Prominent Aussie Muslims Read Out Mean Tweets They Get; Are Very Good At Handling Grotesque Abuse

Featuring Labor Party NSW MP Jihad Dib and Greens NSW MP Dr Mehreen Faruqi, the Lebanese Muslim Association has released a video of prominent Australian Muslims reading out abusive tweets about them and their religion. Some are atrociously violent and threatening, and others are just baffling (such as the hilariously misguided “turn vegetarian, or piss off back to where you came from.”)

The video comes amidst the 10th year anniversary of the Cronulla race riots, and on a weekend when some sunburnt, Australian flag-wrapped burritos celebrated the violent hate crimes at a “halal-free BBQ” with a spit-roast.

Their original plan was to celebrate at an official memorial rally, but the NSW Supreme Court ruled against it on the grounds that it would stir up racial hatred — but considering a series of Islamophobic attacks peaked in a severed pig head being found in a Western Australian mosque bathroom last week, it doesn’t seem like societal laws are much of a deterrent to Islamophobes.

Equally as timely and important, ABC’s 7.30 aired an interview on Friday with Muslim Afghan refugee Rahila Haidary, who recently approached another gang of sweary, slowly-roasting bratwurst at a Reclaim Australia rally, and answered some of their expectedly-silly questions.

“They said, ‘do you agree with freedom?’ And I said, ‘yes I do’,” Haidary told Leigh Sales.

“The next interesting question that they asked was, ‘would you call yourself a Muslim first or an Australian first?’ I said, ‘I would call myself an Australian first’, and they were surprised, they said ‘why? Aren’t you a proud Muslim?’ I said, ‘I am a proud Muslim.’

“The reason I would call myself Australian first is because [the] Australian constitution gives me the freedom to practise my religion and that’s why I respect this country, that’s why I’m here today.”

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