ISIS or Jihadi Brides: Villains or Victims?
By Lucas White, New Age Islam
04 February 2023
How the current media portrayal of ‘ISIS Brides’
continues to reproduce harmful Islamophobic stereotypes concerning Muslim women
Main points discussed in the paper:
·
Who are
these ‘ISIS brides’ or ‘Jihadi brides’
·
Muslim
Women and Islamophobia
·
Separating
the Muslims from the Villains and Victims
...
“It was hugs and tears and it was a very, very
emotional moment. It is hard to put into words exactly what you are feeling at
that point in time, but intense joy” Kamalle Dubboussy told SBS news after
seeing his daughter and grandchildren for the first time in years. But far from
being a light-hearted story about a family reunion, this is yet another story
exploring the contentious topic surrounding Australia’s position on the
repatriation of so-called ‘ISIS brides’ or ‘Jihadi brides’ and their
children. As of late 2022, 4 women and 13 children have arrived back from
Syria, continuing the ongoing divide of opinions on whether these women pose a
threat to the wider Australian community or are themselves, victims of human
trafficking, with many now claiming to have been tricked into travelling to
Syria. Regardless of where you, a concerned and/or compassionate Australian,
stand on the matter, the issue is that the portrayal of these women as either
‘dangerous Muslim jihadi brides’ or as another example of females
victimised by Islam, will continue to reinforce negative stereotypes of the
Muslim woman in a country where they already experience the majority of Islamophobic
incidents.
Who are these ‘ISIS brides’ or ‘Jihadi brides’
In June 2014, Islamist extremists seized control of
Mosul, the second-largest city in Iraq, before moving south and threatening
Baghdad. These militants, known as the Islamic State (ISIS) declared an Islamic
state or caliphate and claimed total theological and political authority over
the world’s Muslim population. ISIS then capitalised on the weakened political
and military hold in Syria and quickly established a foothold throughout the
region. But far from being just another conflict in the Middle East for us
Westerners to once again happily ignore, the reach of ISIS was able to extend
around the globe and recruit western fighters from even as far as the sunny
shores of Australia. Though most western recruits were young men in their
mid-twenties, roughly 18% of those who left were women. In fact, of the total
41,490 foreign ISIS affiliates in Iraq and Syria between 2013 and 2018, 4761
were women. These women have been portrayed sensationally in the media in the
following years as young women who have absconded their lives in the West to
join the killing fields of Iraq and Syria. Either as willing Jihadist
contributors who wish to be included in the building of a new caliphate, or as
duped or trafficked victims of the Islamic State and Islam’s ‘supposed misogynistic’
nature. This brings us back to the portrayal of these women in Australia and
how depicting these women as either the ‘villains’ or ‘victims’ of Islam, is
only going to further reproduce Islamophobic stereotypes that continue
to plague Muslim women in this country. Negative and unbalanced reporting by
the media is widely viewed to have led to an increase in Islamophobia
incidents towards Australian Muslims. This is exacerbated further when these
media depictions are repeated and reinforced in the everyday rhetoric of the
Australian public due to either ignorance or apathy towards Australian Muslims.
Now I can’t tell you whether these women pose a threat
to Australia or not after repatriation from Syria. There is cause for concern
about the actions and motivations of current female jihadists in displacement
camps in Syria. With some radicalised women going as far as murder to uphold
the ISIS ideologies and norms within the camps. However, I can tell you that
these women are not on trial for being female Muslims. Something the media’s
portrayal seems to constantly forget. It’s the media’s, intentionally or
otherwise, inability to separate the accused with their religion that has the
potential to continue to support and reproduce harmful Islamophobic
stereotypes of Muslim women in Australia. It is therefore the role of the
average western viewer to both recognise and remember that these
representations are potentially harmful.
