A re-writing of history based on a narrow and prejudiced view of Muslims
Well, well, well. One of the reasons behind the production of the educational booklet, the Role of Righteous Muslims was to counter the sheer chutzpah of a growing number of people who attempted to re-write history and suggest that the vast and overwhelming majority of ‘Arabs’ and ‘Muslims’ (note the vast sweeping statement), were behind the Nazis in the Second World War. The strategy here by these individuals was to associate these two groups, (even though there are also Arab Christians) with the Nazis and thereby demonize them. Another reason for the publication of the Righteous Muslims booklet was to inform Muslim communities of case histories where Muslims put themselves at risk to save Jewish lives during the Holocaust and such work is much needed.
Now coming to the point of Arabs and Muslims being predominantly behind the Nazis – what I would call a revisionist view driven by prejudicial hate against these groups. In taking this position, such individuals chose to forget those Muslims from the Indian subcontinent, nearly 700,000 of them who fought on the side of the British. They also chose to forget the North African and West African Muslims who fought on the French side or the Harkis who were so let down by the French colonialists. Or the East African Muslims in Uganda and Kenya who fought for King & Country, just to name a few Muslim communities. Whilst we cannot also overlook those within Bosnia who fought on the side of the Nazis, the overwhelming majority of Muslims fought against the Nazis. Yet, revisionists are still at it – trying to re-write history to suit their twisted perception of history. It is also interesting to note that these revisionists who regard themselves as activists against Fascism and Nazism, find themselves on the same side as groups like the English Defence League, a real Far Right group which tries to pass itself off as some populist street based movement against ‘radical Islam.’ There is nothing radical about the MuslimsĀ on Twitter that they abuse or Muslims in general who come in for attack by EDL sympathisers and their social media accounts.
I just hope such revisionists wake up and move away from narratives that are really in line with extremist groups. There is good and bad in all communities, but making Muslims out to be de-facto Nazis is not only untrue, it is malicious, twisted and downright scandalous.
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