Jawad, a 16 year old student in London, posts on The Revival a website and magazine for Muslim youth. I was looking through the forums on the site, trying to see what indeed are the “issues facing the Muslims today.” I was struck by a forum member whose alias was “jihadsoldier.”
“Salam every1, I hope evry1 is in good health. I would first like to give my condolences to the familys who lost their loved ones in the recent bombings…”
Jawad “jihadsoldier” on the Revival
So I called him up.
Jawad’s a second generation Brit, whose parents are from Pakistan. He told me he found the London bombings upsetting and said that he’s been lucky. He heard a Muslim got killed in the backlash [see Guardian article] and other people have been verbally abused. On the Revival, he and the other Muslim youth “talk about what [they] have to face.”
“We say to each other, this isn’t what’s real. The terrorists are brainwashed or something. People like Bush don’t try to get down to the root of the problem, just killing people. You should have meetings with young Muslims, Muslim community leaders.”
When I asked Jawad about his online alias, he told me that “‘jihad’ means ‘struggle to become closer to God.’ Every Muslim is a jihad soldier.” When I pressed to get the story behind the nickname, he laughed, “Actually it’s kind of funny. One time I was calling for a taxi. My friend is one of the operators, and he called out to the taxi driver that my name was ‘jihad soldier.’ It’s like… not smoking cigarettes, or learning more verses of Koran.” But still, his half-joking nickname would be misinterpreted by many, many Americans. And this, in turn, is the punchline. For me, it points to the multi-cultural aspect of the problem we all face. What’s in a name? Does it signal feeling out of place? “No not really, I feel happy. This is my home. I’m British, I’m also Pakistani. I’d rather live here than in Pakistan. I’ve been there once when I was little.”
When I asked Jawad what he wants our radio-listeners/blog-readers to do, he explained, “People need to do more research into Islam. It’s hypocritical. Look at the IRA, you don’t blame Christians. Islam doesn’t allow terrorism, we’re against it…” And finally, he urged, “Don’t believe everything you see on TV. Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.”
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Muslim Youth Groups & Interfaith Organizations
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the Revival, “the Voice of the Muslim Youth”
MuslimYouth.Net “is Britain’s first guidance and support channel for Muslim youth. The site is designed and managed entirely by young people who reflect the diversity of Muslim communities in the UK”
Open Democracy’s “Faith and Ideas” discussion
World Assembly of Muslim Youth is a “member of the United Nations NGOs, and recognised for its vast scope of humanitarian and relief work that encompasses about 60% of the Muslim World”
Faraz Rabbani’s blog Seeker’s Digest covers such topics as “Islam, society, culture, literature, life, technology, the net, spiritual music, and a little Law”
Global Voices Online’s blog thread, entitled Muslim Blogosphere Reacts to London Blast
Salam people, this is Jawad aka Jihad Soldier. I just wanted to thank Vanessa Bertozzi for giving me the chance to air my views. I would also like to thank anybody who read it. I want you people to know that 99% muslims don’t support terrorism and the 1% that do are crazy. They’ve probably been brainwashed and have misinterpreted verses from the Qu’ran.
There seems to be a growing trend of people putting Islam on trial whenever a muslim does something wrong which is not right, why hold a whole faith responsible for something a couple of so called muslims did, there’s nothing wrong with Islam, just with some of its followers who have been manipulated and wtisted into thinking killing innocent people is alright.
A lot of people bash Islam cos they say that the terrorists are doing what they do in the name of Allah. Now I can say I’m Tony Blair, that doesn’t make it true, for one I’m not white, christian, an old man and plus I’m way better looking (lol) but seriosuly, just cause people say they do soemthing in the name of this or for this cause doesn’t make it so.
I pity the terrorists that actually think what they do is pleasing Allah cos it ain’t.
