"While Kay complains about “toxic femininity” in Western feminism, this is what she exudes with her opinion piece. Her islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism are just all too normalized and harmful while she provides no evidence to back any of the claims she makes."
To:
Barbara Kay, Opinion Columnist, National Post
Rob Roberts, Editor-in-chief, National Post
Carson Jerema, Managing Editor, Comment, National Post
Dear Barbara Kay, Rob Roberts, and Carson Jererma,
I am writing to express concern about Barbara Kay’s article, “Radical Islam’s western fangirls,” published on May 19 in National Post.
While there are many outright Islamophobic and anti-Palestinian statements that I believe cross the line, even in the context of an op-ed, I will focus on three troubling paragraphs in Kay’s column.
First, a glaring factual error. Kay claims that “Hamas terrorists didn’t even shy away from filming themselves torturing women and children.” However, she provides no evidence to back this claim and I am not aware of the existence of any evidence that corroborates the claim that Hamas “tortured” women and children on film. Either share the alleged footage that Kay is referencing or correct this error. On the other hand, it is well documented by Amnesty International, Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, and CNN that Israel systemically tortured Palestinians in detention for confessions. Israel also published more than 700 photos and videos of human rights violations against Palestinians on a Telegram group that was titled: “The Avengers,” then, “Azazel,” and finally “72 virgins uncensored.”[1]
Please correct this error and include an editor’s note.
Kay also writes:
But even before the advent of social media, radical Islam had its western fangirls. In the year following 9/11, about 8,000 American women converted to Islam, according to data from the Hartford Institute for Religious Research. Today’s uptick in Islam flirtation should persuade us that the link between Islamist violence and these women’s sudden embrace of Islam, or at least its best-known symbols, like the hijab and obeisance rites, is no coincidence.
Kay implies that Western women converting to Islam is a product of “radical Islam” and that there is a link between “Islamist violence” and women deciding to convert to Islam and adopt some of its customs. Not only is it insulting to Muslims as it implies that their religion is inherently violent, but it is deeply misogynistic as it implies women don’t have the agency to make the best decisions for themselves. According to a 2018 poll by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU), 54% of Muslim women replied that they choose how they dress. Given the sharp rise in Islamophobia, statements like this put people like me at greater risk. It is highly offensive and inappropriate. I believe this statement crosses the line and promotes false, hateful narratives about Islam and Muslims.
Kay further writes:
If it were only a fascination with Islam, one might agree with those who argue that this is a product of woke ideology and its culturally self-loathing revolutionary toolkit: alignment with “the enemy of my enemy” as a finger in the eye of Western civilization. But that doesn’t explain the fact that the tendency extends to women who are not inimical to, but rather deeply patriotic and proud of, their own culture.
Kay implies that you cannot be Muslim and proud of your own culture or patriotic. I wonder on what basis Kay makes this claim. According to the same poll I mentioned above, 91% of Muslims agree that Muslim identity is directly correlated with a strong American identity. Muslims with strong Religious identities are most likely to have strong American identities.
While Kay complains about “toxic femininity” in Western feminism, this is what she exudes with her opinion piece. Her islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism are just all too normalized and harmful while she provides no evidence to back any of the claims she makes.
Kay needs to provide evidence for the claims she makes. Opinion pieces still have to be accurate and based on facts.
National Post should make these changes promptly as this article is in deep violation of the most basic journalistic standards.
Sincerely,
Fatima Haidar,
Media Analyst, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East