thirst. How then is there room for an honor-and-shame culture within Islam, when Allah's grace and mercy overpowers the actions of the sons of Adams who were made to sin, but repent also.
Honor and shame killings are popular in some Asian, African and Middle-Eastern countries, not to disregard that they take place on the periphery of these continents. Some cultures are so fixated in the monitoring and restriction of women, that the only way to preserve the family name or be able to show face in the community, is to kill those who have committed sinful acts. But yet again, here's some more evidence to show that Islam prohibits this and is against honor killings. In the Qur'an (Chapter 5 ; Verse 32), it clearly states, 'if anyone killed a person, it would be as if he killed the whole of mankind; and if anyone saved a life,it would be as if he saved the whole of mankind.' How on Earth can Ali and her fans even ponder about using Islam to justify honor killings?!
Ali goes on to observe "While Islam is rising across Europe, Christianity appears to be in decline in Muslim lands. Churches are falling empty, converted into apartments and offices, even nightclubs, or raves, while mosques are sprouting from the ground." WOW. For a woman who has left the religion of Islam and denounced herself as a Muslim and sprinkles so much hatred for Islam and Muslims, she has only just gone and contradicted her outrageous claims. Why is Islam rising across Europe, rather why is it rising across the globe? Because Islam is beautiful, an inclusive religion for all, regardless of creed or color, and because it is the truth which is capturing the hearts of the masses.
We are now living in a more Islamaphobic era than ever, with IS corrupting Syria and ruining the lives of innocent civilians, non-Muslims fail to understand that these doings do not mirror the teachings of Islam but the opposite. It pains me to feel the negative energy people feel towards Muslims, in an age of globalization, there is no excuse or room for ignorance!
Ali is unfair and unjust for her attack on Islam, this is highlighted evidently as she states "The churches have the resources, the authority, and the motivation to convert Muslim immigrants to a more modern way of life and modern beliefs. Teach hygiene, discipline, a work ethic, and also what you believe in." Aside from being outright rude and offensive, this remark is more so stupid and invalid. What does she mean Muslim need to be taught hygiene? It is compulsory for us to pray five times a day and this requires ablution five times a day in order to be clean and pure for prayer. I'll have you know we are more hygienic as followers of Islam, compared to other religions. What does she mean Muslims need to be taught discipline? We fast in Ramadan for 30 days, no food or water and we refrain from anger and ill speech. I'll have you know it isn't easy to abstain from worldly pleasures, but rather takes enormous amounts of mental strength. What does she mean Muslims need to be taught a work ethic? Muslims are encouraged to work in halal and just manners and provide for their families as well as give 2.5% of their wealth to charity. So how do we not have a work ethic?!
Message to Ali : Although your book was moving and interesting, it was also hypocritical, blasphemous, illogical and full of prejudice. You stand for women's rights, but you're putting down Muslim women for their beliefs and way of life with your Islamaphobic ideologies. I believe it was my duty to not just read your memoir and remain angry in my mind, but to try and dispel the myth of Islam being a bad religion, that you and so many people are trying to create.
Isn't it funny, despite all of that, Islam is still the fastest growing religion in the world?!
The book for those who would like to read it themselves, it is called 'Nomad : A Personal Journey Through The Clash Of Civilizations', written by Ayan Hirsi Ali and is published by Free Press.
Click on this link if you wish to purchase the book : http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nomad-Personal-Journey-Through-Civilizations/dp/1847398189
Let me start off by saying I am not defending Islam just because I am a Muslim, but because people like Ayan Hirsi Ali are the catalyst to creating 'a clash of civilizations' as described by Samuel Huntington. Her one-sided and delusional perspective on Islam has led people to believe that Islam has deprived the lives of many, when in actual fact it has fulfilled them.
I have just finished reading her book 'NOMAD', which explicitly describes Ali's journey from Islam, to the Netherlands and then to her final destination, America. Tears, suffering and strength are the core themes explored within the personal memoir, in contextualization of Somali clan culture, a mis-interpreted Islam, freedom vs oppression and activism and empowerment. Despite her vicious remarks about Islam, I salute her stoic nature and her willingness to ensure women are emancipated from patriarchy and its branched out injustices.
I do sympathise with the injustices she faced at the expense of belonging to such a family who stifled Ali's freedom and choice. I can only imagine what its like being beaten up your grandmother to go milk the cows and to having a fatwa placed on you which ultimately means your life is at risk and so you have to go everywhere with bodyguards. Somewhat empathetic towards the ordeal she underwent, my heart feels for her upset but it also hurts due to Ali aiming to tarnish Islam and Muslims. It is important to note that her experiences are typical of many cultures and the ability to justify practices according to mis-interpreted principles of religion, be it Christianity or Islam. How then .. can an entire religion be blamed on the evil inflicted by people?
