France is a country that has a rich history and culture. It is also inhabited by people from various ethnicities, who add a lot to its lifestyle and heritage. As of 2011, France was considered to have a population of 65.8 million. The top international communities in France include Slavic, North African and Western and Central African, Southeast Asian and the Basque minority. France is one of the most ethnically diverse countries in Europe.
The main population is white Caucasian. North African people represent the largest non-indigenous group that is called Arabs. It comprises Algerians, Tunisians and Moroccans with Algerians representing the largest part in the group. Arabs come from Berber and Kabyles groups. Black African groups come mainly from French colonies of Western and Central Africa. This group is also referred to as African-Caribbeans. The Asian community originates mainly from Vietnam and Laos. The non-French speaking groups originate from China, and Tamil. Other small groups come from Armenia, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Philippines, Georgia, Greece, Haiti, Iran, Italy, India, Korea, Lebanon, Romania and Turkey.

France is known for acknowledging cultural and ethnic differences, but is at the same time famous for racial discrimination problems. These discrimination problems ravaged its black and Arab groups who suffer already from unemployment and integration problems. France prides itself to be a country that recognizes all its citizens regardless of religion, race or origin. While this ideology is a noble one, reality is way different. Ex-President Nicolas Sarkozy suggested considering the American approach of equal opportunity, quotas and accurate statistics to reflect a more truthful image of France.

By France opting to categorize its ethnic groups by race and ethnicity, it would set the way for positive discrimination that is still a form of discrimination. Racial and xenophobia are deeply engraved in the French community. These attitudes are oriented mainly towards minorities and immigrants. Immigrants are usually held responsible for France’s problems including unemployment, decline in the quality of education and crime. Immigrants are seen capable of committing crime more than the average French person. An important portion of the French society thinks that immigrants should be repatriated. Discrimination and hatred acts are punishable by law. Racism can also be depicted in the country’s political system. People disagree whether minorities add value to the country. Tolerance degree varies among the French from the intolerant group to the most tolerant one. Moreover, huge efforts are made to crack down the illegal immigrants whose majority are Arab and Black African.

France views itself as a laic state and thus all funding is not allowed for religious institutions except for those having a cultural association. Islamic institutions are banned from this category as Muslims are considered to not have any historical ties to French history. Even though racism is banned in France, it is clearly a part from its everyday life. This reflects a clear failure of social integration of minorities and immigrants. A significant amount of work should be done to recognize this form of social failure, and combat it.

About the author

UniqueWriter

I am a nice, understanding, caring, sincere, honest, trustworthy, friendly single male from Delhi, India. I'm an experienced writer. I have written many articles in different niches, a fiction book, and some poems.

View the Original article

Trend for Rhinoplasty or “nose job” is on the rise in the entire world; however, its popularity in Iran is unmatched. According to a report by Etemad, Iran has the highest number of nose surgeries in the world, with as many as 200, 000 Iranians, mostly women opting for cosmetic surgery, to acquire pert upturned noses. Another study, conducted by Rhinology research society in Iran in cooperation with John Hopkins University, shows the rate of nose jobs per capita in Iran as seven times higher than that in USA.

Reasons cited by Iranians for such a trend are manifold; however, the basic motive behind all the reasons appears to be the human yearning for attention. In the hopes of attaining this dream, even at this very moment, thousands of Iranians are undergoing painful and expensive nip-tuck procedure.

Reza, who is a psychiatrist and family counselor, says these surgeries are a result of the unhealthy image people have of themselves with many thinking they are very ugly.

Some might say, this obsession with perfecting their facial beauty appears to be the case of Iranian ideals backfiring. All the times, in pursuance of Islamic ideals Iranian women are under compulsion to wear “hijab” (gown, veil or shawl) that covers their body from head to toe leaving the face as the only visible asset. Therefore, women resort to cosmetic surgery to best showcase their faces, since hijab won’t let them seek out attention with a beautiful figure, or flowing tresses. From their standpoint, they are just making use of a facility that progress in science and technology has availed them.

