2015. What a year it has been. In January, masked gunmen attacked the Charlie Hebdo office in Paris, and shot dead 12 of its employees. A work of Islamist radicals opposing the lampooning of Prophet Muhammad on the magazine cover. Soon, the whole world was chanting "Je suis Charlie" in support of the publication and a message of condemnation of "Islamic" terror, but not Islam. The Muslim world was divided on its verdict. While a majority condemned the killings, there was near unanimity in the community that the publication was asking for trouble by being insensitive to the moral sensibilities of the world's largest practiced religion. Guess it made the non Muslim world interpret the condemnation as a forced lip service.November. Another bad month for Paris this year. A serial attack by followers of what has now become the largest Islamist radical group - ISIS - killed some 130 people and injured hundreds more. Some of the perpetrators had been admitted into the European territory along with the many thousands of real refugees fleeing war torn Syria and Iraq. For many, the refugee situation is a creation of the bombing runs made by Europe and US to get rid of President Assad and the ISIS. The world was shocked. It was labeled as the next biggest attack on the West after 9/11. This time around, the Muslims stood up in majority to voice anger on the attack and in defense of the religion as one that does not support, nor needs the support of violence to speak for it.
A disturbed Europe suddenly began to show signs of slipping into a state of "Islamophobia" where every Muslim is being labeled either as a terrorist or terrorist supporter. The social media has become the center stage for a grand debate on the reasons for, and the danger of, the polarization of society along religious lines. Somehow, sane voices are being drowned by the noise of fear that keeps getting louder and clearer with each event.
Moving across the Atlantic, we reach the most hated "devil" nation for the Islamic world to which almost every Muslim wants to migrate to - America. The former blames the latter for all its woes, be it the control over oil, to supply of weapons to the highest bidders, or changing regimes to suit its interest and even waging a war to destroy the religion. Yet it is a magnet for the world, the land of opportunity, and not just for the Muslims.
Mr. Donald Trump, the leading contender in the US presidential race had stunned the world with his views on how immigrants from Mexico to China have reduced the greatness of the nation. His panacea for making America "Great" again - keep immigrants out. But, what was more shocking was that instead of being booed out of the race, his popularity has soared, probably reinforcing his own belief that he has caught the pulse of the voting population. Maybe, it is his rising popularity or the shooting in San Barnardino that prompted him to step on the gas pedal and motor mouth his latest view on banning Muslim immigrants into America to curb terrorism on its land. Nationality bashing is one thing but religious lashing is another. His words have fallen on the Muslim world like a nuke on Japan. While leaders around the world and Muslims who do business with Trump are distancing themselves from him and his remarks, he seems to be convinced about what he has said; and he is certainly not alone to hold that view. There are quite a few in America who feel that immigrants (meaning non white and non Afro-Americans) have messed up the Country. It's a different matter that most mass killings in the recent past in the US have been carried out by what constitute "The Americans" as is presumed by the likes of Trump.
There is joke circulating in India that a radical right winger group may gladly anoint him as its leader - should he fail to become the President, even though he has spoken out against Indian immigrants too. Jokes aside, will such thinking actually force greater radicalization and even greater polarization pushing the world to a brink? Mr. Trump may not have slain a single person but he has succeeded in doing something worse, a far greater damage than any killing would achieve. What a way to end this year? My heart bleeds for what I truly consider as the greatest nation on earth. God, please save America from its own.
Well, I am packing my bags for a holiday trip to North Korea. At least the ideology of the leader there is constant predictable.
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