We need to stop these double standards people. People like George Bush turn a blind eye on srael building their wall even though it breaks international law, Bush says it’s ok for them to put up the wall cos their just defending themselves,
Now I believe their is good in everyone, even in the most of evilest of men, its not like God creates us evil, so in my perosnal opinion when these teroroists blow themselves up, in my opinion I think they think their defending themselves, their friends and family, their country and their faith, But that is no excuse for what they do.
I believe both Bin Laden and Bush are terrorists. Both have thier own interests at heart. Bin laden in my opinion is very nationalistic and just sues Islam as a shield for what he does and George Bush is hypocritical son of a bitch just after oil (excuse my language).
Come on people, how could you re-elect a man that said he’d gladly shake the hand of an Iraqi that had his hands chopped off by Saddam Hussein, come on people, geez.
When I hear a terrorist speak on tv, they talk about how evil the west is, I think they believe that all westerners are evil, which is a misconception but people also believe that all muslims are terrorists, which is another misconception.
If muslims are terorists why isn’t every muslim round the world blowing themsleves up, if I thought what was going was a real jihad, which some people refer to as a holy jihad or war, then I wouldn’t be typing this stuff right now, I’d be on a battlefield somewhere killing american soldiers, or in a cafe blowing myself up but I’m not, and you know why, cos Islam is a religion of peace and tolerence and it eaches me that killing innocent people is wrong. There is even a verse in the Qu’ran which goes absically like this. “Klling an innocent man is like killing the whole of mankind and saving one man’s life is like saving the whole of mankind”.
Islam doesn’t breed terorists, if you follow the Qu’ran than rather you’d be a peacekeeper.
So pelase people like I said to Vanessa go out and do your own reserch into Islam, her Revival website is a good place to start, islamonline.com and islamworld.net are also very good places to start,
By the way that part in the interview about not smoking (I meant to say giving up smoking) and learning more verses of the Qu’ran, those are examples of ways to get clsoer to God, to be on the greater Jihad.
As I mentioned in the interview, the true meaning of jihad is to strive/make effort in the way of Allah. Thus striving in the way of Allah can be both peaceful and physical. The Prophet Muhammed (saws) said:
“The best jihad is (by) the one who strives against his own self for Allah, The Mighty and Majestic”
In the Qur’an, Allah also says:
“So obey not the disbelievers, but make a great jihad (effort) against them (by preaching) with it (the Qur’an)”
(Surah Al-Furqan 25:52)
If I thought there was ever a real jihad where I felt it nessercery to go on the battlefield and commit this kind of jihad which is basically to help safeguard the mission to spread the word of Islam I should think that not only I but I would hope every muslim would go on this jihad.
This kind of jihad doesn’t allow the killing of inncoent civilians or anyonw who isn’t a muslim, its something that helps protect us from persecutuion like the persecution the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) and his companions faced at their time from the Mekkans or the kind of persecution the Bosnian Muslims felt or the kind the jews felt at the hands of Hitler etc.
This kind of jihad forbids the killing of women and children and anyone innocent, basically who is willing to live in peace with us and not try to kill us all, it forbids us from even cutting down a tree and to pilage, etc, it allows us to defend ourselves againest the people wanting to kill us, to destroy us. The Qu’ran even states that all prisoners should be released after the war.
I have tried to explain to you people what jihad really is and what it entails.
If you read this then I hope you leave with the correct picture of muslims and Islam if you didn’t have already.
Islam is a religion of peace, not of war, and jihad isn’t about blowing people up, it’s about striving and making an effort in the way of Allah and also to safeguard the mission to spread the word of Islam which has NEVER been spread by the sword, soemthing saome people might say it has, Please remember that.
Thank you for taking the time to read this, I know it’s kinda long, lol, anyway take care people, may Allah shower all of us with his mercy and compassion,
Allah Au Akbar!,
Allah Hafis.
Jawad,
Thank you for writing in and talking with us about your faith.
