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04-07-2012, 03:13 AM
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Obama Embraces National Security as Campaign Issue
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11-23-2015, 06:12 PM
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#ExMuslimBecause: Thousands of Former Muslims Are Speaking Out After Paris -- and It's Amazing
Where are all the secular liberals in the Muslim world?
I've lost count of how many times I've heard this question. The answer is both unsurprising and heartbreaking. In Muslim-majority countries, they are often being lashed and imprisoned for blogging, hacked to death in open daylight, or sentenced to death for writing poetry. Here in the West, they are often being disowned from their families, ostracized from their communities, and even murdered by their own families in "honor killings." As for those who choose to leave the religion altogether, the outcome is even more sinister. There are thirteen countries, all Muslim-majority, where atheism is punishable by death. And Saudi Arabia -- the birthplace of Islam, its Prophet, and the location of its two holiest sites, Mecca and Medina -- has declared that all atheists are terrorists. Remember, this is also the home country of not only Osama bin Laden, but fifteen of the nineteen hijackers from 9/11. When simply changing one's mind comes at such a high cost, it isn't surprising that you don't hear much from secularists, atheists, or agnostics in the Muslim world. But this last Thursday, that changed. Maryam Namazie's Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain started the #ExMuslimBecause campaign last week, encouraging dissidents from across the Muslim world to come out and say why they left Islam. The response was tremendous. By early Friday morning, #ExMuslimBecause was the U.K.'s top trending hashtag. We heard from secret LGBT Saudis; women who had been forced into marriages; closeted atheists in Egypt and Pakistan tweeting under pseudonyms; young women disowned by their families in the U.S.; and more. I've compiled some of the most popular tweets below. Some come from a purely rational place, and others are understandably angry -- which is relatable if you think of what so many ex-Muslims go through. There are also tweets from Muslims who did not take this trend too well, as well as those who were supportive. What you'll see below is the often unheard, third side to the international conversation we have been witnessing since the Paris attacks -- a conversation that represents an increasingly reverberating alternative narrative that is developing across the Muslim world, where atheism is on the rise. While some of it may seem shocking, it is important and should be read by everyone who wants to understand narratives from the Muslim world otherwise all too often silenced before reaching us. A few points to keep in mind as you read further: 1. Being part of Muslim families and communities, ex-Muslims not only receive the same bigoted treatment as other Muslims, but are also persecuted (often severely) by Muslims who consider them heretics and apostates. 2. Ex-Muslims often find themselves caught between the anti-Muslim bigotry of the far right that demonizes all Muslims, and the apologism of the far left that conflates any legitimate criticism of Islam with "bigotry" or "Islamophobia" -- à la Ben Affleck's tantrum on Bill Maher's show last year. Criticizing Islam (an idea) and demonizing Muslims (a people) are very different things. 3. Many ex-Muslims feel betrayed by their liberal counterparts in the West. The fight against Islamic jihad should come from a position of moral strength, not xenophobic bigotry. This is a fight that liberals should take on themselves before it's hijacked by the far right. Here are some of the tweets: #ExMuslimBecause I was told I was a Muslim. But then I learned that religion is not a gene and being born to believers doesn't make you one. #ExMuslimBecause i know being a woman doesn't make me lesser. I shouldn't have to worship *behind* men, or be segregated from them. #ExMuslimBecause No REAL God should need protection from bloggers & no REAL prophet should need protection from cartoons. #ExMuslimBecause Islamists attacked on my house in Bangladesh but fortunately i wasn't there and made (fatwa)deserving death for atheist. #ExMuslimBecause I'd be sentenced to death if I was ousted as an apostate in Saudi Arabia. https://t.co/54TkPiV8e7 #ExMuslimBecause I'm a woman who believes in #equality. #ExMuslimBecause I'm gay and proud to be the first public figure to come out and campaign for LGBTI Rights in Afghanistan. #ExMuslimBecause I am not actually but Al Qaeda considers me one, I was hardly ever religious, I left Islam when I was about 14. #ExMuslimBecause my being unveiled is NOT the cause of earthquakes or other calamities #ExMuslimBecause I am not an abomination by virtue of being gay. #ExMuslimBecause atheist blogers are being killed in my country #Bangladesh but my muslim friends are directly or indirectly supporting it #ExMuslimBecause I couldn't handle hearing my own family say that Shi'as, my neighbours and best friends, are kuffar. #ExMuslimBecause my own mother told me I should be killed because I didn't believe the same things she did #ExMuslimBecause