All this rush for nose jobs makes one think it must be very cheap, which is true if you compare costs of surgery in Iran to those incurred elsewhere. However they are exorbitant if you consider Iranian economy. At present cost of an average nose surgery in Iran is 50-100m Iranian rials which is about £1,100-5,000. Iranians are, however, so caught up in their quest for facial perfection that even such steep prices fail to deter them.

Hanieh, 35, an office worker raised 70m Iranian rials for cosmetic surgery by selling her leased car. She said, she was a little worried because it might take several months for the nose to take its final shape. Her concerns stem from post surgery difficulties among other patients whom she has spoken to, these difficulties include the nose being dented or malformed due to rolling around in sleep or a physical blow, respiratory problems, sinus pain and congestion, loss of the sense of smell and growth of extra tissue or bone.

Another woman who had surgery not long ago says that she doesn’t have to be ashamed of her big fat nose anymore, plus she now has a better social life. She says: she hasn’t had any particular problems save for the fact that when she gets a cold, she gets a fiercely runny nose.

In recent years, nose job fever has caught up with the men, as well. Mohammed, who works in a makeup and accessories store, in a busy area of Tehran, cited attracting more customers by looking nice and spiffy, as his main motivation for having a rhinoplasty.

Unfortunately with the demand for cosmetic surgery on the rise, the number of operation performed by unlicensed practitioners has also increased. 7000 quacks, as opposed to the 157 licensed cosmetic surgeons in the capital are performing these operations; this is according to the report recently issued by the pathology research group of the Arya Strategic Studies Center in Tehran. As a consequence, there has been a surge in botched operations with some patients sustaining irreparable damage.

Now the question comes to mind are they happy with the results of all that torture they undergo in the name of beauty? According to a poll, around 30% of people who have cosmetic surgery are not happy with the results.

Atefeh, who now possesses a small and perky nose, says she had a nose job five years ago, when she was 29, in order to land a man but, unfortunately, she is still on the market.

About the author

View the Original article

The young girl, by the name of Malala, who the Taliban wanted to have dead has not only survived, but is now capable of walking. She is one of the survivors and there are not many like her who have been able to live through such vicious attacks. According to the authorities, 15-year-old Malala’s ordeal is not over yet because she will have to be readmitted to the hospital in late January for cranial reconstructive surgery. Malala left the hospital just a couple of days after the vicious gunmen attacked a van in the Pakistani Swabi District around an hour away from Islamabad. The gunmen attacked around six women and a man that worked in the children’s community center. Around five teachers were killed along with two other health care workers in the area.

There was also another attack that unfolded at the time that Malala was released from the hospital. In India there was another shocking issue in which a lady that had dreams of becoming a doctor was brutally raped by a gang of men and later died in a Singapore Hospital. Her story has not just been a big ordeal in India, but it has put the whole nation in a state of shock. The girl’s name has not been released, but it has been said that she and her father had sold their land in a rural area and moved to Delhi so that his daughter could accomplish her dreams of becoming a doctor.  Now this dream is left unaccomplished and the world is left heartbroken by the chilling news.

All of these attacks on women have a connection with each other and are leading to the deaths of innocent lives. These women like the millions of women all over the world have dreams and of becoming successful teachers, doctors, or politicians some day so that they can have a brighter future. The outlook of any country is highly dependent on the people who are able to make it a better place with their talent. It is only those tough women like Malala that are able to promote women’s rights and fight for their lives. Ever since these incidences the world is beginning to recognize the value and contributions of women and girls and educate them on how they can handle difficult situations. In order to fight in difficult times it is essential that one must take a stand and be willing to make a difference. If we all work together and help create a safe society we can prevent dangerous attacks from occurring to protect the women of our society.

These days there are numerous organizations that have been developed for the protection of women’s rights and they are doing a great job of educating the world. These societies are put together by women that want to help other women who have encountered tough times and are in need of assistance.

