So much for a tolerant, harmonious Australia:
"More than half of Victorian schoolchildren view Muslims as terrorists, and two out of five agree that Muslims 'are unclean', a survey has revealed.
"Just over 50 per cent believe Muslims 'behave strangely', while 45 per cent say Australians do not have positive feelings about Muslims."
These results, while unsurprising, should cause alarm. The "war on terror" has resulted in the political and media elite demonising Islam like never before. The obsession with "terrorism", whether in Iraq, Israel, Palestine, France or Australia, gives the impression that Islamists are but a step away from taking power across the world. This widely believed conspiracy - including by some on this blog - breeds distrust and hatred. Not every action against Western interests is terrorism and not every Muslim hates the West. These comments should be self-evident.
Until Australia is serious about appreciating all cultures and dispenses with simply parroting lines about our multiculturalism bliss, racial harmony will be nothing but a cheap, Murdoch-led fantasy.
"More than half of Victorian schoolchildren view Muslims as terrorists, and two out of five agree that Muslims 'are unclean', a survey has revealed.
"Just over 50 per cent believe Muslims 'behave strangely', while 45 per cent say Australians do not have positive feelings about Muslims."
These results, while unsurprising, should cause alarm. The "war on terror" has resulted in the political and media elite demonising Islam like never before. The obsession with "terrorism", whether in Iraq, Israel, Palestine, France or Australia, gives the impression that Islamists are but a step away from taking power across the world. This widely believed conspiracy - including by some on this blog - breeds distrust and hatred. Not every action against Western interests is terrorism and not every Muslim hates the West. These comments should be self-evident.
Until Australia is serious about appreciating all cultures and dispenses with simply parroting lines about our multiculturalism bliss, racial harmony will be nothing but a cheap, Murdoch-led fantasy.
2 Comments:
Were they asked if they thought religious people in general "behave strangely"?
I mean, from the point of view of anyone but one of its adherents, any religion requires bizarre behaviour from its believers. Particularly behaviour which will make absolutely no sense to schoolchildren.
I'd expect that the kids to give the same answer to "do churchgoers behave strangely", "do buddhists behave strangely", "do orthodox Jews behave strangely" etc.
Oh, hishineness, you've marked yourself out now! A non-believer in the future of our great multicultural society! Burn the witch!
And if hishineness is wrong, and society does view Muslims and Islam differently and more negatively than other religions, why do you automatically assume that the reason is because the existing Australians are bigoted and intolerant - many racial groups have come before and prospered here, so the disaffected Muslims start to look more like the exception than the rule. Perhaps it has something to do with the insolvent culture of many of the newcomers?
Also, I strongly doubt many think Muslims are "one step away from taking power across the world". I suggest that those you talk about are more concerned with the illiberalism that many self-proclaimed moderate Muslims wish to foist on the rest of society.
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