Global Focus

Forwarding a New Muslim Discourse

Shadaab Rahemtulla , Canada, Thursday 6 December 2007

It has become all too common to hear of Muslims in a gathering – be it at school, someone’s house, the mosque, or the workplace - criticizing another Muslim organization, event, or individual. It has become all too typical to hear of Muslims calling Muslims as a whole cowardly, greedy, and lazy. Speaking in such condescending and self-lamenting terms has become a norm within our conversations. In fact, I would argue that such self-criticism is so pervasive within the greater Islamic community that it has become a discourse. A compelling example of such a discourse manifesting itself is the classic scenario that is brought up in countless Muslim newspapers, magazines, and khutbahs (Friday prayer lectures) of how Muslims and “Islamic civilization” were so great in some long-lost "classical" era, such as the Abbasid or Ottoman period, and have now lost their former glory due to moving away from the tenants of Islam. Hence, current Muslim societies are portrayed as being in “decay”, past their prime, stagnant, and thus lacking any real agency.

We have internalized our backwardness.

Although such criticism and historical interpretations are true to a degree, it is important that self-criticism be constructive and not condescending. Hence, just as we should be advocating for positive change and increased performance on the part of the Muslim community, we should also be acknowledging the achievements of our community by supporting new initiatives. In other words, we need to move forward a new Muslim discourse – one that not only critiques, but is also encouraging, solution-oriented, and hence forward-looking.

I am not saying that we should not firmly speak out against cultural-based norms and communal structures that serve to perpetuate our backwardness, such as the silent marginalization of our sisters, the ethnic polarization and hierarchy within our community, and the isolationism that is prevalent with regards to the socio-political sphere. Rather, my argument is that we need to avoid contributing to a self-defeating discourse in which so-called “action” becomes nothing more than criticizing and writing off the efforts of other Muslims while the very people who are doing the complaining are sitting at home doing next to nothing.

As someone who is arguing for a shift towards a new Muslim discourse, therefore, it is necessary to provide an example of constructive criticism that is not only solution-oriented, but also coupled with acknowledgment, support, and encouragement. For this, I turn to BCMuslims.com.

BCMuslims.com is an initiative that has provided an invaluable service to the Muslim community within our province. This website has done an incredible job of increasing the cohesion within our community by not only posting upcoming events and programs on a timely basis for free, but also by being inclusive and not holding an aggressively sectarian stance. Moreover, this website is an excellent orientation program for anyone who has just arrived in Canada or BC, as it provides a “one-stop source as to what organizations and services are available to them”. The website not only hosts a calendar of upcoming events, but also provides information on Muslim schools, Jumah salah locations, Muslim organizations, masjids, and halaqas (discussion circles) across the Lower Mainland. Moreover, the webmaster has maintained a holistic approach towards event postings – BCMuslims.com not only posts religious programs, but also political and academic initiatives as well. Hence, the scope of the project is comprehensive and well-rounded.

It is unfortunate that such a large number of Muslims are not even aware of this rather forward-looking and free resource. Such lack of awareness, however, could be addressed effectively by a one-month long publicity campaign. This could include designing a number of uniform BCMuslim.com posters and displaying them in mosques across the Lower Mainland, as well as setting up a network of volunteers who could leaflet BCMuslim.com flyers after Jumah prayers. Moreover, Muslim newspapers could run ads on BCMuslims.com and jpeg posters could be circulated on electronic mailing lists. Muslim Students’ Associations (MSA’s) at SFU and UBC, as well as mosque-based youth groups, would be an excellent resource pool for recruiting volunteers for such a publicity campaign. The most appropriate time to approach either MSA would be just before September when they will be holding their planning sessions for events in the following semester. The more people that know about BCMuslims.com, the more effective this excellent initiative and invaluable resource will be.

This is the type of discourse that we need to move forward; criticism must be accompanied with acknowledgement and encouragement.


* Shadaab H. Rahemtulla is a graduate student in history at Simon Fraser University (Burnaby, British Columbia). Email Shadaab with your thoughts and comments at srahemtu@sfu.ca