In 2012, a group of UK-based Muslim organisations launched a campaign to raise awareness about Islamophobia and since then, November is called the Islamophobia awareness month.
 
Before delving into the discussion of Islamophobia, there are few distinctions that I would like to make in order to clarify my point and position.
 
One is the distinction between Islamism and Islam and the other is the distinction between Islam as a religion/ideology and Muslims as people who follow the religion.
 
Firstly, what I and many other critics focus on in our activism is the radical fundamentalist political version of Islam that has been weaponised to harm millions of people throughout history, not the spiritual faith-based aspect of Islam. As a person who was a practicing Muslim for half of her life, some of the cultural and spiritual aspects of Islam still resonate with me.
 
Secondly, I believe Muslims in the West like any other minorities living among a religious or an ethnic majority have faced huge discrimination and racism. For me, critiquing Islam as a religion or ideology has nothing to do with hatred toward Muslims and should not be misused by right-wing extremists or racists to justify their bigotry. I have many Muslim friends and relatives who do not support the radical Islamist views and whom I love and respect.
 
The term Islamophobia emerged in the early 20th century; however, it was in the 1990s that it gained popularity through attempts made by Muslim Brotherhood as a strategy to suppress criticism of Islam.
 
Now, three decades later, the term has become so prevalent in the world especially in the Western countries that no one even doubts its origin and aim.
 
As a born-Muslim woman, each time I come across the term Islamophobia, I feel helpless and furious; helpless as I see this label as a gag on free speech and furious as I believe my fear is not an irrational fear to be called a phobia.
 
There are countless legitimate reasons to be afraid of Islamism, and I say Islamism because it is usually Islamism, the radical Islamist views, that is criticised and questioned not the Muslims or Islam as a faith.
 
The vibe is so tense when it comes to criticising extreme and harmful aspects of Islam that, from a historical perspective, it is reminiscent of 15^th century Europe when speaking out against the dominance of Christianity seemed as an unforgivable sin often met with dire consequences.
 
For 1,400 years, the strict teachings of Christianity governed every aspect of life in Europe, and it took 15 centuries before, finally, Europeans freed themselves from the reign of the religion and returned religion to its righteous place, private sphere.
 
It’s an interesting coincidence that the Middle East and North Africa have been shaped by the Islamic doctrine for the past 1,400 years, influencing politics, economics, marriage, and culture.
 
While some may view the convergence of these timelines as mere coincidence, the parallels are undeniable. Both Christianity in Europe and Islam in the Middle East have wielded significant power and influence over society, dictating the course of people’s lives in minute detail for 15 centuries.
 
For those who have lived under Islamic Sharia law, the label Islamophobia is unjust.
 
We’ve endured the weight of Islamic rule and its many injustices.
Demanding us to be silent and not to share our experiences and thoughts even in the secular Western contexts is ruthless.
 
Expecting us to be cautious in using words to describe our experiences so that we do not offend lovers of the religion while whatever happened to us were justified under the name of the very same religion is heartless.
 
Being a practicing Muslim for most of our lives and exposed to the darkest face of the religion, and then our concerns and warnings being labeled a phobia is way beyond insulting. It is intentional targeting of people undermining their experiences and humanity.
 
 Muslims must learn to truly respect others’ beliefs and freedoms. Respect and tolerance go both ways. We cannot demand respect for our religion while condemning people for their beliefs, sexual orientations, dietary choices, or religious practices. It is hypocritical to expect special treatment for Islam when other religions are routinely criticised and satirised.
 
Why should anyone expect Islam to be an exception?
Freedom of religion is a human right, but so are freedom from religion and freedom of speech. We cannot expect the world to sacrifice these rights just to protect our feelings. Personal beliefs and emotions do not belong in this discussion.
No writer has been a target of assassination for writing a fiction about a religion except those who have dared to write about Islam.
 
No cartoonist has been murdered for drawing pictures of prophets except the one who depicted Islam’s prophet.
 
No teachers have been killed by their students’ parents for showing a cartoon about a religion to their students except those who did so with a cartoon about Islam.
 
No people have been executed for leaving/changing/insulting religions except the ex-Muslims, apostates, who lived in a number of Islamic societies. Thousands of dissident political prisoners were executed in summer of 1988 in Iran for confirming they were not a believer in Islam anymore.
 
No religion has marked its critics with a phobia label except Islam.
 
 
Given the controversial origin of the term Islamophobia, its dehumanising nature, and the backlash it creates, it might be more rational and more helpful to our Muslim community to replace the term Islamophobia with Anti-Muslim Hate that could directly addresses injustices targeted at Muslims based on their religion.