One of the topics that came out of the radio show last night was the secularization of Europe. Some people think that many non-minority groups in Europe don’t go to church or believe in organized religion at all, and therefore, they don’t really understand the mindset of a believer (whether that’s a Christian, Jew, Muslim, etc.). Perhaps they don’t understand the nuances within a religion. Or don’t know how to talk to people who believe in another set of laws besides laws of the State—God’s law.
What do you make of this line of thought?
Salam.
I agree Vanessa with this, I believe that kids that go into this kind of terrorism feel like they have been cast aside from society. They are muslims living in a non-muslim society, a society where dating, drinking of alcohol, clubbing, pre-marital sex and regular mixing of men and women occur which goes againest the teachings of Islam.
I believe they feel like their way of life is under attack becuase so mny people don’t follow it and plus because people from their own society, fellow muslims, not all but some of who do these things that I mentioned that can be considered ‘western’.
When I look at the state of Pakistan today it makes me angry. I hear stoires of girls walking down the streets wEARING croptops, tight jeans etc.
My mother recently told me she was watching a tv call in show and a woman from Pakistan rang in and said that she was from Islamabad but said it’s more like just Abad now cos the Islam from their has gone.
This made me feel angry, angry at the west who I think are partly to blame.
George Bush and people like him try to dictate the world and say that if you don’t do things they way they do then you are Behind in the times.
They constantly make people feel like they are beneath the west so people are made to feel like they have to change their ways in order to be accepted by society.
Now like I said this makes me very angry, but not angry enough to go out and kill innocent people, but for these kids that get brainwashed this kind of stuff could be the spark they need to commit terrorist acts and support groups like Al-Qaeda etc.
This is of course all my opinion, I don’t know any terrorist personally, I don’t know what the terrorists are thinking, no one does, only the terrorists do. In my opinion the west trys to bully the east.
The media does more to ignite terrorism then it does to stop it as well in my opinion.
Not ENOUGH focus is ever put on muslims when they do condemn attacks, only the minority that support them. Thenw hen terrorits attacks do occur all tghe muslims and Islam gets the blame and gets put to trial.
What do you think of these lines of thought Vanessa and any1 else reading this?
Take care every1,
Allah Au Akbar!,
Allah Hafis.
This is interesting to me because in the States, we like think of our selves as promoting individual choice. But it sound like this comes across as dictating a lifestyle. It becomes emblematic of being Western.
But how do you think people can cope with this conflict in a non-violent way? And do you think this is a religious issue or a cultural issue? Again, like I said before, a lot of Westerners come from this secular point of view where we would default to thinking about this in a cultural way. We think, “Oh the best cultural situation is one in which anyone can be free to express his or herself.” I think people coming from this point of view don’t necessarily know how to relate to the religious line of thought. Which might, as you mentioned, see promiscuous dress or alcohol use as offensive on a religious level.
Salam every1.
There is no such thing as individual choice in USA especially 9/11, however I do like to think that the situation there is getting better.
This individual choice gives people lik muslim women to wear headscarfs, but after 9/11 when a a muslim women wearing a headscarf was seen walking downa steert she was probabley made to feel like an outsider, like a terrorist, there were attacks on muslims and sikhs after 9/11, so these people were made to feel they couldn’t express themselves freely, so that right of individual choice was taken away from them because if they didn’t then they most likely would’ve been verbally and physically abused.
During the presidential elections, if you were amti-Bush you were portrayed as anti-american and if some1 tried to justify there point of view and people didn’t listen, they would still be rbanded as anti-american and the only way of not ebing perceived as that would be if they chnged their beliefs or just never said them out liud, that right of inidividual chocie was taken away from them forceablly just like the above example was.
Another example could be that I do not agree with homosexuality. As a muslim I believe homosexuality is wrong and that Allah made partners for every1 from a opposite gender to themselves, not from the same 1. I might be branded as a homophobe for saying that even though I don’t really have a problem with gay people for the fact that they are gay. I just don’t aree with thir choice of lifestyle. But it’s not like I’m sticking a gun to every homosexual’s head and forcing them to change their lifestyle but people would probabley still call me a homphobe and if I wanted to be accpeted more in a western society then my individual choice would forceably have 2 be changed.