the Quran, in my view, is literature that was written by men. We are yet to know who wrote it. #ExMuslimBecause I got tired of suppressing my compassion twds LGBT+ people in the name of a deity claiming to be most compassionate #ExMuslimBecause Bacon - what other reason could there possibly be? #ExMuslimBecause I'm told Islam gives you freedom of thought and religion but at the same time punishes apostasy by death #ExMuslimBecause for some reason Islam bans alcohol and pre-marital sex but not slavery. I'm a #ExMuslimBecause I was indoctrinated as a child and denounced my religion as soon as I was old enough to think for myself. #ExMuslimBecause I saw firsthand what growing up under Shariah Law is like in Saudi Arabia #ExMuslimBecause they chopped off a bit of my dick man!! That shit ain't cool. Didn't even wait to ask me or nuttin #ExMuslimBecause I care about what is true. #ExMuslimBecause I simply used my brain. #ExMuslimBecause I believe we all have the FREEDOM to disbelieve and dissent. No To Apostasy & Blasphemy Laws pic.twitter.com/LrctiDPkhg #ExMuslimBecause I was tired of trying to fit inside a box that was never made for me. #ExMuslimBecause I prefer reality over myth and reason over ignorance. #ExMuslimBecause LGBT are humans and not my ennemies #ExMuslimBecause I have a deep yearning for knowledge about our world, nature and the universe. Religion can't provide adequate answers. #ExMuslimBecause When you can't explain sun eclipse , moon , earthquakes just say there are the miracles of God #ExMuslimBecause I couldn't debate or criticize islam without my parents yelling or screaming at me, and threatening me. #ExMuslimBecause common sense. #ExMuslimBecause People should have the right to leave whatever religion they want. #ExMuslimBecause I'd rather look through a telescope than read a book that says I came out of a man's rib to be lured by a talking snake. It's a bad decision to blindly follow any religion. #ExMuslimBecause #ExMuslimBecause freedom requires free thinking. #ExMuslimBecause I didn't want to live in guilt anymore #ExMuslimBecause speaking my truth shouldn't be a death sentence. Sent to us to tweet anonymously by an #ExMuslim woman who is afraid to speak up openly. #ExMuslimBecause pic.twitter.com/qMKfXFau3u #ExMuslimBecause ....I am a #Saudi....enough said... #ExMuslimBecause I cannot fathom the idea that wretched morality of 7th century is unchangeable no matter how barbaric it is. #ExMuslimBecause there's a scary amount of people out there who think punishing people for apostasy and blasphemer is perfectly acceptable. #ExMuslimBecause Misogyny, homophobia, stoning ppl to death & killing apostates don't suddenly become "respectable" when put in a holy book. </br> Some Muslims weren't happy with the trend: You're #ExMuslimBecause of Satan . If you are brave enough say that in Saudi Arabia. #ExMuslimBecause you were too lazy to know know IslamYour reasons are irrelevant and shows how you never actually bothered to understand it. People who have never even been Muslims are using #ExMuslimBecause just to bash Islam lol This is the most stupid hashtag I've ever seen. You've left Islam. No point violating the religion. Move on. #ExMuslimBecause #ExMuslimBecause trend was made up by anti Islam individuals who have islamaphobia and just want attention Whoever started the #ExMuslimBecause save your reasons for judgement day. We'll see how brave you are then. </br> But other Muslims were very supportive: I support #ExMuslimBecause there are too many out there who can't say who they are because of where they live. .@imraansiddiqi Sadly, an awful lot of Islamophobia is fuelled by the terrible treatment of ex-Muslims by Muslims themselves. I am Muslim and I respect #ExMuslimBecause they have a right to decide how best to run their lives. Muslims should protect their rights. Maybe as Muslims it'd be good if we searched through the #ExMuslimBecause trend to find ways we can be more inclusive & tolerant </br> And some non-Muslims who had also left their religions showed solidarity: Proud support for #ExMuslimBecause from an #exchristian and #exwannabebuddhist Appreciate the #ExMuslimBecause tag. This (ex-Christian) #Infidel stands by you, brothers and sisters... @aliamjadrizvi .. I rejected the christian faith for a similar reason, once done I rejected all religions </br> If you are an ex-Muslim with a story, you can participate by: Tweeting the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain: @CEMB_Forum Messaging the council on Facebook: www.facebook.com/exmuslims Emailing rayhana.sultan@gmail.com or maryamnamazie@gmail.com If you're in North America, you can also contact these other great organizations: Muslimish (for questioning and ex-Muslims): Muslimish.com Ex-Muslims of North America: EXMNA.org And if you're an ex-Muslim in a Muslim-majority country, you can get your story out there by contacting Movements.org, an organization that puts dissidents in oppressive countries in touch with international journalists, writers, lawyers, government officials, and more. The next time you hear someone speaking as if they represent all Muslims in their view of the faith, remember that their voice isn't the only one. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.  More...
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