 

About the author

View the Original article

Muslim Academy’s reason for existence is to be the world’s largest platform to discuss the issues that affect the Islamic and Western Worlds.  We began in 2011 as an Arabic school teaching non native speakers the Arabic language.  In our cross-cultural education, we quickly came to the realization that there were many misconceptions that existed between the Islamic world and the West.  Some misconceptions were silly – like most Americans wearing cowboy hats or most Egyptians living in pyramids.

But other misconceptions were the type that people usually are too afraid to talk about.  They go to the root of the issues between the two civilizations.  Issues such as terrorism, poverty, injustice, power, and politics.  We realized that in the West the world “Muslim” had become a four letter world, and words like “jihad” had been hijacked by people who misused them for other means.  In the Islamic world we realized that there was an unheard voice of people who felt powerless and angry.  Drone attacks, Palestine, and dictators were symbolic of these types of discussion.

Therefore Muslim Academy, instead of pretending those issues don’t exist, set out to be the world’s largest platform for discussing these differences in opinions.  We recognize and respect the fact that there are differences between the West and Islam.  Indeed, having words like “the West” and “Islam” are quite difficult as there are many differences and sects within these two concepts as well.  Islam in Indonesia is very different from Islam in Saudi Arabia.   Plus, America is not England or Germany. There are too many nuances to lump civilizations into mass categories like this.

We have had many successes in our first year.  We have thousands of people visit our site each day.  We are a platform for people who wish to discuss these issues and gain an audience with a truly global reach. For 2013, we want this success to increase by leaps and bounds.  Therefore, our #MyJihad for 2013 is to become the world’s largest platform for discussion the sensitive issues.  The issues that other sites don’t want to talk about out of fear or other reasons.  We want to confront them head on, with eyes wide open, respecting each other’s differences and learning about them.  We believe then, and only then, can we truly begin to understand each other.

We encourage more and more writers to join our community and share in the open marketplace of ideas.  Your voice will be heard.

Happy 2013!

About the author

View the Original article

Unlike other faiths, Islam is not intolerant to other religions. It preaches its followers to give common respect to, to be tolerant of, and to have conversation with people of other religions.

This can be clearly seen from the following example of the Prophet. When the Prophet came to Medina, it was also populated by some idolaters and Jews. The Prophet decided that some form of law should be established so that there would be no misinterpretation or aggression of any sort due to the religious outlook between them and the Muslims. To solve this trouble, the Prophet of Islam issued a contract, commonly known as the Covenant of Medina. Since the Muslims were in the majority, the Prophet’s position became that of a person in charge, or a head of state. He confirmed in this contract that all the populace of Medina would enjoy equivalent human rights. Everyone would be liberated to follow the religion and culture of his or her choice: the affairs of the followers of each religion would be determined according to their belief.

This confirmed that Islam preaches familiar respect. Considering that religious dissimilarities have always existed between people, Islam also preaches us to have open conversation with people in spite of their religion. Fourteen-hundred years ago, the Prophet Mohammad (sallala o alaiehe wasslam) held the first inter-religious conversation in Medina. It was a three-faith conference to swap views on matters related to religion that take place between the followers of different religions like Islam, Judaism and Christianity.

The Quran says: God forbids you not, with regards to those who fight you not for [your] faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them; for God loved those who are just. (Quran, 60:8)

Such attempts have frequently been made in history. The state of affairs that spread following the Second World War led the Christian Church, in particular, to pay great attention to this subject. Dialogues of this nature are frequently being held in a variety of countries, between Muslims and Christians in particular. I too have had the opportunity to contribute in several of these dialogues. The hard work is often worth it. For instance, a mosque was built in Rome for the first time in history.

Although, some contrasts do still exist. For example, the living conditions of non-Muslim societies living in Muslim countries far exceed the conditions of Muslim minorities living in non-Muslim countries. Whether it is the present or the past, we still see a massive dissimilarity regarding this. More dialogue between all cultures will hopefully one day result in peace for all religions.

About the author

View the Original article

To the world who has gathered all of its attention to the cause which a young brave girl is advocating, I ask, why is it always too late to shed light on the grave problems which the Pakistani society faces?

