TAREK YOUNIS

My Rejection of Peter Neumann's "Apology": The Islamophobia of Centrists

10/31/2020

This is a full response to Peter Neumann’s “apology.” I’ll post it on my website for posterity but share the entire piece below. Here is the thread that drove him to write his “apology” in the first place: https://twitter.com/Tarek_Younis_/status/1322467138112815105

Peter Neumann, if you wanted to apologise, you should’ve done it last week when I flagged your first expression of Islamophobia and disrespect. That was your window. It closed the moment you disregarded the Islamophobia then, even while so many others pointed it out to you.

This isn’t about “tone.” Tone is saying “gimme apples” instead of “may I have apples, please.” This is a serious and unequivocal display of Islamophobia. Your “tone” isn’t off—you’ve displayed several serious acts of discrimination and harassment.

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Veiling Colonial Violence: The Last of Us Part II, Israel and the Erasure of Power

8/23/2020

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Note: This article contains spoilers for The Last of Us and The Last of Us Part II. It is written for those familiar and unfamiliar with the story. Also, I had written this article before finding this fantastic piece by Emanuel Maiberg on Vice titled “The Not So Hidden Israeli Politics of 'The Last of Us Part II’, which provides an alternative take on the themes found below.

In the Washington Post, Neil Druckmann, the creative director of Last of Us (LoU) and Last of Us Part II (LoUII), shared the following as an inspiration for the sequel:

The formulation for Ellie’s turn toward darkness can be traced back to the year 2000. Then in his early 20s, Druckmann witnessed news footage of a crowd lynching two Israeli soldiers in the West Bank. “And then they cheered afterward,” Druckmann, who grew up in Israel, recalls. “It was the cheering that was really chilling to me. … In my mind, I thought, ‘Oh, man, if I could just push a button and kill all these people that committed this horrible act, I would make them feel the same pain that they inflicted on these people.’"
The feeling faded, though. Eventually, he looked back and felt “gross and guilty” for his intense feelings. With “The Last of Us Part II,” he wanted to explore that emotional tumult on a didactic level.

This post would not have been written had Neil Druckmann not made these comments and is dedicated to all artists who depoliticise conflicts through their craft.

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Hanau Killings and “Far Right Experts”: Remembering Malcolm X’s Warning of Foxes

2/23/2020

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Part 1: Remembering Germany’s Racism

Following the attack in Germany, I thought I’d share some thoughts. I’m angry but especially troubled how the attack is being discussed, or rather, how the historical and political portrayal of Kurds/Turks [the non-German] is continuously erased.

And more importantly, thinking of Malcolm X’s legacy, I’m going to say something which we must bear in mind today, more than ever: just because you’re anti-Far Right (in research or practice) does not mean you’re anti-racist or anti-Islamophobic.

To establish my position to speak on this subject: I grew up in Berlin and I’m familiar with Muslim community activism there (though this is dated now); my PhD compared Muslim identity development according to the political contexts of Germany, Canada and Denmark; and my current research looks at how racism perpetuates through counter-terror logic and political rhetoric.

I’m specifically interested in how ‘psychology talk’ is a 21st century vehicle in dismissing racist structures. This is very relevant to how Tobias R, the Hanau killer, is being discussed, focusing on his online activity, social networks, mental health, etc.

In 2003, I remember vividly being attacked in Berlin. The guy was screaming “du bist dreck, raus aus Deutschland” [you’re dirt, get out of Germany]. I know of many such ideologically-motivated, violent incidents among friends and within the Muslim community—“racism” was never acknowledged, let alone “Far Right terrorism”.

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My Rejection of Peter Neumann's "Apology": The Islamophobia of Centrists

Veiling Colonial Violence: The Last of Us Part II, Israel and the Erasure of Power

Hanau Killings and “Far Right Experts”: Remembering Malcolm X’s Warning of Foxes

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