Do Muslims really want to be 'freed' from Islam?
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Re: "For peace, there must be social cohesion regardless of belief," Letters, May 27.
Contrary to JC Wilcox’s claim, I was right to say that he is anti-Muslim because, in my experience, the vast majority of Muslims would see an attack on their religion as a personal insult. Furthermore, I was also correct to refer to the medieval origins of Islam – historians generally assume the medieval period to extend from the 5th to 15th centuries.
As regards the writer’s reaffirmation of his apocalyptic vision of Europe being overrun by Muslim migration, it is worth pointing out that the current proportion of the UK population who are Muslim is only around 5 per cent, projected to increase to 8.2 per cent by 2030. By the way, the writer’s claim that churches have been “commandeered” is misleading evidence in support of his notion that Muslims (sorry, Islam!) are threatening and militant. In fact, as far as I am aware, these redundant churches have simply been purchased or rented by Muslim congregations.
I am sure that the vast majority of Muslims would be bewildered and upset by the writer’s claim that they suffer as much from Islam as does the non-Muslim world, and that they need to be freed from the belief in which they are supposedly entrapped. However, he offers no suggestions as to precisely how this dubious objective might be achieved. Any ideas, Mr Wilcox?
Robin Grant
