بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Sister Sara at Princess Hegab wrote a post about Boycotting Israel and what our role should be as Muslim brothers and sisters of those suffering in Palestine. Jazakillah khair sister Sara for starting this incredibly important conversation!
This really got me thinking and I just wanted to share some of my thoughts here.
I feel as if there is a fine line between a personal choice to boycott and public accusation. I don't want to cross that line because I think, in the end, I do not want to stand in front of Allah subhana wa ta'ala and have on my list slander of a group of people. If I don't have firm evidence, I am not willing to point fingers.
This does not meant that I am not willing to boycott, because I think that Sara brought up a really great point that in this day and age and the society that we are in now, our money gives us a lot of power. This is of course secondary to the power that we have through prayer and belief in Allah ta'ala, but it is a means to help the situation.
If for my own personal reason I decide to boycott a company who I do not a firm evidence for, I don't think it is right to openly and publicly accuse that company and encourage others to do the same. However if I do know that a company or group is definitely supporting Isreal, I feel that it is my DUTY to pass on that information.
I do know that it is my responsibility to do what I can to help support my brothers and sisters in Islam. As such, I remind myself and all of you to keep our Palestinian brothers and sisters in your du'a and to contribute financially to relief funds if you are able. Also for those of us in the US, please write to your representatives and encourage your neighbors, friends, and family to do so as well. Let them know that we condemn what the Israelis are doing and that we do not appreciate our tax money going to support that kind of injustice!
This site provides contact information for our representatives, from state level to the President. You can even tweet your representatives now! http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml
This site links to Islamic Relief who are still working desperately to help the Palestinians. It gives background information on the situation there and how to donate inshaAllah. http://www.islamic-relief.com/Emergencies-And-Appeals/emergency.aspx?emID=47
I would also like to point out that not every Jew is Israel and Israel does not represent every Jew. Keep that in mind, as the People of the Book deserve respect as other groups who were given revelation by Allah Ta'ala
(photo from Artintifada)So after I thought about this I prayed and wondered, Ya Allah how will I know who to boycott if this is the right thing for me? I had no idea how I would know who was supporting Israel and who wasn't.
SubhanAllah I got really bad heartburn today and I got a pill from the drawer to take for it. I looked at the back of the package and what did it say?!?
"Manufacutured in Israel"
Right on the foil!
So I thought, AHA, I have the answer!
And as is my duty, I will pass that information to you.
This was the "equate" brand version of Pepcid, the heartburn medication. I would say that it is pretty safe to boycott all equate brand products, sold at Wal-Mart.
I couldn't get a picture of it because the camera on my phone wont take such close ups and the writing is small, but inshaAllah when I get my other camera, I will take a picture and update this post.
If any of you have evidence about any other group or product that supports Israel or is made in Israel, I ask you to let me know and let others know!
SubhanAllah I got really bad heartburn today and I got a pill from the drawer to take for it. I looked at the back of the package and what did it say?!?
"Manufacutured in Israel"
Right on the foil!
So I thought, AHA, I have the answer!
And as is my duty, I will pass that information to you.
This was the "equate" brand version of Pepcid, the heartburn medication. I would say that it is pretty safe to boycott all equate brand products, sold at Wal-Mart.
I couldn't get a picture of it because the camera on my phone wont take such close ups and the writing is small, but inshaAllah when I get my other camera, I will take a picture and update this post.
If any of you have evidence about any other group or product that supports Israel or is made in Israel, I ask you to let me know and let others know!
8 comments:
You bring up a good point. I think boycotting is a matter of personal choice; if I do boycott something, though, I need to know for sure that it is supporting Israel (some are very obvious, like imported foods from Israel in the international section of the grocery store, and some aren't). There are so many accusations of companies supporting it, but it can be very difficult to actually find out where the money is going. In some cases, it may be that some individuals in the company support it out of their own funds; this has nothing to do with the company itself. If I don't know for sure, I won't boycott it.
Also, thanks for bringing up the clarification about Jews not automatically equaling Israel. It seems like a lot of people forget this and are quick to demonize Jews as a whole when obviously not all Jews are doing something wrong. What about all the Jewish people who support Palestinian rights and believe that Judaism condemns these atrocities (as the men in the picture believe)? There are even Israelis that hate what their government is doing and support the human rights of Palestinians. Although it may seem like Israel is nothing but evil, we must remember all the Israelis that are not like this and just want shalom/salaam in the world.
I think this boycott thing is rather difficult and often subjective. If I were to give support to Palestine Id rather give money to Islamic relief. At least then I know I'm doing good. I'd hate to boycott something that had nothing to do with the problem.
There are also companies that are co-ops owned by both Israeli citizens and Palestinians that give fair profits to Palestinian farmers. These products are made in Israel, but their whole point is to give a living wage to those who most deserve it.
I agree, it is really hard to know exactly what is the best decision.
Im not boycotting Israel on one point. That is It may be possible that we are starving israeli families (especially farmers with little income) and yes I understand that the Palestinians are starving too, but, I would suggest that most of the israelis just want peace themselves! I know I would if in their position.
I think the issue is more with countries that are supporting Israel's regime I mean one farmer that sells his crop to tesco is putting significant arms into the army!
I dont want to hurt the everyday person, however the regime that the government has needs to be stopped! The taxes are the problem in the UK and US, not the poor farmer trying to earn a living.
Asalamu Alaikum Wa rahmatullahi wa barakatu.
Bismallah al Rahman al raheem.
Jazak Allah Khayran for the information(So far this is all in arabic but im pretty sure you understood! hehe)
Anyway. I want to let you know that it is very hard to boycot sometimes you want to eat something and you cant because you know that it might benefit the israeli army. Im not really trying to pick point brands and slander then im just trying to minimize the risk. Whats the point in eating Macdonalds then boycotting another brand who has nothing to do with israel even tho theyre both owned by Jewish or Israeli people. Thats why I choose to boycott everything rather than pick and choose. This is my way of avoiding slander.
But jazakallah khayran for your kind reminder and I see that you were once studying Islam and now your a muslimah! id just like to say welcome and i hope i didnt say anything to turn you off the religion because All praise is due to Allah and the mistakes are only ours.
And feel free to link me on ur blog any time!
Salamz
xxxoxoxoxox
I totally agree with you.
you are a good girl
rubber
heloo... wanna exc link?
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