Religious Based Identity Politics is a Threat to Secular Liberal Values
Israel Palestine conflict is a topic rarely discussed outside of the realm of religion-based politics. In the wake of the Oct 7th massacre of Israeli citizens, the religious aspect of this conflict has become mainstream. This brand of Identity politics with a lot more focus on religious affiliation has been weaponized to control public opinion in the UK and abroad.
Such a brand of toxic Identity politics has immensely influenced people's perceptions of the complex historical, social, and political realities of the Middle East.
As a result, siding with pro-Palestine demonstrations in the West has been associated with moral superiority and righteousness, and supporting Israel's right to defend its civilians or merely being Jewish has become morally repugnant. Moral judgments based on religious tribalism have been made to manipulate people’s emotions.
During the pro-Palestine marches, the horrific terror attack on Oct 7th has been portrayed as an act of “resistance” and any opposition to this perspective is seen as an act of fostering anti-Muslim sentiments.
Even Criticising Hamas- a terrorist organization has become a contentious matter now. No wonder such biased and prejudicial perspectives on the current crisis in Gaza have been used to justify growing anti-Semitism on the streets of the UK.
The Community Security Trust has reported that since October 7th, anti-Semitic occurrences of violence, vandalism, and abuse in the UK have more than doubled which is unprecedented but not surprising at all.
It is an open secret how Islamists have infiltrated the pro-Palestine marches while taking advantage of this continuous conflict and using it as a springboard. Sadly, such overzealous religious identity-based activism has become instrumental at the hands of these Islamists. This has only exacerbated the situation.
Violent altercations between some protesters and police, anti-Semitic chants, and the display of anti-Semitic placards have caused significant tensions.
Scarves or ski masks are used by criminal elements to cover their faces to avoid accountability.
The right to protest is a human right, however, when extremist elements exploit that right to incite hatred and create chaos, it's critical to confront the problem head-on. However, the question is how to tackle this situation without compromising our right to protest?
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