Stray thoughts

Why the left defends Islam

In Birmingham UK the city where I live there has been a recent story regarding sex education causing great controversy. A series of rather nasty protests have been established outside the gates of a number of schools protesting the new "no outsiders" program. Why? Because the program dares to acknowledge as normal and ordinary the existence of same sex relationships and parents and transgender people. A program no more pornographic than any parents explanation of there own relationships with one another.    

Now this kind of vile bigotry wrapped in religious doctrine would normally be attacked head on by the forces of the left of which I happily consider myself a member. Now while there has been some leftist condemnation of this type of clerical bullying there seems to me to have been a great deal of restraint shown far beyond what this thugs deserve. However as the parents have been Muslim there seems to me to be a reluctant to tackle this problem head on a directly. Every statement must be wrapped in the careful "not all Muslims" bubble that frankly insults my intelligence. Almost everyone knows fully that these protesters (nor anyone else for that matter) represents all 1.3 billion Muslims in the world. It sound to me an insult to our collective intelligence that these people seem to think we are so ready to jump to such a conclusion if not for there careful warning.    

Why then does this alliance exist why then do leftists find themselves acting in defence of one of the most reactionary ideologies in the world. Why for that matter do the far right not make common cause with there fellow homophobes, misogynists and religious fanatics. Leaving aside the odd examples such as the Atomwaffen a nihilistic neo-nazi terrorist group which has aligned itself with the Islamic State. As well as North Korea for that matter that particular group seems to be the living embodiment of the horseshoe theory but I digress.

Now to be fair to those on the left its not entirely true to say that the entire left has fallen in love with Islamism. The left has generally been good in criticising our relationship with authoritarian theocracies such as Saudi Arabia. Furthermore the left has been keen to identify the risks of intervention in countries with large Islamic fundamentalist populations such as Iraq. The new atheist tradition has consistently critiqued Islam although many have slid into hawkishness and obsessive anti Islamism looking at you Christopher Hitchens.  

Right wing lunatics often concoct a particularly deranged theory that somehow leftist and Islamist have the same aim. As if vigorous fighting liberation of gender, sexuality and religion are somehow the same thing as wanting a theocratic dictatorship. CF Jordan Peterson's comments that feminists who act as Islam apologists have a "subconscious desire for brutal male domination." No, those on the left do not secretly wish to live under an theocratic dictatorship that would probably kill most of us. Why then if these two groups Islamic fundamentalists and leftists have such different aims and detest each others worlds why are so many on the left unconformable with criticism of Islam.   

One reason for the apolegistics is the idea of the jihadist as the anti imperialist compelled to pick up a gun in response to western aggression. It is rightfully true that those on the left have been sternly opposed to our interference in the middle east against Muslim nations. It is absolutely true that western foreign policy has enabled terrorism from support for the Mujaheddin in Afghanistan to the removal of a secular leader in Iraq monstrous though he was and a former ally at that. Its certainly true that may have turned to Jihad as a reaction against western aggression. This does not however fully explain the lefts defence of Islam itself as a set of ideas. After all insurgents in the middle east aren't really anti-imperialists the Islamic state is in itself an empire which aimed to take over eventually the entire world. One can only imagine the horrendous genocide that would have occurred if such an empire came to pass considering even Al Qaeda are considered infidels by ISIL. 

The main real reason I think that so many leftists are sympathetic to Islam in-spite of the horrific violence done its name does not come from any place of poor intent. Rather it comes from the desire to protect minorities from the violence of majorities as the left has proudly opposed from the holocaust to the mistreatment of gays and lesbians in the west. The image in the third Reich are the most prominent images not only in the leftist political conscience but all mainstream political conscience. Its the reason every politician has been labelled "nazi" or "fascist" a labelling I have tried to use as sparingly as possible as I feel it cheapens the few modern times it really is appropriate. So when someone especially on the left hears someone criticise Islamic doctrine, practises or states and organisations it is easy to hear the echo of Joseph Goebbels. It is also true even in the west that Muslims are in a way an oppressed minority. Every year there are thousands of despicable hate crimes committed against Muslims. Most hideously recently we have seen the senseless gunning down of 50 innocent men women and children in a mosque in New Zealand.

However just because minorities are in a particularly weak position does not make minorities above criticism. After all there are substantial minorities within Islam which need defending feminist Muslims, LGBT Muslims, reforming and ex Muslims. Many of my fellow comrades forget this too easily and react to the incredibly touchy business of trying to correct minority behaviour by dodging the question.

What I hope I have proved is that this failure does not come from a place of ill will and that those of the left have no genuine sympathy with Islamic extremists. At the same time it is necessary for those of us who do have good intentions not to allow this narrative to be hijacked by extremists and be prepared to address violence, bigotry and hatred even when wrapped in a crescent and star.