News
Ellen Stewart
Jan 10, 2016
![British Muslims share their experiences of everyday Islamophobia in the UK in this powerful video](https://www.indy100.com/media-library/image.jpg?id=28095912&width=1245&height=700&quality=85&coordinates=73%2C0%2C73%2C0)
"We don't really have anything to prove, but at the same time people expect us to prove so much."
This is the sentiment expressed by just one young Muslim living in the UK in the wake of the Paris attacks.
In the weeks following an Isis-led massacre in the French capital which left 130 people dead, hate crimes against British Muslims rose 300 per cent.
And now, in a video from Dazed, a selection of young Britons have spoken out about the everyday Islamophobia they face in the UK.
"What kind of future do we have here?" That is the question posed by those interviewed for the short entitled Do You Know Who I Am?
A number of those interviewed called into question the media's role in perpetuating anti-Muslim sentiment.
I think the media has a massive role to play. The media's demonisation of Muslims... this is not from my own personal experiences because when I was growing up every time I'd mention this people were like 'No this is just a figment of your imagination, [the] media's role is to just produce.'
One young woman asked how the general public were expected to see things differently when Muslims are often painted in such a specific and arguably damning light.
If they're reading these articles every single day then what else are they going to think about it? It's just kind of sad that has such a big hold over people. And I think if people saw the good things Muslims were doing in the community then maybe they would think differently.
Even the simplest of everyday activities can be trying as a British Muslim, as one participant laid out in her experience taking the train to and from university:
Every day on my journey to uni... you see people looking at you differently. Just the general atmosphere and body language gives it away. They're not entirely comfortable being around a person with a headscarf.
More: Muslims around the world respond brilliantly to Isis leader's call to arms
More: This pigeon joke sums up the absurdity of asking Muslims to apologise for Isis
Top 100
The Conversation (0)
x