Islamophobia and Religious Expression
It seems to me that one of the more difficult areas facing those who seek to advance Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) efforts in the workplace is that of religious expression. In the early years of my career, I remember the issue of religious expression coming up in terms of the company holiday schedule. Jewish co-workers questioned why the company had Good Friday (a Christian day of observance) as a paid holiday for all employees, when they needed to use vacation time for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Those questions provoked discussion, and that discussion resulted in change. We moved to a holiday schedule that allowed floating holidays, which could be used as an individual employee saw fit. Christians could use a floating holiday for Good Friday, and Jews could use floating holidays for their holy days. And those who were agnostic or atheist? Enjoy your extra time off.
Some complained about the change. They felt that the company had given ground, and that the traditional observation of Christian holy days was “right”, and that any move away from that was an erosion of societal values.
To me, the change signaled a shift toward a more inclusive handling of employees’ varied religious viewpoints and, for many, faith traditions. Not everyone agreed, but over time the change took hold and employees seemed to appreciate the flexibility that floating holidays offered.
That was in the early 1990s. Looking back, it feels like a simpler time. In my small slice of the world, I knew many colleagues who were very demonstrative of their faith as Christians. I knew a few Jewish colleagues. And as long as you put a light-up menorah next to the Christmas tree in the lobby, then you’re being multicultural and accommodating, right?
Of course, religious expression in the workplace is more complicated than that. It’s more diverse, and richer, and can lead to some really interesting and amazing conversations – if we let it. I’ve learned a lot in the last 25 years. I now have colleagues and friends who are Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, and Christian. I have colleagues who are Mormon, and colleagues who practice Confucianism or Taoism, and several who are atheists and agnostics. For the most part, religion isn’t something that we talk about. It’s often irrelevant to the work that we do together. But that’s not always the case, and as someone who is actively making the case for D&I in my organization, I feel a responsibility to encourage discussions about how we make certain that everyone feels included and respected, regardless of their beliefs about religion.
In September 2001, I was working for Motorola, in a technical training department. Two weeks after September 11, we had a group from Saudi Arabia in our facility, studying the implementation and repair of two-way radio systems. When their class let out for an afternoon break, several of the participants brought their prayer mats into the break room and faced east to pray. About two minutes later, a couple of other classes let out for their breaks, and when the predominantly American participants walked into the break room, it created a very tense situation. It was a raw time, and a lot of people in the U.S. were dealing with the emotions brought on by the events that took place on September 11. There was a high level of fear and anger aimed at Muslim communities in the U.S., despite the efforts of government officials to make clear that acts of terror and the people who commit them were not, and are not, representative of Islam.
I stood there at the door to the break room, ready to step in if necessary. There were a few comments made, and those were addressed. Fortunately, it didn’t go beyond that. It did, though, lead us to have a discussion about the need to set aside dedicated space as a prayer room for participants, regardless of their faith tradition.
Fifteen years later, we remain in a situation in the U.S. where fear and anger toward Muslims, including those who are citizens of our country, is an issue. And if anything, it seems to be getting worse and not better. As acts of terror around the world have continued, including acts of terror in the U.S. domestically, we’ve seen the faith tradition of Islam continually demonized as a breeding ground for terrorist ideals. Too often, in my opinion, those who would demonize the world’s billions of Muslims for the acts of a few extremists have not spent time to learn about Islam. They have not taken steps to educate themselves, nor reached out to others to better understand what Islam does and does not stand for.
And so we see speeches and threats and swimwear policies that come from a place of fear and ignorance, when education and conversation and self-examination are what’s really called for.
To bring this back to the workplace, the same fear and anger and misunderstanding that unfortunately characterize political debate in some quarters can be an issue for Muslim employees, who can face workplace hostility in subtle and not-so-subtle ways. For me, this always comes back to a central question – “How do we make certain that all employees in our organization feel included, welcome, and safe in our workplace?”
Education can be as simple as identifying a local mosque, searching for their website, and seeing what they have to say about their faith. In popular media, as well, there are some really interesting ways of learning more. I’ve written in the past about one of my favorite comic book titles, Ms. Marvel. For the last few years, the story of Kamala Khan, a teenager from Jersey City, NJ, has been one of Marvel Comics’ best-selling and most positively-reviewed books. It’s primarily a superhero story, but it’s peppered with educational moments, like the scene early in the comic’s run where Kamala visits the imam at her mosque to ask about the way that Islam would view the work she does as a superhero.
“After questioning her Imam about the rules of their local mosque, rules Kamala perceives as archaic and sexist, she’s forced by her parents to go back to him for a chat she thinks is going to be nothing more than a lecture. Instead, he decides to listen to her, and Kamala opens up about her double life, all but telling him she moonlights as a superhero. She doesn’t want to disobey her parents, but sometimes feels like she has to in order to help people. Instead of the talk about values and modesty that she expected, her Imam simply tells her that she may be in need of a teacher, and that when she’s ready to learn, the right one will appear.”[1]
The exchange, as written, has so much to teach in its characterization, and in what each character has to say. And the story is full of little exchanges like this that breathe life into ideas that people, including Kamala herself, might misunderstand about Islam.
Another graphic novel that I would highly recommend is Habibi, by Craig Thompson. In the book, there are several asides and amazing artwork that illustrate the meaning of key Islamic beliefs and Arabic expressions. It’s a beautiful piece of fiction, and it embeds a great deal of education which, while not comprehensive, can form the early questions that might lead the curious to learn more.
My point is that educating oneself about another faith tradition or culture needn’t begin with a cover-to-cover reading of a scriptural text. If you’re interested, you can always get there, eventually. But there are some terrific, entertaining ways to learn more if you want to.
Conversation – I had the joy of teaching a Sunday school class at my church a couple of years ago, and we focused on world religions – a different one each month. And we had the opportunity to go to a mosque and sit with an imam and some of the people who attend the mosque, and it was a great experience. Everyone was welcoming. The place was vibrant and interesting. Most importantly, though, having a conversation and getting to know another human being humanized this vague, academic idea of Islam for me, and for my students.
Not long ago, there was a guy who worked at our local pharmacy name Muhammad. He was a really nice guy. And we would talk every so often about the Chicago Bears. On game days, he wore a jersey with Muhsin Muhammad’s number on it. It was a point of connection that had nothing to do with our respective faith backgrounds. But it was another opportunity to know a Muslim in my community as a fellow human being (and as a fellow suffering Bears fan).
Confrontation - The last part of what we need to be ready to do in the workplace is to stand alongside those who are made to deal with hostility in the workplace. Recently, a cartoon by Marie-Shirine Yener went viral, and it’s amazing. It’s titled “What to do if you’re witnessing Islamophobic harassment”. It’s simple, and it shows that confronting harassment – against anyone – can be as simple as striking up a conversation. It needn’t mean talking down a bully, or trying to convince someone else that their viewpoint is wrong. That may be an unwinnable argument. But it shows the simplicity of showing kindness and breaking up a harmful dynamic.
That’s not to say that workplace policy doesn’t have a responsibility here. Many companies – hopefully most – have policies that make it clear that workplace harassment is unacceptable. But harassment and a hostile environment is often a matter of several small engagements that communicate that a person is unwelcome or unacceptable. And we need to fight each of those battles in the moment. It’s how we build a culture of inclusion and acceptance for everyone – Education, Conversation and, when necessary, Confrontation.
[1] Siddhant Adlakha, “Power and Responsibility: Why Ms. Marvel Matters”, www.birthmoviesdeath.com, March 17, 2015.
