Posted on 12/15/2014 3:35:37 PM PST by Diana in Wisconsin
In the aftermath of the hostage crisis in downtown Sydney, Australians are showing the world they're not caving to racism or Islamophobia.
On Monday, an armed gunman stormed a cafe in Martin Place, entering a tense standoff with police. After the hostage-taker displayed an Islamic flag in the cafe's window, many of Australia's Muslims are understandably anxious about facing retribution.
But instead, Australians have banded together on Twitter with #IllRideWithYou, a hashtag showing their solidarity with fellow countrymen scared of being attacked on public transportation.
Why it matters. This hashtag movement is powerful sign that Australians won't get worked up into a Islamophobic rage because of the actions of a single madman. It's also a lesson for countries like the U.S., where hate crimes against Muslims spike whenever there's a criminal or terrorist incident involving Muslims, or even when something innocuous happens like debating the placement of a mosque in New York City. Australian social media users are showing Muslims they're safe in their home and shouldn't fear retaliation for an incident they're not linked to.
If your faith in humanity hasn't been restored yet, perhaps these tweets will help:
That works for me.
I just hope they don’t wait too long.
From the sound of the audio, sounds like they shot the MoFo a thousand times. Good show.
First you render the population defenseless, then...
whats islamophobia, is that like naziphobia?
Boy, this guy lives in his own dreamworld. Specious claims that we have instigated hate crimes on the general Muslim population after attacks/building mosques and he is proud because his countrymenidiots will go out of their way to 'protect" Muslims - many who are just like the perp (in mind anyway) who gave the news networks the gift of a bunch of "Breaking News" pops for a day.
Ahhh,
Some feel good stories.
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