By Communist Workers League
Communist Workers League declares its solidarity with all of our Muslim sisters and brothers all over the world. We especially condemn and grieve the senseless massacre of 50 Muslims in Christchurch, New Zealand, and wish the families the strength to move forward.
Islamophobia is rooted in racism, white supremacy, and the political structures which support it. It focuses on targeting expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness. The other, the stranger.
Racism was used to justify slavery in the U.S. and was dependent on stolen labor. The dehumanization enabled the brutal treatment and built the economy of the southern plantation owners, northern industrialists, as well as the European manufacturers and traders. German fascism dehumanized Jewish people, Roma, Sinti, people with disabilities, and LGBTQ people as scapegoats to try to take over Europe “to build the Aryan race.” White supremacy is an ideology that comes from this system of economic entitlement. The violence that comes with it is often sanctioned by the system.
Trump is one of the symptoms of the last stages of capitalism. His comments that “there are good people on both sides” after Charlottesville are the words of a white supremacist. He himself says he is a nationalist. During his campaign, he consistently demonized Muslims and used demeaning stereotypes. The fear of “foreigners” taking “their” space and resources is used to justify acts of violence, as we saw in this latest horrific massacre. Trump has created a mass delusion within his base. This type of delusion that “the other” is the enemy fuels the white nationalist attack. The danger of right-wing governments gaining a foothold is very much based on this ideology.
“The attack on the Al Noor Mosque and the Linwood Islamic Centre in Christchurch is driven by a white nationalism that fuels attacks on mosques, Black churches, and synagogues, and the heightened assault on migrants here in the US. And it is this same white nationalism expressed in the Trump Administration, its Muslim ban, the disgraceful Islamophobic attacks on Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, and the forced separation of families at the border.” [from the 3/15/19 statement by the Arab Resource and Organizing Center]
The Communist Workers League calls for tearing off the mask of white supremacy and calling it what it is. We need to work together to allow for the possibility that is there for all of us.
“As we mourn the loss of life in New Zealand, let’s honor their lives by expanding, connecting and defending our movements to build a world where all people are liberated from structural violence and can live with dignity and self-determination.” [AROC 3/15/19]
Communist Workers League
March 24, 2019
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