Types of Discrimination

 

Click this link to see an interactive map of hate crime in England and Wales in 2014. Credit: Mallak Mansour.

Discrimination is Human Nature, says Swansea University Students

Rainbow Flag Flies at Half-Mast in UK

Research reveals that some children of gay parents suffer from many issues at school, such as use of homophobic language, homophobic bullying and the exclusion of their families. Credit: Mallak Mansour.

A blog discussing LGBT issues in Swansea highlighted the story of Bola Olagunju, a Nigerian student, who despite of finally tasting an unprecedented freedom, still feels alienated and uncomfortable being open about his sexuality.

Olagunju came to the UK to pursue higher education at Swansea University, and said that he doesn’t wish to return to Nigeria, because it’s a place where a “homophobic attitude” is the norm.

However, it seems that even in the UK, the LGBT community continues to be under constant pressures and discriminatory actions by those who either don’t understand or choose not to accept sexual differences.

Despite having an LGBT society at Swansea University and LGBT Youth Group Swansea; an indicator to a growing awareness of LGBT issues, some gay students still fear sharing their true sexual identities.

Even though official and national efforts are being made to end discrimination against the LGBT, many continue to be victims of numerous atrocious human rights’ violations .

The daily Mail reported on a UK Supreme Court, which rejected a claim by a married couple from Cornwall, that they didn’t break any law when refused to let a room to Steven Preddy and Martyn Hall, because they were not a heterosexual married couple.

Discriminatory attacks against the gay community range from personal attitudes to physical assaults. The BBC reported on a brutal homophobic attack against a man in Edinburgh, Scotland, where the “unprovoked” attackers, kicked the victim in the face and verbally abused him, the police said.

“The first rainbow flag was designed in 1978 by Gilbert Baker, a San Francisco artist, in response to calls by activists for a symbol for the community.” Credit: Wikimedia.

According to the Gay British Crime Survey 2013, “one in six lesbian, gay and bisexual people have experienced a homophobic hate crime or incident over the last three years.”

It reported on several stories of gays, who suffer emotionally and physically due to their sexual orientation.

A 33-year-old man from Wales, said that he is “sick of feeling bullied and intimidated” in his own neighborhood, while a 69-year old man reported that he has been physically and verbally abused by his own brother.

The ongoing misapprehension and opposition of homosexuality resulted in an inaccuracy estimating how many gays are in the UK. However, Stonewall Charity said that 6% of the population (approx.3.6 million) are lesbian, gay or bisexual.

Many believe that reasons behind discrimination against gays can be attributed to a lengthy intolerant legacy and lack of a scientific explanation of what determines an individuals’ sexual orientation.

A Swansea resident, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the topic, said that he doesn’t view his opposition to homosexuality as a form of discrimination, but simply a belief in right or wrong.

He said, “Personally, I don’t know any gay people and have never interacted with any. I don’t know what their principles or values are. I am against discrimination, but I believe homosexuality is wrong.”

Several attempts to reach out to gay individuals and organizations to share stories and experiences were unsuccessful. Many gays approached refused to speak and the Swansea LGBT community met several correspondences with silence.

Though the real reasons behind this reticence remain unknown, there are probably few main assumptions which include fear of being faced with yet another homophobic reaction.

The Gay British Crime Survey noted that ” two thirds of lesbian, gay and bisexual people experiencing a hate crime or incident did not report it to anyone.”

Many gays’ decision to ignore discrimination crimes and incidents are attributed to the lack of trust in local authorities.

Statistics revealed that just “one in five lesbian, gay and bisexual people are confident that their Police and Crime Commissioner will address homophobic hate crime in their area.”

Such numbers raise serious questions regarding the government’s efforts made to alleviate the increasing abuse of the gay community’s rights in the UK and British Prime Minister’s David Cameron’s call to “work day-in, day-out, to challenge homophobic behavior.”

LGBT Pride. Credits: Youthvoices.net

UK Women Tell Story of ‘Life with Hijab and Without’

Many stereotypes associated with the Hijab continue to haunt Muslim women who choose to wear it. Credit: Mallak Mansour

“I probably wouldn’t have employed you if you wore the Hijab during the job interview.”

Sara A., a housewife and a mother of three, recalled the encounter with her former employer, who after coming to know Sara more closely, admitted that she wouldn’t have hired her if she knew Sara was planning to wear the Hijab.

Sara, being a half-Scottish half-Welsh convert to Islam, realizes that many in the UK have a negative view of foreigners and Muslim women who wear the Hijab. “I try not to think about the [related to Hijab] experiences I go through. I try to ignore them,” She said.

A 2012-2013 report by the all-party committee on race and community pointed out that the discrimination is not only about wearing the Hijab, but assuming that “Muslim women would stop working after having children,” therefore, decreasing their chances of being hired.

It suggested that “25% of the ethnic minority unemployment rate could be attributable to prejudice and discrimination.”

Labour MP David Lammy was quoted saying, “it is staggering that in 21st Century Britain there are women who felt they had to remove their Hijab or change their name just to be able to compete on the same terms as other candidates when looking for jobs.”

On the other hand, Aminath S., a 19 year-old Muslim from Bangor, Gwynedd, said that before wearing the Hijab, she never experienced any discrimination.

She started wearing it in 2010, which changed her life drastically. She said, “My uncle told me it wouldn’t be a great idea, because people are going to treat me differently and I’ll have a hard time.”

