We express our heartfelt condolences to the families and loved ones of Ricky John Best and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche who tragically lost their lives on Saturday 27th May 2017 in Portland, USA at the hands of racist and Islamophobe Jeremy Joseph Christian. We are truly sorry for your loss.
As tributes continue to pour in for these two great heroes brutally killed while defending two young girls – one a Muslim and wearing a headscarf -against the vile and murderous Jeremy Joseph Christian, we ask Muslims all over the world to pause and reflect that despite the conveyor belt of anti-Muslim propaganda and hate mongering from certain equally vile quarters of our societies, that the unsurpassable number of people are models of rectitude who display when called upon the highest human ideals in defence of love, compassion and justice irrespective of factors such as race, religion or creed.
While we remember these latest victims, it is also important to ask what the reaction from the authorities would have been had the perpetrator of this heinous act been deemed a Muslim? Would the outcry from the usual sections of the media be as fleeting and cursory as is the case now, or would the inquisition be incessant about who radicalised Jeremy Joseph Christian; which pl ace of worship did he attend; who are his family and friends and did they have any influence over him; and what part did religious beliefs or ideology play in his intent, armed that fateful day, to kill Muslims and with them anyone opposing him? None but hate filled Nazi Jeremy Joseph Christian is responsible for these crimes.
Lewisham Islamic Centre, on behalf of Muslims the world over, salute Ricky John Best and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche – and wish Micah David-Cole Fletcher a speedy recovery from his knife injury. We acknowledge your ultimate sacrifice, for in saving two innocent lives at the cost of yours is tantamount to saving all of humanity [Qur’an Chapter 5, verse 32]. We shall forever hold you both in the highest esteem along with the late Rachel Aliene Corrie and other giants and ambassadors for humanity.