Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

altmuslim

Home
Muslim
Gaslighting, Anti-Jewish and Anti-Muslim Rhetoric: What to Know

Gaslighting, Anti-Jewish and Anti-Muslim Rhetoric: What to Know

Last updated on: November 16, 2018 at 1:03 pm by Guest Contributor

Gaslighting, Anti-Jewish and Anti-Muslim Rhetoric: What to Know 2018-11-16T13:03:53-04:00 Guest Contributor

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Image source: Pixabay

A brief tour of gaslighting.

A thing happens, something is said or done.
A person is told it did not happen, or that it did not happen the way she thinks it did. This telling can come from individuals, as well as groups, and is a means of seizing and maintaining power. (One can indeed be gaslit into believing gaslighting is not happening.)
She knows what she saw and/or heard.
She is again told that that is not what happened.
She begins to wonder if she’s going crazy.
Repeat 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.

A brief tour of gaslighting in the modern political era

Vocalized again and again: clarion call, dog whistles, code words, signaling to White supremacists that he is with them.
She hears it. She knows what to look for, how to hear it, because after hearing it for years, she knows it all too well.
But – “That’s not what he meant,” “You just need something to be angry about,” “Stop making trouble,” “You’re the only one who thinks that.”
When something happens – a mosque or synagogue defaced, Muslims and Jews attacked in the streets, White supremacists converge and march, she is told it is merely an aberration, the work of a few, but certainly not the result of purposeful galvanization of hatred. Certainly not.
Repeat 1, 2, 3 and 4.

In our current political era, those who use anti-Muslim and anti-Semitic rhetoric are very aware of what they’re saying, and they know how to speak in covert terms in order to make it seem like they’re not doing it at all. Here are some examples.

A brief collection of anti-Semitic code words and phrases.

“Elites” – In 2016, Hillary Clinton was accused of being at the helm of “a global power structure” ( the term “elites” was used earlier in the speech), whose goal was to destroy the working class. Anti-semitism has often relied on the idea that Jews are somehow separate from everyone else (see “Aliens” below), but the characterization of Jews as elite is a means of perpetuating the notion of a cabal that seeks to control the banks, the media, and ultimately, world governments. “Elite” perpetuates the idea that all Jews are wealthy and have attended prestigious colleges, where they have been welcomed into the aforementioned cabal.

“Aliens,” people from another world, etc – Jews are disloyal to the country where they live, that they are tricksters and interlopers who cannot be trusted. See: Roy Moore’s attack on George Soros (a lighting rod anti-semitism on the Right from not only non-Jews, but Jews as well), in which Moore accused Soros of promoting an agenda that was “not American culture.” “Soros comes from another world that I do not identify with,” Moore told American Family Radio in December 2017.

“International banks” – One particular clarion call to Neo Nazis is the use of the phrase “international banks.” “International” is key, connected with the anti Semitic obsessions that Jew are not true Americans (their loyalty is actually to Israel), who are only interested in money, and the control of it. Therefore, Jews are responsible for any economic distress, vulnerability, and disparities affecting “real” Americans.

When it comes to anti-Muslim speech, the language is a little less coded. Unfortunately, we live in a time when it’s acceptable – in some political circles, even lauded — to disparage Muslims.

“Terrorists” – February 2018: 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz shot and killed seventeen people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. November 2017: 26-year-old Devin Patrick Kelley murdered 26 when he opened fire at the First Baptist Church in Texas. June 2015: 21-year-old Dylann Roof killed nine African Americans at a church in Charleston, South Carolina. All of these young men committed acts of terrorism, but the media did not label any of them “terrorists.” That term is reserved for perpetrators who are Muslim.

“Radicals” “Extremists” “Fundamentalists” – There are members of every faith – and no faith – who interpret and apply their belief system in ways outside the norm. But, how often do we hear about Christian extremists, Hindu fundamentalists, or Buddhist radicals? If any of those terms – “radical;” “extremist;” “fundamentalist” – comes without mention of a specific belief system, you can bet it’s being used to refer to Muslims, who are considered de facto “extreme.”

“Female genital mutilation” “honor killings” – The terms may seem like they are referring to specific practices that, in reality, span across cultures and geography. “Female genital mutilation” (used to refer to the partial or total cutting or removal of the external female genitalia) is found in Africa, Asia and the Middle East but immediately evokes “Muslim” even though there is scant evidence that Islamic sources permit, much less require or encourage, the practice. Similarly, for “honor killings”—the murder of a family member when the perpetrator believes that person has brought shame onto the family. It is practiced in diverse cultures but also references, in coded terms, Muslims and Islam. Together, these phrases impugn Islam and Muslims of being against women’s dignity and equality.

It is happening. We are not wrong, we are not imagining things , and we are not helpless. We do, however, have an obligation to understand what we are hearing to call it out, to see to it that these are no longer regarded as secret codes, but as weapons. We must urge others to do the same, and no matter what, to keep listening.

About Asma Uddin and Chanel Dubofsky

Asma Uddin is Founding EIC of altM. Chanel Dubofsky is a writer and editor at Jewschool. This article is part of a collaborative series commissioned by altMuslimah and Jewschool to promote interfaith dialogue and understanding between Muslim and Jewish communities experiencing a rise in anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. The original version of this article is found on altM. You can read more about the author here.

Previous Post

November 12, 2018

How One Ottoman Reconciled Islamic Teachings with Darwin's Theory of Evolution

Next Post

November 19, 2018 Mawlid 2018: Praise Songs from Around the World

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 2012 Elections 30 Dayd 30 Writers (2017) 30 Days 30 Writers 30 Days 30 Writers (2015) 30 Days 30 Writers (2016) 30 Days 30 Writers (2018) 30 Days 30 Writers 2017 Ali Asadullah Ali Eteraz Alper Bilgili Arthur Richards Asides Asma Uddin Black History Month Briefings Charles Turner Commentary Cyrus McGoldrick Eman H Aly Fatimah Popal Hajj Hajj and Dhul Hijjah Hesham Hassaballa Hisham Hellyer Ibrahim Abusharif Inas Younis Irfan Yusuf Jalal Baig Junaid Afeef Laila Alawa Laila Alwala Mas'ood Cajee Muqtedar Khan Nakia Jackson Newsmakers Parvez Ahmed Podcasts Rabia Chaudry Rafia Zakaria Ramadan Reviews Safiyyah Ally Saud Inam Shahed Amanullah Svend White The Opinionated Oncologist Visions Wajahat Ali Zahed Amanullah Zahir Janmohamed Zainab Khan

Select a Month November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003 September 2003 August 2003 July 2003 June 2003 May 2003 April 2003 March 2003 February 2003 January 2003 December 2002 November 2002 October 2002 September 2002 August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 March 2002

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which people attacked Israel at Rephidim and were defeated as Moses held up his hands?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Philistines Midianites Amalekites Moabites