In the aftermath of 9/11 two competing ideologies have emerged surrounding the religion of Islam. The right has taken an anti-stance- rebelling against the notion of religious tolerance in order to portray Islam as a violent faith. The left has reacted to this intolerance by deafly repeating the same trite cliche; “Islam is a religion of peace.” Both reactions are merely two sides of the same coin, and neither does very much to help the victims of Islamic terror or the victims of Islamophobia.

First look at the right wing intolerance. When America was attacked on 9/11, many people saw this as an attack on not only the nation, but on their faith as well. The terrorists were Muslims, and were following a version of Islamic faith in the same way that homophobic Christians are following a version of Christian faith. It is important to recognize that this reaction, although unfactual, does contain a grain of truth. All religions have sects and movements which promote what Americans would label as “conservative” or “traditional” values. These may include regressive views towards the roles of women, men, homosexuals, transgender people, and the general categories of the “other.” The hypocritical side of this is the fact that conservative politicians in the US are also often intolerant of these groups. The traditional roles of men and women, as the breadwinner and homemaker, are championed by Christian and Muslim fundamentalist movements alike. Homosexuals are seen as immoral or unnatural from various Christian and Muslim perspectives. Recently, however, libertarian movements as well as centre-right movements have adopted a more friendly stance towards homosexuals, which basically says “I don’t like what you do, but you are free to do what you wish.” This allows them to be hyper-critical of the regressive policies and laws in majority Muslim countries in the Middle East, while still promoting Christian values. As a result, the right is oftentimes powerfully against Islam, and is not entirely wrong but certainly not entirely correct in its judgments. This has created a powerful movement which has already fueled two wars in the Middle East.

Left wing acceptance of Islam is similarly contrary in nature. The sacred cows of the modern left- women, gays, minorities, trans people (victims of societal oppression)- are oftentimes treated very poorly in majority Muslim countries. Ayaan Hirsi Ali, in this WSJ article, writes “The Orlando massacre is a hideous reminder to Americans that homophobia is an integral part of Islamic extremism.” Despite this, the cliche of “Islam is a religion of peace” continues to pop up after any claim that Islam may in fact be a regressive institution. In addition, at a time when the left is focused on critiquing institutional oppression, Christianity is harshly critiqued while Islam is ignored. According to Pew Research, 93% of Palestinians do not accept homosexuality. Despite this, leftist activist routinely fight for justice for Palestine, while rarely mentioning the fact that the people they are fighting would be against a large part of their leftist social agendas. While women are mutilated en masse in the name of Islam and forbidden from driving or even leaving the country without a man, Islam often avoids criticism from leftist feminists while America and Western Europe are seen as having oppressive attitudes toward women. In many European countries, there is a resultant cultural class. Pro-immigrant movements seek to protect refugees, while those same refugees may be opposed to the tolerant climate they have migrated to.

It really seems to come down to this: The left and right are using Islam to fight a proxy moral war. Like the Cold War, both sides are avoiding direct conflict by projecting their issues and problems onto other peoples. Islam is oppressive towards women; but not in a unique way. Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism and most other religions currently hold or have held what we would consider sexist beliefs. At the same time, Muslims are genuinely unsafe in many parts of America (as well as people who”look Muslim”, like Sikhs) and Europe. Far-right politicians in France, Austria, Sweden, and several countries are echoing 20th century dictators in the zealous hatred of immigrants and Muslims. Donald Trump has endorsed banning Muslim immigration and adopting a registration system. The right and left, however, largely fail to pose solutions to these real problems, precisely because they are projecting their own fears onto Islam. Leftists fear social discrimination and intolerance, while rightists fear state oppression and societal decay. It is almost comical how the left ends up apologizing for social oppression and the right ends up endorsing state oppression.

How can this problem be solved? By reflective and critical thinking, not only of Islam but of our own ideologies. Leftists must realize that Islam is indeed an oppressive institution, even if a vast majority of its adherents are peaceful people. Contemporary rhetoric on racism and sexism provide the perfect vehicle for such reflections. The right must realize that immigration and individual Muslims or a lack of Christianity are not the real problems, and accept that America aggression in the middle east is the reason much of the hatred of America. The anti-government sentiments on the right have already begun to unravel the myth of American exceptional-ism, and the Tea Party movement had strong isolationist and anti-interventionist tendencies. Anti-interventionism in general can be a firm common ground for the left and the right. Genuine criticism which is not intolerant but remains honest, will do much to help the victims of extremism and fundamentalism, as well as stamp out the sexist and homophobic attitudes in mainstream Islam.