Author warns of the ‘silent Jihad’

By Dan Delmar

Bruce Bawer left his native New York City in favour of Amsterdam because he wanted to escape rampant homophobia in the U.S. Instead, he says he found a different kind of discrimination in Europe.

The author of a number of books on religious fanaticism, his most recent work is Surrender: Appeasing Islam, Sacrificing Freedom. Bawer argues that Europe is currently falling victim to a “silent Jihad,” a hidden holy war perpetrated by radical Islamists on Western, social-democratic values. Speaking at a conference last week organized by Islamist watchdog group Point de Bascule, Bawer warned Canadians to not be as complacent as their counterparts across the pond.

Radical Islam “is a subject that a few years ago, wasn’t on my radar. My goal was to write a book celebrating The Netherlands and Amsterdam,” Bawer told the audience. What he saw in major European cities were enclaved communities, ghettos, where residents were “subject to seventh century Islamic law. They could barely speak the language of the country they were born in, thanks to the generosity of the European welfare state.”

In Bawer’s works, he documents cases of European mullahs preaching hate for the values of their home countries, even advocating violence. He pointed to the uproar caused by the publication of cartoons depicting the prophet Mohammed and cases of judges giving lighter sentences to murderers who commit “honour killings,” because the killer was acting within a different cultural prism.

“The Queen knighted Salman Rushdie, but also knighted a man who called for his death,” Bawer said. “They reject equality of the sexes in a thousand ways, both large and small… Islam has met multiculturalism and the world will never be the same.”

Conference organizer Marc Lebuis pointed out that Bawer puts his life in jeopardy by speaking out against Islamism; an ideology that seeks to engrain Islam in the political order. Bawer’s critics, including journalists who have reviewed his books, point out that it is sometimes hard to tell who exactly Bawer refers to in his writing and during his speeches; Islamist religious fanatics who support terrorism or non-violent, observant Muslims or both. At last week’s event at the Omni Hotel, Bawer described the religion of Islam as one that “insists on its own supremacy.” Often speaking in general terms — “they,” “them” — it was sometimes difficult to understand which group Bawer was criticizing.

Bawer said that Europeans, and Canadians, who preach a “live and let live” philosophy are not being true to their liberal roots.

“People going after Islam most often are associated with the right (wing),” he said. “The left doesn’t seem to know what liberal values are anymore and don’t recognize a threat to liberal values when it’s staring them in the face.”