A few weeks ago, in a park near the Eiffel Tower, two Muslim women were stabbed in an apparent racial incident in front of their children. Reports state that the two attackers had called the Muslim women slurs such as “dirty Arabs”, alongside attempts to remove their hijabs.
This occurred during a time of heightened tensions in France, due to the killing of teacher Samuel Paty by a Muslim for portraying controversial caricatures depicting the Muslim Prophet Mohammed. The murder was highly publicised by the French media and labelled an “Islamist terrorist attack”. However, when the two Muslim women were stabbed, authorities initially refused to release information, and even after they did, the media coverage remained minimal.
Why is it that when Muslims are the ones being targeted nobody seems to care? Why are Muslims constantly held to a double standard?
This blatant Islamophobia is encouraged by France’s President Macron, who has previously made comments about attempting to “reform” Islam, claiming that it is a “religion in crisis”. Following the Paty incident, although it was made known that we Muslims take extreme offence to the caricatures portrayed, Macron stated that “France will not give up religious caricatures”.
For many Muslim citizens and over a dozen countries, this was the final push encouraging them to boycott French products and finally take a stand.
Written by Lujain B
Artwork by Zara Masood
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