We have seen this in Britain, Atlanta, Toronto, and elsewhere in the West. If someone wants to cut his head and stalk down the street with the blood streaming down, that’s his business, I suppose. It isn’t illegal. But others are likewise free to find it unnerving, disgusting, and possibly a danger to the public health. And it is certainly a sign of an increased assertiveness on the part of Shi’ite Muslims in the West, and a manifestation of a value system that differs radically from that held by most in Western countries.

“Every year, thousands of Shia worshippers take part in the ceremonies, performed to mourn the death of Husayn ibn Ali, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad.”

Find out why that event is so important in The History of Jihad From Muhammad to ISIS.

“SHOW OF FAITH Ashura festival sees children left covered in blood as devout Muslims use knives to slice their heads open,” by Christy Cooney, The Sun, September 10, 2019: