Status of the Muslims in the United Kingdom

Question: Describe about the9-11 damaged the status of Muslims in the United Kingdom?. Answer: Introduction Before 9/11, there was a perfect integration of Muslims, who lived in the United Kingdom. Their status shifted from merely residing in the UK to becoming British Muslims. Nevertheless, following the 9/11 incident, Muslims status altered in Britain. They started facing stressful situations such as; being detained, and arrested because they were suspected to be terrorists. Moreover, mosques and Muslim homes were being raided, and the media started making negative footage concerning the Muslims. The British held that the New York Citys twin towers were bombed down by Muslim extremists from the terrorist group called al-Qaeda spearhead by their leader, Osama bin Laden. The British were offended by this alleged terrorist attack because 67 Briton lives were claimed on this day. As a result, there was a great impact on the countrys response to terrorism and to Muslims, who were permanent residents. The position of the Muslims changed as argued in the following discussion. How the Status of Muslims has changed in the United Kingdom after 9/11 Attack First, the British Muslims encountered severe victimization and alienation from the mainstream British community. For instance, when Muslims traveled beyond the border, they underwent tight scrutiny and were occasionally treated as criminals (Kettani 1986). Muslims were asked unnecessary questions such as where they got the money to buy their travel tickets. If a Muslim traveled alone he would be asked why. Muslims were treated as individuals who were guilty of wrongdoing. Instances revealed female Muslim being forcefully victimized across the streets, to an extent where their veils were removed as they stride in the highway. This is like an invasion of privacy of Muslim females who viewed this act as sexual assault. Wearing of Islamic attire reminds the British that the enemy is close-by. The Muslims feel victimized because the Britons see the veil as a danger to security because, when they cover their faces, they cannot be easily identified and, therefore, it is possible for terror ists to hide under the veil. In some schools and institutions, Muslim students are denied the right to put on the veil for security purposes (Dwyer 1999). Secondly, Islamic centers in Britain encountered attacks whose cause could not be explained. After the 9/11, Muslims mosques and residents were attacked. British residents have been trying to pay back by assaulting Muslims. Muslims residing in Britain are threatened because of unawareness when the attacked will be. It could be in the mosques when they pray or in their houses (Model and Lin, 2002). The Muslims are living in the panic since the attack on 11th September. The main aim of these attacks are to ensure that the Muslims leave Britain and return back to their countries. Thirdly, the British Muslims also faced uttered and corporal abuse. Muslims living are subjects of discrimination after the 9/11 incident. Muslims faced the challenges of being looked down upon at their places of work. Failure to include physical and verbal abuses into news headlines made issues more complicated (Haddad 1991). Muslims continue to remain silent even though they were being hurt. Some Muslims confess to experiencing prejudice in shops, public transport and are treated as a target for discrimination. In public transport for example, a woman gives incidences where when Britons sit together, they initiate conversations and start chatting with one another. However, when a Briton happens to sit next to a Muslim with a veil, they do not begin discussions (Ansari 2002). Muslim kids are also being discriminated in schools. For instance, a pupil at Oxford shire was hit by classmates and called a terrorist just because of the mere fact that he was a Muslim (Abbas 2005). Lastly, the British Muslim citizens are faced with an identity crisis because they were forced to choose where their loyalties lie, whether it was with their religion or with Britain. Muslims living in Britain face challenges since the majority are used to living where the whole system is dominated their religious and social practices. Muslims, therefore, are not fit in a democratic country such as the United Kingdom. Some Muslim groups, however, are more secular and have accepted the culture of the British. Life standards of Muslims commonly tangled around religious issues. Whatever activity Muslims carry out relate to their religion. Forcing a Muslim to choose between their religion and the country they live in is an identity crisis (Fetzer and Soper 2005). Losing their religion to them would mean getting out of their way of survival as well. On the other hand, choosing the country in which they live in would mean going against their treasured religion (Webner 2000) Conclusion The 11th September 2001 terrorist attack saw to it that there was a great change in the status of the Muslims in the United Kingdom. Britons began sidelining them on issues related legislations, economic as well as education. Both adults and children were discriminated upon in schools and institutions, public transport, in shopping malls and when they are crossing the borders. Immediately after the 9/11 attack, the discrimination was so much so that some Muslims fled and went back to their home countries. With time, anti-islamophobia movements which play the role of reducing assaults and intimidations against Muslims living in Britain was established. For instance, the teacher who invited students to slap and insult their fellow student was charged in a court of law. The peace and serenity that was earlier enjoyed by the British Muslims will never be recovered because enmity has developed between the Britons and the Muslims. Muslims, however, have rights similar to other Briton citiz ens. As much as the twin towers were attacked by Muslim extremists, not all Muslims are guilty of the act and, therefore, the other Muslims should be treated fairly. Terrorist activities are entities on their own, just in the same way Islamic religion is on its own. The terrorists should be hunted down without relating their practices to Islam as a religion. References Abbas, T., 2005. Muslim Britain: Communities under pressure. Zed Books. Ansari, H., 2002. Muslims in Britain. London: Minority Rights Group International. Dwyer, C., 1999. Veiled Meanings: young British Muslim women and the negotiation of differences. 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