For years, we’ve been hearing about the scourge of Islamophobia, a coinage by the left to describe the imaginary wave of discrimination that they perceive has washed over the country in the years since 9/11. As with other forms of putative discrimination, allegations of Islamophobia can usually be easily defanged. Take the case of Muslim parents in Jersey City, N.J, who are outraged that the public schools in their community refused to shut down for Eid al-Adha. The real reasons their demand for “equal time” went unhonored is that it was made seven days before the holiday — very short notice for a school district. In addition, the schools stay open during the Jewish high holidays, which fall around the same time.
Or take the case of the current poster boy for Islamophobia, Ahmed Mohamed (aka Clock Boy). There is, to paraphrase Barack Obama, not a smidgen of evidence that he was singled out based on his faith. But there is plenty to suggest he has become a hero because of it. Consider the recent entries on the 14-year-old’s “social calendar”:
- He was invited on Twitter to come to the White House to shake hands with the president.
- While appearing on MSNBC, he was invited to tour the astrophysics department at his “dream school,” MIT, and his fallback school, Harvard.
He also received a less formal invitation from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg:
You’ve probably seen the story about Ahmed, the 14 year old student in Texas who built a clock and was arrested when he…
Posted by Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday, September 16, 2015
But that offer pales next to the goody bag Mohamed received from Microsoft via Alia Salem, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations from the Dallas-Fort Worth chapter. Included in the treasure trove are:
- a Microsoft Surface Pro 3 ($700 to $1,400 value)
- a Cube 3D printer with cartridges and filaments ($1,000-plus value)
- an Office 365 subscription ($100 per year)
- a Raspberry Pi 2 computer ($35 value)
- a Microsoft Band fitness tracker ($180 value)
Here’s a snapshot on Twitter of Mohamed standing in next to his booty:
Salem also tweeted a message:
@aliarsalem @IStandWithAhmed Enjoy…we can’t wait to see what you create with it all!
— Microsoft (@Microsoft) September 19, 2015
If he does invent something, it will be a first for him. The clock he is credited with “inventing” was actually a commercial device the guts of which he separated from the casing — nothing more. That Obama, MIT, Zuckerberg, and all the rest are interested in his future is less a reflection of their belief he is the next Einstein and more their conviction that he was a victim of religious persecution
In truth, there is no evidence that Ahmed was a target of Islamophobia. If anything he is the product of Islamophoria (“Islam” + “euphoria”), an intense state of excitement that liberals experience over an individual because he is a Muslim.
Think about it: If this were just another white kid who brought a clock to school in this era of zero tolerance, he would have suffered the same fate as Mohamed: arrest. But except for a few conservative blogs, the story would have gone unreported — and then died within a day or two. Mohamed’s story lives on because the left has anointed him with victim status.
It’s a good gig if you can get it, but the hitch is you have to be a Muslim.
Related Articles
- Why does the left care more about Islamophobia than anti-Semitism?
- NJ Muslims, angry over school holiday, threaten: ‘We’ll be the majority soon’
- Was ‘Muslim clock kid’ incident manufactured? The Obama tweet forensics
- TX school district to host anti-Islamophobia conference with jihadist guest speakers
- Looks like Ahmed didn’t actually ‘invent’ a clock after all
