Spacehamster’s Blog

Whenever I need to see Australia from an Aussie-Mossie(TM) perspective, Irfam Yusuf’s blog is my first port of call. Although both he and I are on opposite sides of the political divide, I find his viewpoint invaluable because it represents the Muslim viewpoint far better than I’ll find in any mainstream newspaper. And his article on Peter Costello’s back-handed response to Sheik Hilaly’s outrageous and offensive comments is no exception.

I find his article valuable because it highlights an issue I hadn’t considered - although Sheik Hilaly’s comments were hurtful and offensive towards women, Peter Costello’s concerted attack on the Muslim faith in Australia hasn’t helped matters any either. The wider Muslim community (by which I mean all Muslims living outside Lakemba mosque) unhesitatingly condemned the Sheik’s comments. But was this covered by the Murdoch papers? By the TV journos? No.

The biggest failure in this country is the lack of Muslim voices in the Australian media. And it’s to this country’s loss that voices like Irfam Yusuf are restricted to internet blogs and other web-only publications. People will only learn to overcome their fear and prejudice of Muslims by gaining more knowledge and insight into their culture. And Irfam Yusuf’s articles are a great start. Required reading.