"I just don't like Muslims..."

The state of Georgia doesn't have the best history when it comes to Muslims (let's not forget the Georgia judge who barred hejabi women from his courtroom, and had one arrested for refusing to take it off), but this is a whole other level of discrimination and hatred. People are outraged because Muslims want to expand a mosque...

Dar-e Abbas is a mosque that holds services in a small house in the city of Lilburn. Over the years the number of attendees has grown, and they want to expand and remodel the mosque as well as add a cemetery. To do this they must have the property re-zoned from "residential" to "commercial." I think it's best now to turn to the videos showing what (apparently) happens when a property is re-zoned. The first is here, and the second here, and there is also an accompanying article found here.

Although I think all three links speak for themselves, here are a few choice quotes.

From the first video:

"I'm prejudiced, and I don't want them [Muslims] here."

"I mean, they need to just take a chill pill, so to speak, and go through the political system."

"I have a problem with it being a cemetery."

"Mosque is alright, but if they want to put a cemetery, that's no good."

The reporter says he spoke to three people "who told [him] flat out they were racist" and so did not want the mosque expanded, and when he asked why they would not say so on camera, they replied that they were "afraid their house would be burned to the ground."

From the second video:

"It doesn't have anything about, nothing to do about, umm, them [Muslims]. This is about hurting our community, this is about hurting our kids."

From the article:

"I am prejudice [sic], I just don't like Muslims and I don't want them taking over our neighborhood," said one resident who lives near the mosque. He did not want to be identified for fear of retaliation.
"I don't want someone coming to my house and burning it down."

"I don't have a problem with it being a place of faith I have a problem with it being a cemetery."

I pull these comments out with reason; I want to show how ridiculous the claim is that people are upset about re-zoning. There are so many offensive comments that it's hard to hear and appreciate them all when watching the videos, but reading them like this forces you to really understand how foul they are. These comments are reflections of ignorant and frightening Islamophobic attitudes that have absolutely nothing to do with zoning issues.

Regarding the cemetery comments - for those who understand why people would be uncomfortable with a cemetery in their neighborhood (which is the usual response I've gotten from people who I've discussed this article with), let me point out that this mosque is not located in a "neighborhood." This house is not in a small subdivision, but rather on a very long highway with a 45 mph speed limit, which runs through two counties and four cities. Still not convinced? Google Maps "Street View" shows that Lawrenceville Highway is a five lane road in front of the mosque. Not exactly a cozy neighborhood street.

If you're already planning a response explaining to me how perhaps these comments really are just people upset about a plot of land being legally zoned as one thing rather than another, I want you to imagine this article being about a church. I want you to imagine a small church wanting to expand and add a cemetery, and I want you to imagine the Muslims in the neighborhood up in arms about it. I want you to imagine Muslims discussing how they "just don't like" Christians, how they're flat out prejudiced against them and unapologetic about it. I want you to imagine them saying how they were afraid that these Christians--these clearly fanatical, backwards, frightening Christians--would come burn down their homes if they found out who they were (because only a fanatical, backwards, frightening people could be capable of such a thing). I want you to imagine a Muslim man telling the camera that these Christians just need to take a "chill pill" and "go through the political system" (as if they weren't already doing so, as if applying for re-zoning isn't exactly that). I want you to imagine a middle-aged Muslim woman telling the camera "this is about hurting our community, this is about hurting our kids."

It's rather awful, isn't it? It's not even awful as much as it is silly. It all sounds pretty silly, because it doesn't make sense. The idea of Christians not abiding by "the political system" doesn't make sense. The idea of Christians as barbarians that are capable of burning down your home doesn't make sense. The image of church-going Christians is not what one imagines when thinking about entities that hurt the community and kids.

Muslims have been so demonized in the U.S. that these statements seem plausible. They don't cause the same sort of visceral reactions you'd find if this were a group of Muslims speaking about Christians, and that's frightening.

There's so much that is so wrong with this story. Maybe the next post should be dedicated to the "reporters" covering their events and their ridiculous tone and language... "Clash of cultures"? Flashing "ANGRY PROTESTS" across the screen while showing only the Muslims? Describing people as "racist" against Muslims?(!) I don't have the emotional energy to dissect these things now though. I just want to say that you should care about this. It's clear from the reporter's comment (and from everything else produced by mainstream U.S. culture) that "Muslim" is, for many, a raced category conflating multiple ethnicities, religions, and nationalities into one identity. If you're a minority in any way there is every possibility that the same kind of dangerous "Other"-ing logic that allows thoughts like these to flourish can be (and probably already is) used against you.