Malala Yousafzai, a brave 14-year-old girl, who was shot by the Taliban, is spotted fighting the toughest battle at a tender age.

Malala Yousafzai stood up for the cause of girls’ education in the Swat valley, Pakistan, after the Taliban had banned the further education of girls. It was this little angel’s courage that was noticed and heard across the world, when she vented out her emotions on the atrocities of the Taliban.

Writers assess the already adverse situation prevailing in Pakistan relating to radicalism and explain the Malala Yousafzai episode as an extension of the Taliban mindset. Earlier, there have been several incidents and, sadly, the government of Pakistan failed to accomplish its parameters in this regard. We are at sheer discomfort with sprawling attacks every now and then by the Taliban. Why do we always blame the Taliban factor? Is it the easy method of passing the buck?

Salman Taseer, was penetrated with 27 bullets when he spoke up against the lawlessness against the minorities in Pakistan. Although many politicians supported him on this cause, they backed-off after his murder. How can we change as a society when we are too afraid to stand up against our grave problems?

We should be ashamed of not building up the courage to bring down the root causes. The whole society, individually or collectively, fails to look at the pertaining issues. Today, the matter of terrorism is the cancer of our society, which is brutally killing the minds and hearts of the people. We are so afraid to stand up or speak out and have no courage to admire or even support our own souls. Malala Yousafzai, who was not the product of our society produced the courage in her, despite a number of threats from left, right and center. Far less privileged, as compared to rest of the people of Pakistan who are technologically advanced and well secure, she didn’t let the element of courage leave her.

Her father, speaking to the media, said lately that surgeons in Pakistan worked for days to save her life after removing a bullet from her neck. Mr. Yousafzai said he was grateful for all their efforts.

“The way they saved my daughter was miraculous,” he said. He said he had stayed in daily contact with medical staff in Birmingham, but had not yet been able to speak to his daughter.

“She is all right. She is improving day by day, inshallah,” he said. “It has been difficult not being with her but at least we knew she was getting better.”

Malala Yousafzai has written a new chapter in the world’s book with her courage and belief in herself; she has achieved galore prayers to fight through this challenge.

 

About the author

▶▶▶▶▶▶ https://twitter.com/Momo_khanTweets ........ ❤(◕‿◕)❤º•○º•○º•○º•○

Life has given you wings to fly, why to crawl through your life !!
Freelance writer and an agony aunt to my friends.
Dreamer, Love my family and certainly a peaceful creature until pinched :) !!

View the Original article

Golden Dawn anti-Muslim posterDressed in black shirts with faces hidden by helmets, ten men on motorbikes came to find him on a Saturday, after darkness fell.

Finding the door bolted at his home in a pot-holed Athens side street, they smashed the windows, broke in and trashed the place. Then, their dirty work done, the neo-Nazi gang roared away into the hot evening. It had taken less than a minute for them to sound an ugly warning that foreigners were not welcome in Greece.

Their target was Imam Shahbaz Siddiqi, a 42-year-old spiritual leader of the Greek capital's 500,000 Muslims. "I was at the mosque praying when they searched for me the other night," he told me yesterday. "I thank God for that, or else I might now be dead.

"During the night I went three times to the police station to report the break-in. At the desk I was told that the officers did not have time to investigate my complaint. They were too busy. There is one law for the Greek people and another for us immigrants."

The attack on Imam Siddiqi is the latest racist outrage by neo-Nazis in a country riddled with xenophobia. In an era of crushing debt and poverty, the immigrant is blamed for almost every Greek ill.

On the same weekend, a young Pakistani immigrant, Hussein Abbas, was viciously attacked outside his home in Elefsina on the outskirts of Athens by the men in dark shirts. He ended up in hospital, his face smashed to a bloody pulp.

So dangerous are the streets for foreigners that the U.S. State Department has sent out a warning to dark-skinned American visitors that they must be careful of their safety when they leave their hotels.

