{"id":85364,"date":"2022-11-15T06:51:13","date_gmt":"2022-11-15T11:51:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/muslimmatters.org\/?p=85364"},"modified":"2022-11-24T00:11:00","modified_gmt":"2022-11-24T05:11:00","slug":"dirty-dawah-part-2-the-satisfying-revenge-in-the-name-of-islam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/muslimmatters.org\/2022\/11\/15\/dirty-dawah-part-2-the-satisfying-revenge-in-the-name-of-islam\/","title":{"rendered":"Dirty Da’wah [Part 2] – “The Satisfying” | Revenge In The Name Of Islam"},"content":{"rendered":"

If da’wah is the beautiful call, then “Dirty Da’wah” is a vengeful sneer. In addition to tactics like insulting [see Dirty Da’wah Part 1 ]<\/a> and manufacturing controversy, the production of “Satisfying” videos directed at Muslim audiences is Part 2 of this series on what’s rotten in the Muslim internet.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The word <\/span>da\u2019wah<\/em> stems from the verb for invitation or calling in Arabic<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0 The term da\u2019ee<\/em> refers to those who call others to Islam, whether they be Muslim or not. <\/span><\/p>\n

A large amount of this \u201csatisfying\u201d content seems directed towards feelings of anger and helplessness in its Muslim audience. After all, the world is a cruel and difficult place for Muslims. How can we not feel angry when people insult our religion, misrepresent our Prophet \ufdfa, curse our Lord and oppress our family in faith?\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When even the Prophet <\/span>\ufdfa sought comfort and consolation in hard times, it makes sense that we too seek to satisfy some sense of justice or comfort. The problem with this content is <\/span>how<\/span><\/i> it seeks to provide it- i.e. at the direct expense of others.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Often labeled “hilarious” or “entertaining,” videos like these allow the viewer to have a laugh at the non-Muslim getting “crushed,” “destroyed,” or “dismantled” by the da’ee.\u00a0 Many of them suggest a level of payback for the indignities suffered by the Muslim community, and in doing so, give their viewers a vicarious sense of justice served.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Seeking justice is an important cause for the entire Ummah, and until all of us are safe, the rest of us should remain restless for their cause. However, videos like these don’t serve justice as much as they dish out revenge.<\/p>\n

Seeking justice for oppressed Muslims means fighting for their freedom, safety, and\u00a0 rights. Compare this to revenge, which better explains why some da’ees fight the people they are -ideally- inviting to Islam.<\/p>\n

The following bright yellow images in this article are all composites of common -and actual- titles in these Dirty Da’wah videos, and there are many, many more like them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cO believers! Do not insult what they invoke besides Allah or they will insult Allah spitefully out of ignorance. This is how We have made each people\u2019s deeds appealing to them. Then to their Lord is their return, and He will inform them of what they used to do.\u201d<\/em> The Holy Qur’an, Surah Al An’am: 6;108]<\/a><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Ridiculing And A Bit Racist<\/h2>\n

In one such video, a Muslim da\u2019ee mocks the accent and grammar of a non-Muslim who speaks English as a second language, much to the amusement of the Muslims gathered around him. The video starts in the middle of what looks like da’wah gone horribly wrong. It begins with a non-Muslim angrily calling out to the Muslims gathered around him. They are crowded around him laughing as he is being mocked.<\/span><\/p>\n

[Non Muslim]:<\/strong> \u201cIf you want to hear many times -\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

[Da’ee]:<\/strong> \u201cI have many hairs.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

[Non Muslim]:<\/strong> \u201cI will hear-\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

[Da’ee]:<\/strong> \u201cYou have hair, I have hair.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

[Non Muslim]: <\/strong>(gesturing with hand)<\/em> \u201cI will give you – I will give you this insight many times. Don\u2019t follow the pagan religion.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

[Da’ee]: <\/strong>(gesturing with hand)<\/em> \u201cThis in Hindi means I want to eat.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

[Non Muslim]:<\/strong> \u201cWorship Jesus.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

[Da’ee]: <\/strong>(making hand gesture)<\/em> “In Italian it means something else.”\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

[Video captioned by Da’ee to read: \u201cIt means WTF.\u201d]<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

[Non Muslim]: <\/strong>“Allah is – Allah is fail.”<\/span><\/p>\n

[Da’ee]: <\/strong>(interrupting)<\/em> “Your English is fail.”<\/span><\/p>\n

[Non Muslim]:<\/strong> “Allah is fail-“<\/span><\/p>\n

[Da’ee]: <\/strong>(interrupting)<\/em> “Your grammar is fail.”<\/span><\/p>\n

[Non Muslim]:<\/strong> “Shame on you. Shame on you to be a encyclopedia here. Shame on you.”<\/span><\/p>\n

