The Lewisham Islamic Centre urges all people, particularly the Muslim community, to stop flying with Ryanair in view of its Chief Executive, Michael O’Leary’s Islamophobiccomment that Muslim men should be stopped at airports as they aremore likely to be terrorists. He is known for making previously outrageous remarks about environmentalists, disabled people, and calling obese people “monsters”.
The question we need to ask is how is it that people can brazenly make statements like Mr O’Leary’s without repercussion? The answer is that Islamophobia has become a normalised institution in the UK, from leading figures in The Conservative party denying the party harbours Islamophobes when confronted with clear evidence, to think tanks and personalities with proven Islamophobic agendas afforded air time and regularly cited unchallenged as authorities on matters pertaining to Muslims; not to mention the dreadful PREVENT policy which institutionalises Islamophobia and effectively does what Mr O’Leary is calling for: profiling of Muslims.
Ryanair flies to the following Muslim countries: Morocco (Agadir, Essaouoira, Fez, Marrakech, Nador, Ouarzazate, Oujda, Rabat, Tangier) and Jordan (Amman). Muslims travelling to Palestine may also use them to fly into Tel Aviv.
We urge all Muslims to use other than Ryanair for their travel to these or other destinations. And when you do, be sure to email them or tweet them to remind them that you have used another airline because of Mr O’Leary’s comments. Email is: [email protected] and Twitter address is: @Ryanair
Ryanair’s admission that it can buy it’s customers’ confidence through low fares is only further admission of the disdain with which it holds its passengers and no less the Muslim community.