«"I firmly oppose the West's question: 'What do we have to do to make Muslims like us?' They don't like you." Yasmine Mohammed is very frank. She believes the time has come to stand up and defend Western values. A Canadian activist of Egyptian and Palestinian descent, a former Muslim, she came to Italy to the Turin Book Fair to present Without the Veil: How the West Strengthens Radical Islam (Hope Edizioni). Mohammed's childhood and adolescence were marked by the fundamentalism imposed by her mother. Forced prayers, punishments, mandatory hijab, and an arranged marriage at 19 to an al-Qaeda member, from whom she fled at the risk of her life. Today, she is among the most courageous voices against radical Islamism.
He leads the Yasmine Mohammed Podcast where he interviews Middle Eastern dissidents.
Arranged marriages, prayers for girls, separate prayer spaces, polygamy, grooming gangs, taharrush gamea, female genital mutilation. In Europe, we are witnessing the spread of practices and crimes incompatible with women's freedom. In many cases, these phenomena are downplayed and/or tolerated, especially by progressives, in the name of multiculturalism or cultural relativism. If you condemn them, you are automatically labeled an Islamophobe. How can you take a critical stance without being labeled a racist while simultaneously promoting integration?
«The reason they use these terms is to control your speech. It's to keep you quiet, so they can continue to do what they want without anyone bothering them, without any restrictions. The moment you say, "This hurts women, this is abuse, this is wrong," you create an obstacle. They don't want you to speak up. They don't want anyone to put a stop to these practices. It's obvious they're trying to prevent people from stopping them so they can continue to do what they want.
And actually, it's our responsibility. That's the point. We can't ask them to stop doing what they want. All we can do is protect ourselves. And so, when they try, through their subversive methods, to do all these things that are harmful to the West, we must stand up and oppose them. So, if that means having to deal with the consequences of being called a bigot, or an Islamophobe, or a racist, or whatever… Who cares? What's the alternative?
You mentioned grooming gangs. That's a perfect example. When these young girls were being raped across the UK, journalists were afraid to speak out, politicians were afraid to speak out, and people at women's shelters were afraid to speak out. And as a result, this meant that more and more young girls became victims. So, through our silence, just because we don't want people to insult us, we facilitate the continuation of this violence against the victims.
We find ourselves in a position where we have to make a choice: will we have courage? Will we have guts? Will we assert ourselves or will we lose??».
What do you think of Iranian dissidents, how they oppose the Islamic regime?
«The way they rebel is incredible. They're like superheroes. When they take to the streets, take off their hijabs and burn them, and the Revolutionary Guards are there with their guns ready to shoot, ready to throw them in jail, that's the kind of courage. When you look at those women and then say, 'Oh, I don't want to talk because someone might call me an Islamophobe,' well, it's embarrassing. You live in a free country, you know? So we have to be more courageous, and we have to protect the civilization we have, protect the progress we've made, especially as women.
A disturbing aspect of your book's analysis of Islam is the rigid structure that provides order and relieves individuals of the need to choose, think, and generally from their responsibilities, which are perceived as a burden. You mention that this rigid structure was a relief to your mother, who found herself alone with children in a foreign country. How can we Westerners provide an alternative to those who feel disoriented or confused here, especially women, who are often more isolated?
«"Well, I firmly oppose the question that is constantly asked in the West, namely: 'What more can we do to make Muslims like us? What more can we do to support Muslims?' They don't like you! (laughs) It's like when they say: 'What more can we do to make Muslims feel welcome? Why do they always separate? Is it because they don't feel comfortable integrating into society?' No, it's because they don't want to!
There's that verse (ayah) about not taking non-Muslims as friends. They come to these countries because there's cleanliness, there's healthcare, there's education... They have so many freedoms here that they don't have in their own countries, but that doesn't mean they love Western civilization. It means they're willing to use it. It's a question of opportunity.".
Your mother was a fundamentalist fanatic even though she lived in Canada.
«If my mother had wanted, she could have attended a women's group, she could have gone to women's shelters. There's so much, we have so many social programs everywhere, always available to those seeking those kinds of things. But she, at that point in her life, felt like... I don't know if you remember this passage from my book, but she hated the West because my father had had an affair with an American woman. And so, for my mother, all Western women are whores, all Western civilization is corrupt. So she was looking for this, you see, it fueled her vision of things. This whole ideology of Islamism fueled her idea that the West is bad and evil and that Islam is the answer.
You don't believe a profound reform of Islam is possible, but you believe in a sort of revolution among individuals, especially men, who can embrace a version more compatible with women's rights and human rights. Can you elaborate on this topic and give us some examples, perhaps starting with the younger generations?
«Yes, I mean, it's exactly like the Bible. It's full of a lot of things, but people don't choose to follow every single word, like stone people, right? We ignore a lot of things in the Old Testament, if not everything. And of course, the New Testament is much better, more humane. But the point is, it's up to each individual to choose to ignore the parts they feel don't align with their values. And that's why it's theoretically possible. I know quite a few Muslims who choose to still be part of the religion, but they've carefully selected many things, eliminating misogyny, homophobia, racism, violence... They've discarded all of that. Those are the people I'd prefer to have as neighbors.
But I don't want to, I don't see the value in selecting and saving only a few things from something that is supposed to be sacred doctrine. If I am more moral than this book, why should I ever follow this book? So, it's simply a personal choice.".
Through your nonprofit organization, Clarity Coalition, you support ex-Muslims in Europe and other countries. What are the biggest challenges ex-Muslims face?
«We're stuck in the middle. Between people in the Islamic world who want us to keep quiet—and we're talking about those on the right, meaning the religious conservatives of the Muslim world—and, on the other side, the left in Western countries, who also want us to keep quiet. As a result, we're stuck in the middle: neither the East nor the West wants to hear our voice. It's a really difficult position to be in.
And the most frustrating thing is that no one loves the West more than people like me, who understand that we would never have achieved our freedoms if we hadn't lived in the West. We understand the value of the West. But when we cry out for the West to protect itself, it's because we understand exactly what you're up against. We've lived this life. And the fact that we're being silenced and demonized is as if the West were suicidal. That's what it feels like sometimes.
Silvia Di Paolo
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