Asking Muslims to Speak Out against Terrorism

The consensus on op-ed pages these days seems to be: “Hey guys, you’re making us nervous.”

In the wake of the terror arrests in Ontario last week, columnists are reviving a question that’s been debated in the media since the 9/11 attacks. Should Muslims be expected to denounce terrorism whenever incidents of Islamist violence occur?

The answer for Tarek Fatah and Salma Siddiqui of the Muslim Canadian Congress is yes. Fatah and Siddiqui, who also famously oppose the Ground Zero mosque, write in the Ottawa Citizen that after the arrests they “had no hesitation in condemning the rising tide of jihadi radicalism that is sweeping like a contagious disease among Muslim youth.” Extremism is alive and well in Canada according to the pair, who write that while “parents pack public meetings with pronouncements that ‘Islam is a religion of peace,’ their sons and daughters are being taught something else.” Until the wider Muslim community accepts this fact “their chant that ‘Islam means peace’ will fall on deaf ears.”

Lorne Gunter at the National Post says he has “some sympathy for ordinary Muslims.” But the problem is one of “sheer volume” because “there have been close to 16,000 terrorist attacks carried out in the name of Islam since 9/11.” He argues “Muslims are being singled out not because they are Muslims, not because there was pre-existing prejudice against Islam, but because there are so many Muslims … who pose a threat to our safety and culture.” Depending on your point of view, this statement will leave you either scared of Muslim extremists, or scared of Lorne Gunter.

Muslims seem to be responding to the call though, and Canadian Islamic leaders, both individually and in groups, have recently released statements denouncing violence. But an article by Allan Levine in last week’s Globe and Mail makes the argument that, aside from any moral implications, forming opinions on all Muslims based on a small fraction of their population is simply “a classic leap in logic.” Some “have indeed embraced jihadism. But any Grade 11 student could argue that it is intellectually dishonest to make sweeping statements against all Muslims” or expect them to answer for the crimes of others.