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| Predictable Irrationality of Hizmetophobia: Islamophobia in the Case of Hizmet Movement |
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| Understanding Hizmetophobia and the Hidden Forces that Shape it |
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Ali Halit Aslan, long-time Washington correspondent and columnist of Zaman, concludes in a recent column that, “Hizmetophobia, as a version of Islamophobia, is wrong. I call on all Hizmet critics in Turkey and abroad to refrain altogether from negatively stereotyping a widespread civic movement without presenting credible evidence other than conspiracy theories, gossip and personal fears. Instead, genuine efforts must be made to analyze this crucial movement with an open mind. That would provide valuable advice and constructive criticism for Hizmet as well as lessons for the larger Muslim Spring.”7
Ibrahim Kalin of Georgetown University explores the vicious cycle of these phobias as, "I refer to two consequences of Islamophobia that concern both Muslim-West relations and the larger debate about multiculturalism. First of all, Islamophobic acts prevent Muslims from fully participating in the political, social, cultural, and economic life of societies in which they live. While Muslim communities themselves share the blame for failing to claim their agency, Islamophobia feeds a constant sense of victimization and marginalization among second- and third-generation Muslims. It makes them feel foreign, distant, and unwelcome. It creates parallel societies both conceptually and physically, whereby the civic cohesion of different ethnic and religious communities within the society becomes increasingly difficult to achieve. Second, the constant presence of pressure and intimidation bars Muslims from self-criticism. Confronted with frontal attacks driven by racist and Islamophobic attitudes, Muslims of various religious and political bends, shy away from openly criticizing fellow Muslims, and end up defending some of the most extreme illogical ideas and actions, which would under normal circumstances be rejected as contrary to an Islamic ethos."
At the end the forces that shape our phobias against others are not that hidden. They stem from the same weaknesses each and every one of has, and had had since our grand ancestor Adam (PbuH). We all know the story of Abel and Cain. We still inherit the weaknesses our granduncle Cain had, that is, instead of basing our activities on well-defined pure intentions; we simplemindedly compare ourselves with others, and just try to vanquish the other. At the age of globalization, we don't have the luxury of such irrationality.
As John Esposito concludes in the aforementioned study:
Globalization and an increasingly multicultural and multi-religious West test the mettle of cherished democratic principles and values. Islamophobia, which is becoming a social cancer, must be recognized and be as unacceptable as anti-Semitism, a threat to the very fabric of democratic pluralistic way of life. The continued threat and response to global terrorism coupled with the resurgence of xenophobia and cultural racism threaten the fabric of liberal democracies in the West and their Muslim citizens in particular. A fine line must be drawn to distinguish between the faith of Islam and those who commit violence and terror in the name of Islam, between the majority of mainstream Muslims and the acts of a minority of Muslim extremists and terrorists. Blurring these distinctions risks the adoption of foreign and domestic policies that promote a clash rather than a co-existence of cultures. They play into the hands of preachers of hate (Muslim and non-Muslim, religious and political leaders, and political commentators) whose rhetoric incites and demonizes, alienates and marginalizes.
References
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reason
2. Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces that Shape Our Decisions, Dan Ariely, HarperCollins, 2008.
3. http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById.action?load=detay&link=136369
4. http://tr.fgulen.com/content/view/19353/11/
5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phobia
6. "The Challenge of Pluralism in the 21st Century: Islamophobia", John Esposito and Ibrahim Kalin, Oxford University Press, 2011.
7. http://www.todayszaman.com/columnist-244490-hizmetophobia-a-by-product-of-the-turkish-muslim-spring.html
