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Zara Mohammed: Muslims must embrace issues like homosexuality

From a recent interview with Zara Mohammed, the new leader of The Muslim Council of Great Britain.

Muslims must embrace issues such as homosexuality or gay marriage and refrain from advocating intolerant attitudes, the first woman leader of the Muslim Council of Britain has said.

Glasgow-born Zara Mohammed, 29, said that despite the traditions of her faith, which have in the past been hostile to gay rights, everyone deserved to be treated with respect whatever their sexual orientation.

“We have our position, in faith, on some of [those] issues,” she said. “But I don’t think it gives us any justification, or any right to show intolerance or hatred towards anybody. We don’t judge people for that and we don’t vilify them for that, just as we do not expect to be treated in the same manner.

“We are all part of the fabric of society, and I think if we work on principles of fairness of treatment, and we respect our differences of belief and faith, then that should not manifest itself in hatred, intolerance or discrimination.

”She added: “I think that’s a good place to build from as a community, and we can all agree to start from that place. Our faith is our faith, and we can’t change what we believe in, but that doesn’t give us a right to disrespect other peoples’ life choices or beliefs.”

It shows a marked departed from the previous bigoted position of The Muslim Council of Great Britain which held that homosexuality was not acceptable.

As we've seen from shifts in attitudes in American Muslims, Muslims can become more accepting of gay people. I hope Zara Mohammed's stance shows that more British Muslims are moving away from the intolerance belief that homosexuality should be illegal. Maybe more gay people will not be driven to attempt suicide because of the conflict between their sexuality and conservative religion.

Reply 1

SHallowvale

As has been seen with Christians, I think it's inevitable that the Muslim community will embrace more liberal positions.

Reply 2

username4986690

It is an improvement but judging by the the fact she calls it a "life choice" shows there is still a long way to go.

Reply 3

Ascend

Courageous. It shouldn't be, but it is. I hope she stands her ground in the inevitable torrent of bigotry and misogyny.

Original post by osman2790

The first mistake was appointing a female leader.

Reply 4

imlikeahermit

Alas, maybe we’ll see the end of the hypocrisy that is on one hand Muslims claiming racial prejudice and injustice, while on the other being tremendously homophobic.

Reply 5

QE2

Original post by Kitten in boots

Muslims can become more accepting of gay people. I hope Zara Mohammed's stance shows that more British Muslims are moving away from the intolerance belief that homosexuality should be illegal.

People are generally inherently tolerant of homosexuality (why wouldn't you be?). It's just that certain acquired ideologies tell them that they mustn't be.

Reply 6

QE2

Original post by DiddyDec

It is an improvement but judging by the the fact she calls it a "life choice" shows there is still a long way to go.

Baby steps.

Reply 7

username4986690

Original post by imlikeahermit

Alas, maybe we’ll see the end of the hypocrisy that is on one hand Muslims claiming racial prejudice and injustice, while on the other being tremendously homophobic.

I doubt that, this interview is the only mention of this stance and it has not been publicised by either her or MCB.

Reply 8

imlikeahermit

Original post by DiddyDec

I doubt that, this interview is the only mention of this stance and it has not been publicised by either her or MCB.

Yeah I appreciate that, which is why I said maybe. :wink:

I’d assume that while this is a positive step in terms of the council, that to practicing Muslims this will make absolutely no difference whatsoever.

Reply 9

username4986690

Original post by imlikeahermit

Yeah I appreciate that, which is why I said maybe. :wink:

I’d assume that while this is a positive step in terms of the council, that to practicing Muslims this will make absolutely no difference whatsoever.

Until the council makes it an official position it is an utterly meaningless platitude.

Reply 10

harrysbar

Original post by Kitten in boots

From a recent interview with Zara Mohammed, the new leader of The Muslim Council of Great Britain.

It shows a marked departed from the previous bigoted position of The Muslim Council of Great Britain which held that homosexuality was not acceptable.

As we've seen from shifts in attitudes in American Muslims, Muslims can become more accepting of gay people. I hope Zara Mohammed's stance shows that more British Muslims are moving away from the intolerance belief that homosexuality should be illegal. Maybe more gay people will not be driven to attempt suicide because of the conflict between their sexuality and conservative religion.

Good for her, it's a welcome step in the right direction.

Reply 11

hotpud

Original post by SHallowvale

As has been seen with Christians, I think it's inevitable that the Muslim community will embrace more liberal positions.

One of my mates who thinks a bit more deeply than me suggested that world has been becoming more liberal as a whole over the ladt several hundred years and continues to do so.

You get blips like Trump but we've seen how quickly everything he did was undone and progress resumed.

Reply 12

Joleee

i guess i should be impressed, but something about what she said, or at least how she said it, just erks me (maybe i'm just really cynical :h:

). like thanks for the favour of offering the bare minimum here such as tolerance for a 'life style choice' and admitting you don't have a right to show hatred; like here's a medal. i wonder how she would vote on school programmes like No Outsiders or what she would say to her child if they came out of closet.

Reply 13

L i b

Original post by SHallowvale

As has been seen with Christians, I think it's inevitable that the Muslim community will embrace more liberal positions.

Maybe. But British Christians don't really take inspiration from their faith from Christians in the Middle East, America and so on - while, because they're an (often small) minority, European Muslims still maintain those cultural links with their faith in another part of the world. I can't see many of the larger Muslim-majority countries becoming more tolerant on these issues at the same pace as our society changes.

Reply 14

L i b

Original post by imlikeahermit

Alas, maybe we’ll see the end of the hypocrisy that is on one hand Muslims claiming racial prejudice and injustice, while on the other being tremendously homophobic.

Huge numbers of people have opposed prejudice whilst still holding prejudices themselves. How many black civil rights leaders in the United States would've been homophobic? Or misogynistic? There are plenty of gay people who are transphobic. The thing is, none of this really adds much to the discussion. We can always find fault in others. Accusations of hypocrisy might be made against individuals, but they can't really be levelled at an argument or a movement.

Reply 15

L i b

Original post by QE2

People are generally inherently tolerant of homosexuality (why wouldn't you be?). It's just that certain acquired ideologies tell them that they mustn't be.

You cannot split people into things that are 'inherent' and 'acquired'. We are all creatures of our experiences and any ideologies we create are as much a product of that as anything else. There is a human tendency, seen in every society, towards tolerance and sociability. Equally there is a human tendency, again witnessed wherever there are groups of humans, to intolerance and exclusion.

Reply 16

QE2

Original post by L i b

Yes I can, and I just did.
No one is born homophobic, babies are inherently tolerant of homosexuality. They then acquire intolerance from family, community, ideology, etc.
It's not rocket science.

Reply 17

L i b

Original post by QE2

Yes I can, and I just did.
No one is born homophobic, babies are inherently tolerant of homosexuality. They then acquire intolerance from family, community, ideology, etc.
It's not rocket science.

Might I suggest that rocket science doesn't look like rocket science when you're just building paper aeroplanes?

I'd assume it's obvious that intolerance must come from somewhere. Saying "family" simply sets it back a generation. Suggesting intolerance is found in community or ideology ignores the obvious point that these, too, are human creations - and intolerance found in them comes from intolerance in individuals.

Children, as much - if not more - than other human beings are intolerant of difference and divergence. Whether it's towards the ginger-haired boy in the playground or towards children of other creeds and colours, it exploits a drive within human beings which excludes.

Reply 18

Trinculo

Simple question.

Or else, what?

Why *must* Muslims embrace such issues? Or else what? What incentive do they have to do so? Who is going to compel them to do anything?

Nothing. Nothing. No-one. This is a nonsense.