Future Retirement Success
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks

Future Retirement Success

Investing

Should Muslims Really Welcome Denmark’s Proposed Anti-Blasphemy Law?

by August 29, 2023
August 29, 2023
Should Muslims Really Welcome Denmark’s Proposed Anti-Blasphemy Law?

Mustafa Akyol

Tension is growing in Sweden and Denmark, and in much of the Muslim world, because of recent public burnings of the Qur’an in those two European nations. The burnings sparked furious protests in Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Lebanon, and other Middle East countries. Sweden and Denmark denounced the burnings as reprehensible but stressed that such actions are protected by free speech laws.

Four days ago, however, the Danish government announced plans for what can be called an anti‐​blasphemy law. Improper treatment of the Qur’an or Bible, Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said, would constitute a criminal offense punishable by a fine and a jail sentence of up to two years.

Many Muslims may welcome this as good news, thinking that the Danish government is finally showing proper respect to the Qur’an. But as a Muslim who also deeply respects the Qur’an, I think differently.

My first reason is about the very notion of blasphemy and the right way to counter it. I have no doubt that burning a scripture is a deeply offensive act that deserves moral condemnation. I also think it only reveals the crudeness of the blasphemer: if he had a real argument against that scripture—or any book—he could put it in words. Burning books, instead of criticizing them, is what barbarians do.

However, condemning blasphemy is one thing; banning it is another. And as I have argued elsewhere, the Qur’an itself does not call for banning; it tells Muslims to respond to mockery of their religion by simply showing patience (3:186) and staying away (4:140). (Post-Qur’anic “Islamic law” does impose the death penalty on blasphemers, but this can be seen as a medieval vestige that Muslims can disavow, as I and some other Muslim scholars have argued.)

Second, Muslims should think about what they really achieve when blasphemy against Islam is banned, whether in Denmark or elsewhere. Does this make people in those countries respect Islam? I don’t think so, for the people who hate Islam (“Islamophobes”) will believe what they believe, and such bans will probably make them only more agitated.

Many other people will roll their eyes over a religion that they see as too thin‐​skinned. Meanwhile, governments that ban anti‐​Islam expressions will do this grudgingly, just to reduce the threats against the safety of their citizens, as the Danish justice minister explicitly noted.

Some Muslims may still see a victory in that, but I don’t. I don’t see any value in “respect for Islam” that is imposed with threats. Instead, respect for Islam, or any religion, should be cultivated through ethical behavior. And the latter includes dignity, instead of fury, in the face of offense.

Third, these blasphemy incidents in Europe—from cartoons of Prophet Muhammad to Qur’an burnings — seem to have made many Muslims averse to the very notion of freedom of speech. This freedom, they seem to think, only works for those who want to insult their religion. So, it better be curbed.

Yet that is not the case at all because freedom of speech not only allows offenses against a religion. It also allows the defense and the proclamation of that religion, which Muslims have been freely practicing in Western liberal democracies by opening mosques, publishing books, and gaining converts.

For example, just after the Qur’an burning incidents in Sweden, the Kuwaiti government announced it would distribute 100,000 copies of the Qur’an in Swedish — freely, and thanks to free speech. This would be unthinkable in authoritarian regimes with little free speech, such as China or North Korea.

A new anti‐​blasphemy law in Denmark, coupled with a global shrinking of freedom of expression, is a real concern that Muslims cannot ignore. This contraction of free speech includes the ridiculous French bans on Muslim dress codes, which are getting worse and worse.

It also includes a new ruling by the Brazilian Supreme Court that criminalizes “homophobic slurs,” a vague definition that could target people with traditional beliefs about human sexuality, which includes most Muslims.

If freedom of speech shrinks further in Europe, Muslims will find their own religious expressions banned, as the Islamophobes who want to ban the Qur’an—saying that it includes “hate speech”—seriously advocate.

In other words, freedom of speech is a crucial right that everybody — from the most secular to the most religious — retains, the right to express themselves without fear. Therefore, I do not see more restrictions on speech as good news, even for ostensibly protecting the Qur’an.

0
FacebookTwitterGoogle +Pinterest
previous post
1.8 Million in Employment-Based Green Card Backlog
next post
Predicting Tomorrow’s Price Movements Today: Introducing the Williams Cycle Forecast

You may also like

An Incredible Example of How Globalization Puts the...

November 8, 2023

Benjamin Anderson (1949): The Crowning Financial Folly of...

April 8, 2025

Does Austin Need an $8 Billion Light Rail...

October 31, 2024

Central Planning Will Not Solve California’s Housing Shortage

September 24, 2024

Friday Feature: Riverside Club for Adventure & Imagination

November 10, 2023

Maryland’s Certificate-of-Need Law for Higher Education

September 8, 2023

The FDA Finally Removes a Huge Barrier to...

March 7, 2025

The Case Against Antitrust

March 28, 2024

Ending the US Department of Education: Status Report

June 24, 2025

The GOP’s Modest Debt Limit Proposal

April 25, 2023

    Get free access to all of the retirement secrets and income strategies from our experts! or Join The Exclusive Subscription Today And Get the Premium Articles Acess for Free

    By opting in you agree to receive emails from us and our affiliates. Your information is secure and your privacy is protected.

    Recent Posts

    • Trump 1.0 alums share chilling Google message from before second-term return: ‘LAWFARE at its finest’

      August 2, 2025
    • Trump closes week with plans to reposition subs amid heightened Russia tension, new tariffs

      August 2, 2025
    • Inside the Biden cover-up probe: 8 aides questioned, more on the way

      August 2, 2025
    • BROADCAST BIAS: ABC compares Sydney Sweeney ad to Nazis as networks go nuts about her ‘genes’

      August 2, 2025
    • Jeremy Hunt: ‘We’re over-medicalising anxiety and depression with sick notes’

      August 2, 2025
    • Cambodia to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize for role in ending country’s conflict with Thailand

      August 2, 2025

    Categories

    • Business (8,652)
    • Investing (2,168)
    • Politics (16,286)
    • Stocks (3,228)
    • About us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Disclaimer: futureretirementsuccess.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

    Copyright © 2025 futureretirementsuccess.com | All Rights Reserved