Source: here.
Kalavai venkat, Islam, racists and leftists
The below is from the linked post:
A few months ago, I had written something to the effect:
[Quote – not verbatim] Nobody says, “I oppose racism but I welcome racists.” Everyone understands that if racism is terrible then racists are to be shunned. However, even those who are critical of Islam say, “I am critical of Islam but I welcome Muslims.” Somehow, the moment a hateful ideology which spreads the worst forms of bigotry is packaged as religion critics begin to pull punches. I would rather take a principled stance, “I condemn Islam and I welcome ex-Muslims.” [Unquote]
That post got circulated and eventually reached a leftist American academic. He interacts with me once in a few months. His tone is generally hostile toward me. I respond with jibes and sarcasm. It was no different this time. He wrote, “You just equated 1.8 billion Muslims with racists. Your prejudice-filled mind didn’t even consider the possibility that you were offending Muslims, did it?” I replied, “It is the racists who should feel offended by what I had written. In the bygone centuries, racists did quote the Bible for defense. No longer the case. Today, very few racists insist that their bigotry has a divine mandate. That means anyone could freely condemn racism. A racist belief is not protected by any institution. That means a racist is all by himself and is a vanishing breed. In contrast, a Muslim believes that his bigotry has a divine mandate. Virtually all institutions protect Islam even though it is a repository of bigotry. In other words both Islam and Muslims enjoy institutional protection. So, a racist may be justified in taking offense that I equated an endangered species with a thriving and well cared for one!”