Ali starts the memoir off by vividly describing her family life, she brands her kinship as a 'problem family'. A specific reference is made to her father wanting her to marry an unknown man, a distant cousin of hers, which resulted in her fleeing to the Netherlands, where she was later granted asylum in 1992. Very often Muslim women are victim to forced marriages, not because this is what Islam allows or promotes, but because certain individuals have placed their ethnic culture above religion in importance and manipulated many with this tampered and interpreted version of Islam. Ali blames Islam for her misfortune throughout her memoir, how can you blame an entire religion for the horrible and inhuman actions of individuals towards you? The woman is a politician and author, who after migrating to the US, landed a role as a fellow for the American Enterprise Institute, the epitome of a researcher, how dare she vigorously slaughter Islam with biased reasoning and no rationality or proper evidence.
She says "We need to push the situation of Muslim women to the top of the agenda .. we need to challenge and bring down the tribal honor-and-shame culture as codified in the Islamic religion." Nowhere in the Islamic religion does it command parents to kill their daughters for dishonoring the family and nowhere does it justify unjust treatment for women who commit shameful acts. It is obvious that Ali hasn't looked at the wider picture, nor adjusted her glasses or her mentality, as she would've come across a beautiful Hadith (a collection of the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad PBUH), describing how a prostitute was forgiven by Allah and granted paradise, as a result of her showing compassion to a dog by taking it to a river and quenching its thirst. How then is there room for an honor-and-shame culture within Islam, when Allah's grace and mercy overpowers the actions of the sons of Adams who were made to sin, but repent also.
Honor and shame killings are popular in some Asian, African and Middle-Eastern countries, not to disregard that they take place on the periphery of these continents. Some cultures are so fixated in the monitoring and restriction of women, that the only way to preserve the family name or be able to show face in the community, is to kill those who have committed sinful acts. But yet again, here's some more evidence to show that Islam prohibits this and is against honor killings. In the Qur'an (Chapter 5 ; Verse 32), it clearly states, 'if anyone killed a person, it would be as if he killed the whole of mankind; and if anyone saved a life,it would be as if he saved the whole of mankind.' How on Earth can Ali and her fans even ponder about using Islam to justify honor killings?!
Ali goes on to observe "While Islam is rising across Europe, Christianity appears to be in decline in Muslim lands. Churches are falling empty, converted into apartments and offices, even nightclubs, or raves, while mosques are sprouting from the ground." WOW. For a woman who has left the religion of Islam and denounced herself as a Muslim and sprinkles so much hatred for Islam and Muslims, she has only just gone and contradicted her outrageous claims. Why is Islam rising across Europe, rather why is it rising across the globe? Because Islam is beautiful, an inclusive religion for all, regardless of creed or color, and because it is the truth which is capturing the hearts of the masses.
We are now living in a more Islamaphobic era than ever, with IS corrupting Syria and ruining the lives of innocent civilians, non-Muslims fail to understand that these doings do not mirror the teachings of Islam but the opposite. It pains me to feel the negative energy people feel towards Muslims, in an age of globalization, there is no excuse or room for ignorance!
Ali is unfair and unjust for her attack on Islam, this is highlighted evidently as she states "The churches have the resources, the authority, and the motivation to convert Muslim immigrants to a more modern way of life and modern beliefs. Teach hygiene, discipline, a work ethic, and also what you believe in." Aside from being outright rude and offensive, this remark is more so stupid and invalid. What does she mean Muslim need to be taught hygiene? It is compulsory for us to pray five times a day and this requires ablution five times a day in order to be clean and pure for prayer. I'll have you know we are more hygienic as followers of Islam, compared to other religions. What does she mean Muslims need to be taught discipline? We fast in Ramadan for 30 days, no food or water and we refrain from anger and ill speech. I'll have you know it isn't easy to abstain from worldly pleasures, but rather takes enormous amounts of mental strength. What does she mean Muslims need to be taught a work ethic? Muslims are encouraged to work in halal and just manners and provide for their families as well as give 2.5% of their wealth to charity. So how do we not have a work ethic?!
Message to Ali : Although your book was moving and interesting, it was also hypocritical, blasphemous, illogical and full of prejudice. You stand for women's rights, but you're putting down Muslim women for their beliefs and way of life with your Islamaphobic ideologies. I believe it was my duty to not just read your memoir and remain angry in my mind, but to try and dispel the myth of Islam being a bad religion, that you and so many people are trying to create.
Isn't it funny, despite all of that, Islam is still the fastest growing religion in the world?!
The book for those who would like to read it themselves, it is called 'Nomad : A Personal Journey Through The Clash Of Civilizations', written by Ayan Hirsi Ali and is published by Free Press.
Click on this link if you wish to purchase the book : http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nomad-Personal-Journey-Through-Civilizations/dp/1847398189