A non-violent way to deal with this would be if George Bush and people like him stopped judging the way other countries are run and accpet that people do things differently and that no one is the same and also to look at the way they run things more as well by being more self-critical of themselves.
Also people being more open-minded and accpeting the fact that some1 from Iraq may have different values and follow different ethics than some1 from USA and maybe trying to find out why there are differences by looking at the history of that country etc and also by not making fun of them for the beliefs they hold.
I think it is a religious and cultural issue. In the USA things such as pornogrpahy, drinking alohol, wearing of promiscuous clothes by both genders, not just women, homosexuality, pre-marotal sex, dating etc are rife and these totally go gainest the teachings of Islam.
Also cultural issues as I mentioned before and also they way in which people and religion are perceived in the west, particularly muslims. Misconceptions about Islam and Muslims definently do stir up annomosity because people in the west tend to these misconceptions about us which if u r a muslim, will understand that they do hurt because something as beautiful as Islam is being portrayed in an ugly way by the media.
Let me pose to you some questions that I got from The Revival website which I think would be very appropriate for all who read this concerning muslims and Islam.
Ever Wonder….
Why a nun can be covered from head to toe and she’s respected for devoting herself to God, but when a Muslim woman does that, she’s “oppressed”?
Why a jew can grow a beard and he’s just practicing his faith, and when a Muslim does that, he’s an extremist?
When a western woman stays at home to look after the house and kids she’s sacrificing herself and doing good for the household, but when a Muslim woman does so, she “needs to be liberated”?
When a jew practises his religion he is called “orthodox”, when a christian practices his he’s called “devout” – when a Muslim practises his he’s called a “fundamentalist”
Why is it that when a child dedicates himself to a subject, he has potential, and when a child dedicates himself to Islam, he is hopeless?
When a christian kills someone, religion is not mentioned, (i.e. IRA, Serbs) but when a Muslim is charged with a crime, it’s Islam that goes to trial?
But then again, why is it after all that, Islam is still the fastest growing religion in the world?
Ponder about these then hit me bak,
Take care all,
Allah Au Akbar!,
Allah Hafis.
Hey Jihad Soldier, or religious killer, or whover you think you are, you disengenuous little scamp, you — is it true? That every Muslim is a religious soldier? That every Christian a religious soldier? That every Jew a religious soldier? My my. Sounds like if you join a religion you gotta go to boot camp.
It’s a great irony, isn’t it that members of the three Great Warrior Religions all worship the same god but because she is called by different names (Yahweh, God, Allah) you folks somehow feel compelled to kill each other.
And, by the way, fundamentalists of whatever religion, have terrorized the world in pursuit of their own “true” agendas for all of known history.
Get a job.
mathers
Salam every1, I hope every1 is in good health.
Mathers get a life bro, first of all we all don’t worship the same God, second of all it’s a HE not a she, thirdly, disengenuous little camp? lol, i mean really man I’m lmao at u, thanks I needed a good laugh, fourth of all, I don’t feel compelled to kill any1 especially cos of the religion they believe in, killing some1, especially over what faith they believe in is wrong, I wouldn’t ever do it and Allah has forbid it anyway, and fifth of all I’ve got a job thank you, maybe you shold stop bashing people and go find a job urself, ahhh mathers, I really do pity you, may Allah forgive you and bring you to the light my misguided friend,
Take care every1,
Allah Au Akbar!,
Allah Hafis
Please, Mathers. We were trying to have a civilized conversation, not a flame war. That was really the point, you know? To talk with each other without calling each other names.
Salam every1.
Thanks Vanessa, But Mathers ain’t exactley the first person I’ve come acroos who has hostile views towards Islam. He probabley won’t ever change them But I wish he will.
Take care every1
Allah Au Akbar!,
Allah Hafis.