Understanding is the challenge of multiculturalism
Australia is a multicultural country, however more understanding of different religions are still needed.
Multiculturalism in Australia is something Muslims from diverse ethnic backgrounds are proud of and has so far improved the quality of life of many Australian ethnic and faith minorities.
Multiculturalism faces many obstacles including systemic gaps, political scoring, a lack of education, a lack of citizen cultural competency and the media as well as global pressures.
Muslim people are discriminated against for different reasons, including their religion or belief, ethnicity and gender.
A young Muslim man Abdul Abzz Kabbarra says there are many anti-Muslim people and he believes that the media has the most affect on these people.
“I want them to understand what is Islam and do not judge Islam based on a few Muslims,” Abdul said.
Recently, hundreds of Muslim people protested with violence in Sydney over the anti-Islam film Innocence of Muslims.
Another Muslim man Tanzeer Ahmed says the protesters were not representative of Australia’s Muslim community.
He believes that Muslims across the world belong to many different ethnic groups and follow diverse cultural, religious or traditional practices.
“Different Muslim people have different beliefs,” Tanzeer said. “What they have done (violent riot in Sydney), made us look bad again after 9-11.”
Tanzeer strongly believe in his religion, however he is facing difficulty in practising Muslim in Australia.
“I used to fast, now I don’t,” Tanzeer said. “It doesn’t sound like a good excuse, but the environment that I live in is not easy for me to practise my religion.”
Abdul and Tanzeer felt that Australia is a place of multiculturalism and respect, however more understanding and tolerance towards Muslims are still needed.
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