From the cold-blooded murder of Nabra in West Virginia to the Finsbury Park terrorist attack in London, it is clear that Islamophobia is well and truly growing.
It has only just been revealed that the missing teen in Fairfax County was found dead in a pond after being beaten to death. Nabra was just an innocent 17-year-old girl, hanging out with friends while they made their way back to the mosque, when she was attacked and taken by a 22-year-old man. It is clear that this was an act fuelled by Islamaphobia and extreme views.
Nabra was targeted for being a Muslim but what is so threatening about a 17-year-old girl? What compels you to beat someone to death?
The same night, we found out about Finsbury Park – where a white man went out of his way to hire a van and run over Muslims leaving the mosque. This too was powered by Islamophobic and hate fueled views.
However, mainstream media need to stop sugarcoating this as just some ‘incident’ because what happened last night was a terrorist attack.
But again, like usual, we have the BBC reporting a ‘van running over pedestrians’, failing to mention the victims. Is religion only important when Muslims are the attackers? The van certainly did not drive itself and by failing to mention who the attacker was and who his victims were you are ignoring the issue of Islamophobia that is becoming more and more popular.
This doesn’t just apply to one source. Last night, we also had the Daily Mail reporting the white man as ‘clean-shaven’ as if that was relevant in any way. Is it only terrorism if the attacker has a beard? With these kinds of headlines, mainstream media are actually minimizing the real issue. These aren’t just any random acts that hardly happen. Sadly, Nabra hasn’t been the only victim, these kind of attacks are occurring more frequently. Statistics show that hate crimes against Muslims have increased by 40% in the UK and 78% in the US.
These stories need to be covered more because by not paying attention or emphasizing these attacks, the media is partly to blame for the rise of Islamophobia.
Even though this trend of sensationalism isn’t something new, news sources both nationally and internationally need to understand that biased or inaccurate headlines have real-life consequences.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Nabra and the people close to her. You can donate here to help with funeral costs and support her family here.