Aminath became a target of sarcastic comments from other students, offensive gestures and words (such as “fuck Islam”), and a single incident of mud-throwing.

She recalled an incident when a girl refused to sit next to her, and waited until she got off the bus. Aminath said, “It made me feel like an outcast.”

Such experiences affected Aminath and made her go out less often, because she feels like a “breathing ticking bomb that everybody tries to avoid.”

She believes it’s a form of discrimination, because her Welsh and English friends don’t face the same experiences. This pressure drove Aminath to debate on whether to continue wearing the scarf or not. “As I’ve been able to experience how it is with and without the Hijab, I’d say I’ve had less trouble without it.”

Muslim woman in headscarf enjoying a sunny day in Swansea. Credit: Mallak Mansour.

According to a 2013 study conducted in the UK, “Muslim women are more likely to be targets for ‘Islamophobia‘ than men, with 80% targeted for wearing the Hijab.”

Many commentators believe that Islamophobia increasingly spreadfollowing the September 11 attacks in the US. Mainstream media has since played a significant role in establishing a linkage between terror and Islam, even though many daily attacks and crimes continue to be carried out by different groups of varying religious (and non-religious) backgrounds.

Aminath commented, “The media wouldn’t say “a Christian named James Jacobson murdered his neighbor”, but if a ‘Muslim’ did it, they’ll make sure to mention the religion as if all bad things associated with that person are because of the religion.”

Despite the wavering attitudes towards Hijab, there are those who are able to see through major media incitement and stereotypes.

Imogen Elnaugh, a 21 year-old non-Muslim student at Swansea University, who once wore the Hijab as an experiment, said “wearing the Hijab doesn’t change the person who is wearing it. You should respect that the way you respect someone who is a vegetarian, Christian, or follower of any other faith.”

Imogen noted that sadly many in the UK perceive Hijab in a mixed way, with some who are quite against it to the point of being racist and judgmental without justifying it.

Swansea Muslim Student Experiences Potential Hate Incident

2013 witnessed a surge in hate crimes against Muslims in the UK. Credit: Wikimedia

With his dark skin and hair, Middle Eastern features and slightly thick beard and accent, Azez A., a student at Swansea University, is easily profiled and discriminated against in a time where negative portrayals of Arabs in general and Muslims in specific continue to intensify and increase in mainstream media.

Azez moved to Swansea in 2009 to continue his higher education. However, since this was not his first experience abroad, he claims that it was only in the UK that he felt the discrimination based on his appearance and easy-to-detect racial background.

This wasn’t the first time for Azez to experience a hate incident, but it was the latest in a series of events that continue to affect him on a personal level.

It all started when he went to a local bar on a Friday night to play Billiards with his two friends to wash away the stress of classes and deadlines.

He said, “When we walked in, the bartender standing behind the bar asked us in a very harsh manner “how long are you staying?” They politely replied, “About an hour.”

Azez continued, “When I went to get a drink, he ordered me to keep quiet as another group was playing in some sort of a competition.”

However, later on, when Azez ran into one of the men who were playing, he told him that it was just a regular game with some friends.

Hana, Azez’s friend, said that the bartender seemed totally annoyed with having to serve them. She said, “I didn’t know if he was annoyed because of me or something else.”

After finishing the game, Azez tried to collect the balls to return them, but the bartender aggressively yelled and asked them to leave at once and never show their faces again.

Hana wondered, “He wasn’t even looking at us in the eye. You can tell he had a problem with us even though we don’t know him in person.”

A fight broke between the bartender and the irritated students who had no idea why he was treating them in a very rude and harsh manner. Finally, the night ended with them being kicked out of the bar.

Azez assumed they were treated like that because of their obvious racial backgrounds, as there was nothing else that could explain such an attitude. He said, “We did nothing to provoke him. I was smiling the whole time.”

Hana added, “When I am with Azez things happen! But when I am not, I never get discriminated against”.

With her dark hair and fairly foreign features, Hana says that even though she hasn’t been personally discriminated against, she often notices the looks and hears comments when going out with friends whose racial backgrounds are more outstanding.

Azez chose not to report this “hate incident” to the police, because it would not be the first or the last. He said, “it is a waste of time because no one will listen to us”.

This incident might seem minor, but when looked at in the wider context, it is definitely a flashing indicator to a serious issue that troubles the lives of many Muslims in the UK.

Tell MAMA reported on a total of 632 Anti-Muslims hate incidents in 2013, while “the Metropolitan Police, recorded 500 Islamophobic offences – up from 336 in 2012 and 318 in 2011,” reported the Mirror.

Meanwhile in South Wales alone, hate incidents against Muslims witnessed an increase from 52 to 108 in 2013, especially after the death of Fusilier Lee Rigby in Woolwich, London.

However, these numbers are not definite as many, like Azez, choose not to escalate the situation due to fears of negative attention.

Hateful sentiments were extreme in some cases. The Daily Mail reported on a flight from Amsterdam to Newcastle being delayed for two hours when a schoolboy suffered a panic attack seeing another passenger write in Arabic.

A YouGov poll also showed a slight increase in the number of people who believe “British Muslims pose a serious threat to democracy, up to 34% from 30% in November 2012.”

While many believe that little is being done to alleviate this disturbing reality, the Muslim community in the UK remains a target of hate crimes and incidents and the media’s association of Muslims with terrorism and intolerance.