A shocking internet video shows leaders of the anti-immigrant Far-Right Golden Dawn party – which has 18 MPs – marching into an ethnic street market at Rafina, an hour's drive from Athens, destroying the stalls with wooden clubs and scattering the merchandise to the ground.

"We found a few illegal immigrants selling their wares without permits," says Giorgos Germenis, one of the party's MPs. "We did what our party has to do and then went to church to pay respects to the Madonna."

Daily Mail, 18 October 2012

Postscript:  Golden Dawn are not without their admirers on the far right in the UK.

View the Original article

Forty-two religious and secular organizations united on Thursday in condemning conservative lawmakers' allegations that Muslim-American individuals connected to the U.S. government may be trying to spread the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood.

They directed their criticisms at Reps. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), Thomas Rooney (R-Fla.) and Lynn Westmoreland (R-Ga.), who recently wrote to various government agencies and asked them to investigate the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood. In their letters, the lawmakers targeted top State Department official Huma Abedin and several advisers to the Department of Homeland Security.

"[W]e write to raise our voices in protest of your recent letters regarding prominent American Muslim individuals and organizations," the 42 organizations wrote in a letter to the lawmakers on Thursday. "These letters question the loyalty of faithful Americans based on nothing more than their religious affiliations and what is at best tenuous evidence of their associations. As such, your actions have serious implications for religious freedom and the health of our democracy."

The signatories include the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which often sides with Republicans on social issues, along with the Interfaith Alliance, American Civil Liberties Union, American Baptist Churches USA, NAACP and United Church of Christ.

Huffington Post, 26 July 2012

View the Original article

Islam is a complete religion. Our Prophet Mohammad (Peace be Upon Him) has told us and showed us the right way of every aspect of life and we can implement it in this modern world too. So therefore, Islam has also showed us the right way of ruling and how to keep relation with other states.

Islam is a religion of peace and no Muslim State can follow a policy of territorial expansion and unprovoked aggression. The foreign policy of a Muslim state should be such as to advance the cause of Islam and the moral, cultural and political objectives of its society and to preserve and protect its territorial integrity. The Quran and the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) Sunnah provide sufficient guidance to enable a Muslim state to frame its foreign policy.

The first Muslim State in Madinah was established and governed by the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him). It was a confederacy of villages inhabited by Muslims, Jews, Christians and pagan Arabs. Like other aspects of life in Islam, international relations of a Muslim state are based on Divine guidance given in the Quran. They are based on the following principles:

• Belief in the unity of mankind, in origin, in human status and in aims.
• Respect for other people’s interests and rights of life, honor and property, as long as they do not encroach upon the rights of Muslim.
• Maintaining peaceful relations with the exchange of goodwill missions.
• Intolerance of encroachment in international relations. The Islamic state must defend itself and suppress all attempts to violate or disturb its peace, or endanger its security or exploit its peaceful policies.

The law of war and peace in Islam does not allow an aggressive war nor makes the killing of people and animals or the destruction of crops; homes and places of worship its objective. It does not allow the killings of woman, children and aged people nor the torture of war prisoners or the imposition of its teaching on the conquered people. It is only a defensive measure justified as long as wrong, injustice and aggression exists in the world.
Fulfilling the obligation undertaken by the Muslim state and honoring the treaties concluded between the Islamic State and other states. This is binding as long as the other parties remain faithful to their obligation and honor their treaties.

The state does not exist only for itself and its own subjects. It has a wide scope and an important mission in the international field. It has not only to strive for the prosperity and advancement of its own citizens but also makes valuable contributions to humanity on an international level in education, economics, industry, politics and other fields.

Islam seeks to establish a world community, with complete equality among people without distinction of race, class or country. It seeks to convert by persuasion, allowing no compulsion in religion beliefs. According to Islam, it is the duty of every individual to make constant efforts for spreading good and preventing evil.

“You are the best of the nations raised up for (the benefit of) men, you enjoin what is right and forbid the wrong and believe in Allah.” (Surah Al-Imran 3:110)

View the Original article