Are you a racist? And if you were, how would you ever know? It’s just not the kind of thing we say, or sometimes we aren’t even aware of it.
No one is ever going to admit that they hold a secret hankering to join the Ku Klux Klan.
You know the famous phrases, “I can’t be a racist, my best friends are black / Asian” (*delete as appropriate).
Or the alternative: “I’m not a racist but…” Hint: if you need to say that, then you probably are.
Or even the dismissal through sheer incredulity: I can’t be racist! I’m brown / black / Arab / Muslim, I’m the victim!” Wrong. A victim can also be a perpetrator.
So, are you ready to find out if you need to weed out those discriminatory tendencies and unwitting racism?
Here’s my handy four-point guide for you.
First, All Lives Matter rather than Black Lives Matter?
If so, you probably like to make the point that the sky is blue and grass is green. Of course every life is important. But to deny that some lives are given inherently less importance including the right to life and freedom – in this case black lives, but it could apply to many others – is to deny the very real and often fatal discrimination against people who are considered "the other".
Second, do you believe there are other groups in society that are the cause of our social problems? And that if they have certain rights and freedoms restricted that is for the benefit of all?
If someone tells you that they are experiencing a form of discrimination, don’t blame them. Don’t say they are playing the victim. Too often, racism isn't even given another thought when it’s dished out to others even if we aren’t involved. We see it as a problem only when we are affected often inadvertently.
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Read more from Shelina Janmohamed
This is what happened when I challenged a cyberstalker
There’s no such thing as a perfect mother ... and I've given up trying to live like one
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This week in the UK, a white head teacher of an elite public school has complained that the Prevent strategy, which requires schools to assess pupils for extremism, is putting an excessive burden on him in administration terms.
The news coverage talks about how the policy is aimed at Muslims and unfairly targets Muslim children – even though the government has always claimed this is not specific to Muslims. It doesn't get coverage until unwittingly a leading white male points out that it is a ridiculous statutory requirement.
Think carefully, are you exhibiting a Selfish I’m Alright Jack form of racism?
Third, even when faced with the evidence that you are doing something racist you don't admit that you are actually doing racist things. Also known as Don't Be A Charlottesville Racism Denier.
The photos of the Charlottesville protest featured 20-year-old white student Peter Cvjetanovic shouting angrily as part of the white supremacist rally. But seeing his picture circulating globally he claimed that he was not an "angry racist". Buddy, you need to see what your actions stand for and admit it. He also added that he "cares for all people". See point one.
Finally, are you trying to make the world better but people keep telling you you’re actions are racist?
This is the hardest one to admit. But if by tackling racism you are actually using racist means and ideas then all you’re actually doing is perpetuating stereotypes.
A Channel 4 documentary in the UK aired following a white woman living with a Muslim family. My Week as a Muslim saw her "brownfaced" and a big nose prosthetic and new teeth given to her. She underwent an epiphany about how Muslims are human "just like us". Heartwarming, human and a huge challenge to those who have never spent time with Muslims, right?
Here’s the problem: it perpetuates stereotypes of Muslims that they are brown, that they look different, that Muslims should make more effort to reach out, that there is only one way to be Muslim.
And an even bigger problem: racism exists only when white people say it does. Those who experience it are not believed.
It’s not hard to not be racist. Just be a decent human being. Simple.
Shelina Zahra Janmohamed is the author of Generation M: Young Muslims Changing the World
INFO
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
EGYPT SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Ahmed El Shennawy, Mohamed El Shennawy, Mohamed Abou-Gabal, Mahmoud Abdel Rehem "Genesh"
Defenders: Ahmed Elmohamady, Ahmed Hegazi, Omar Gaber, Ali Gazal, Ayman Ahsraf, Mahmoud Hamdy, Baher Elmohamady, Ahmed Ayman Mansour, Mahmoud Alaa, Ahmed Abou-Elfotouh
Midfielders: Walid Soliman, Abdallah El Said, Mohamed Elneny, Tarek Hamed, Mahmoud “Trezeguet” Hassan, Amr Warda, Nabil Emad
Forwards: Ahmed Ali, Mohamed Salah, Marwan Mohsen, Ahmed "Kouka" Hassan.
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
The Bio
Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”
Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”
Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
Emergency phone numbers in the UAE
Estijaba – 8001717 – number to call to request coronavirus testing
Ministry of Health and Prevention – 80011111
Dubai Health Authority – 800342 – The number to book a free video or voice consultation with a doctor or connect to a local health centre
Emirates airline – 600555555
Etihad Airways – 600555666
Ambulance – 998
Knowledge and Human Development Authority – 8005432 ext. 4 for Covid-19 queries
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
