On Wednesday Oldham Council adopted the All-Party Parliamentary Group for British Muslims definition of Islamophobia after a motion was put forward by Arooj Shah. Citing the councils adoption of The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of anti-semitism in 2017 as the precursor to the decision the Labour council is as to be expected making ludicrous comparisons. What the councils anti-semitism policy does is protect people who are racially Jewish both religious and non-religious from the racial persecution seen throughout history including genocide by the nazis in the 20th century. What the councils Islamophobia policy does is protect the Islamic religion from criticism, it is basically a backdoor blasphemy policy excusing the endemic discriminatory practises this theology openly advocates. Unlike Jews Muslims are not a race what they are is a multiracial collective of people who share a theological belief they already protected by equality and freedom of religion laws in the U.K. There is a reason the All-Party Parliamentary Group for British Muslims definition of Islamophobia has not been widely adopted and it’s not because of endemic racism. It is not accepted because the policy allows those who follow Islam to openly continue practising sectarian discriminative practices like their hostility to Ahmadis or the gay community or the endemic misogyny and exclusion of women and girls from decision making and the vile practice of gender apartheid policies at public gatherings. Under this convoluted Labour policy adoption I would be termed Islamophobic for pointing out the Muslim faith openly discriminates against the LGBT community and the Ahmadi faith. Amazingly Arooj Shah who is responsible for this policy lost her safe predominately Muslim St Mary’s seat in 2016 to an independent after a campaign that criticised women for holding any political office. She only regained a place at the council by being shoehorned into the predominantly white South Chadderton ward in 2018.