Muslim Women and Islamophobia
Unfortunately, in Australia, many Muslim women are victims
of Islamophobia. This isn’t to say that Islamophobia doesn’t
affect male Muslims (it does), but women within the Australian Islamic
community seem to be especially susceptible to it. Many Muslim women face what
can be described as a ‘triple penalty’ because they are women, from an ethnic
minority, as well as being Muslim. Additionally, women in head coverings are
often the main target for abuse as their religious clothing renders them
visible in public to be identified as ‘Muslim’. Furthermore, there seems to
have emerged a dual image in western eyes of Muslim women, neither of which is
helpful in combating Islamophobia in Australia. On one side of the
binary, we have Australian public discussions focused on Muslim women as
victims (of Islamic misogyny or racial violence), forced to wear head coverings
as a form of oppression. On the other side, especially since the fall of ISIS
in Iraq and Syria, the figure of the veiled Muslim woman has increasingly come
to signify a threat, no longer a helpless victim but a villain, and a willing
conspirator in extremist atrocities.
Of course, this isn’t to say that there aren’t some women
who are victims of a misogynistic interpretation of Islam, or that there isn’t
a threat in the West from radicalised Muslims, either male or female. However,
the Muslim population is extremely diverse, and it is the portrayal of
so-called ‘ISIS Brides’ in the media as being either one or the other of these
extremes that is the problem, especially as these women are commonly depicted
in full religious clothing. This is a concern as women wearing religious dress
are already far more likely to be victims of Islamophobia. Again, it is
not for me to say if these 4 women that have recently been repatriated to
Australia from Syria are guilty or not. Though more responsible and nuanced
reporting of their current situation should be considered to distance these
women from law-abiding, peaceful, Australian Muslim women. Minimising any
potential influence on increasing incidents of Islamophobia.
Separating the Muslims from the Villains and Victims
With returning ‘ISIS brides’ currently making
headlines, and with roughly 40 Australian women and children in Syrian
displacement camps yet to be repatriated, it seems like both the media
portrayal and public discourse surrounding these women is here to stay for a
while and with it increasing public focus on Muslim women. However, it does
give the media and the Australian public an opportunity in changing how we
associate these women within the context of the wider Muslim community. The two
factors in this situation influencing Islamophobia are the long-held
western belief that Muslim women are either victims of Islam or are themselves
Islamic villains, and the tendency for the Western media to produce negative or
unbalanced reporting on Muslims. The first thing that needs to be done is an
emphasis to separate religion from the suspected crimes. “But ISIS is Islamic
extremists!” I can imagine some of you protesting, “Islam is an integral
element in these stories!” Well, yes and no.
If these women were willing contributors to the atrocities committed by
ISIS, it is important that both the media and the Australian public recognise
and promote the fact that these are/were radicalised extremists and do not
represent most Muslims. Additionally, if they are the unfortunate victims of
human trafficking, or have been tricked, then it should be made clear that they
are not victims of Islam, but victims of crimes committed by radicalised
extremists. The language used is
extremely important in dispelling any potential Islamophobic
connotations these stories have on the wider female Muslim community. Even the
terminology of “ISIS Bride” or “Jihadi Bride” is unhelpful as it
associates these crimes specifically to gender, further painting a picture of
Muslim women being integrally linked with the atrocities of ISIS in Syria and
the growing feelings of public concern for safety in Australia that
repatriation of potential extremists entails.
If the media can recognise the potential benefits of
changing how they represent repatriated women and children, I would hope that
it would go some ways to limiting any potential increases in Islamophobia
against Muslim women in our communities, and as such help to dispel the
long-held binary view of Muslim women as being either stereotypical victims or
villains of Islam in the Australian public discourse. It is also vitally
important that we as everyday Australian citizens understand this binary view
exists and actively try, either in our own minds or in the conversations we
have with our friends and family to dispel such stereotypes. Whether or not you,
as a concerned and/or compassionate Australian, think that these so-called
‘ISIS brides’ should be welcomed back, it is important that we all continue to
recognise and promote media and public discourses that dispel Islamophobia
and continue to make sure that Muslim women, in general, feel welcomed and
appreciated in this country.
.....
Lucas White is a current Bachelor of Education
student. He is one of the students of Dr. Adis Duderija who hopes to promote
cultural tolerance and understanding among students of all backgrounds in
Australia by working as a teacher.
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