The atrocities in Norway were I’m sure shocking for all of us as we listened in disbelief at the loss of life in and the sadistic manner in which the killer carried out his killing spree. However, even while the news broke as a non-practicing Muslim my stomach turned twice: once for the victims and their families but secondly for the wrath of the media and experts ready with sound bites on how it must be an Islamic terrorist attack in revenge for…well the list is long.
There were international experts on every news channel claiming credible intelligence that it was undoubtedly Al Qaeda and of course they are an obvious culprit. I thought of how much collective hatred and anger there would be towards Muslims and how life would change for everyone in Norway thanks to us.
Once the news emerged of the real killer, his deranged beliefs and that he was not a Muslim, no channel or newspaper apologised for jumping to conclusions and fuelling Islamophobia. Though I am non-practicing Islam is the religion of those I love the most in the world and I don’t appreciate hatred and prejudice of any kind, even the Norwegians did not presume it was an Islamic attack. The media need to stop being hysterical and think before they react.
Bubbly
The Chatterjis Blog 