[Da’ee]: <\/strong>(interrupting) <\/em>“What\u2019s an encyclopedia got to do with grammar?”<\/span><\/p>\n

[Non Muslim]:<\/strong> “Shame on you to be a encyclopedia, correcting my English here.”<\/span><\/p>\n

[Da’ee]:<\/strong> “Encyclopedia doesn\u2019t correct English uncle.”<\/span><\/p>\n

[Non Muslim]:<\/strong> “So shame on you by talking this. (scratches nose) So let me tell you-“<\/span><\/p>\n

[Da’ee]: <\/strong>(interrupting) <\/em>Don\u2019t pick your nose. It\u2019s unhygienic.”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Here the video ends, and the comments that follow can be broken down into four categories broadly:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Praise for the video from other da’ees:<\/strong> \u201cLoooooooooool I\u2019m dead. This video would have been so boring without [Da’ee’s] edit style.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Praise from viewers:<\/strong> \u201cBro I l<\/span>oved your roasting skills,\u201d \u201c<\/span>[Da’ee] is best in comedy.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Support for the behavior:<\/strong> \u201c<\/span>Warning: When you insult Allah \"sub\u1e25\u0101nahu, Allah \"sub\u1e25\u0101nahu will make a joke out of you lol.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Complaints from viewers<\/strong> about the da’ee’s poor manners. <\/span>\n
      \n
    • \u201c<\/span>SubhanAllah we shouldn’t be making fun of people like that. May Allah \"sub\u1e25\u0101nahu guide us\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n
    • \u201cI would suggest to present everything as it is without laughter and jokes. Let the people judge who is wrong. Akhlaq<\/em> (good character) is our weapon in such places. May Allah \"sub\u1e25\u0101nahu guide us all.”<\/span><\/li>\n
    • \u201cSalam, seen this video and wasn’t pleased with the behavior of our brothers… this guy may not know much about Islam\u00a0 and may criticize our faith, but if we retaliate with ridicule then it shines a negative light upon us as individuals or maybe so as an Ummah.”\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
    • “…you guys are popular YouTubers and need to behave in such a way that our youths emanate your positive behaviors.. sorry to criticize especially publicly (don’t know how to send privately) but I felt that it could have been handled more sensibly. Best way to deal with situations like that is refer back to the Sunnah…”<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      \"\"<\/p>\n

      So, What Would Our Prophet \ufdfa Do?<\/h2>\n

      Believe it or not, there are instances from the Sunnah in which a group of people are found mocking, ridiculing, and talking over someone in a deliberately disrespectful manner. It happened more often than you think, but this isn’t what the Prophet \ufdfa did to debate with the Quraysh. This was what the Quraysh did to the Prophet \ufdfa instead.<\/p>\n

      How much sense does it make to try and promote the message of the Prophet \ufdfa with the same bullying tactics that were used against him? In what way is surrounding a non-believer with a group of hecklers any type of da’wah?<\/p>\n

      It’s not.<\/p>\n

      We have lessons from our Prophet \ufdfa (as compared to his enemies) that give us very specific examples of how to respond to aggressive, disrespectful, or insulting non-Muslims. Story time!<\/p>\n

      Pray For Them, Even If They Hate You<\/h3>\n

      Abu Jahl, in an evil little nutshell, was called the Fir’aun of Makkah. He beat and tortured people when they accepted Islam, especially those too weak, too poor, or too unimportant for others to protect. He tortured the sahabi husband and wife Yasir \"ra\u1e0dyAll\u0101hu and Sumayya \"ra\u1e0dyAll\u0101hu to death in front of their son, Ammar Bin Yasir \"ra\u1e0dyAll\u0101hu, may Allah \"sub\u1e25\u0101nahu have mercy and blessings on them all.<\/p>\n

      While Sumayya \"ra\u1e0dyAll\u0101hu has the honor of being the first martyr in Islam, Abu Jahl has the dishonor of making her so. He thrust a spear through her private parts and killed her.<\/p>\n

      In spite of this, the Prophet \"\u1e63allall\u0101hu still prayed for Abu Jahl to become Muslim. In the same dua’, he also prayed for the conversion of Abu Jahl’s nephew, a harsh, hard-drinking, relentless persecutor of Muslims in Makkah, and especially in his own tribe.<\/p>\n

      Islamophobia is Stupid: Part I<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n