A newly registered Islamic charity in the United Kingdom is under fire after a video where it compared women who don’t wear hijab to “unwrapped sweets” went viral, with critics describing the remarks as misogynistic and offensive.
Charity compares women who don’t wear hijab to ‘unwrapped sweets’ https://t.co/E1MgfXgKAV via @NatSecSoc
— Stephen Knight (@GSpellchecker) May 15, 2024
The organization also sparked controversy for its antisemitic comments, including one video where a member of the Muslim charity argued with a young Jewish man over the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip after the October 7 attacks.
Based in Feltham, West London, One True Message Foundation (OTMF) was registered earlier this year as a charity for “the advancement of religion.” The charity ignited controversy after one of its leading figures was filmed giving a street talk in which he appeared to contrast the “purity” of women who wear hijab with those who do not.
In the video titled Hijab vs. Non-Hijab?, Faisel Qarni, an OTMF trustee Faisel Qarni said: “I have two sweets, yeah, one I open the wrapper and I throw it on the floor, yeah, and I tread on it a little bit. The other one I leave in the wrapper, and I throw it on the floor, and I tread on it.”
“One’s in the wrapper, one’s not. I pick both of them up, and I say take one. Which one are you going to choose? … Case closed.” Qarni also said.
Repeat after us:
- Women aren't candies made for men.
- "Fresh and clean" is how you describe food, not women.
- Women who don't wear hijab are NOT "used and dirty."
This type of sexism is the reason why movements like #NoHijabDay and #FreeFromHijab are so necessary. https://t.co/sx7sM0ffG5— Ex-Muslims of North America (@ExmuslimsOrg) February 1, 2021
Qarni made the comments after he claimed to a teenage girl that a woman who was repeatedly being sexually harassed on a New York street while wearing a t-shirt and leggings was left alone after wearing a hijab on the same spot. The video was shared on social media platforms such as X (formerly known as Twitter) and TikTok, although it has been removed from public viewing and marked as “private” on YouTube since then.
Another OTMF video invited criticism after describing an "AMAZING SOLUTION" to "RAPIDLY reduce crime," where Qarni argues that "there's no crime" in countries where "[they] chop your hand off, in public." Amputation is used in some systems of Sharia law to punish theft, although the OTMF trustee notes exemptions in cases of theft stemming from poverty, starvation, or mental illness.
The 39-year-old construction manager and businessman appeared in another controversial OTMF video about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The video, titled Zionist Jew Schooled, showed Qarni wearing an OTMF jacket and arguing with a young Jewish student about Israel’s offensive against Hamas in Gaza after the October 7 attacks, where 1,200 Israelis were killed. The video was regarded as antisemitic and has been marked “private” on YouTube ever since.
The National Secular Society (NSS) and other campaigners called for the Charity Commission to revoke OTMF’s charitable status in light of the hijab video.
WOMEN - I am a woman, you have no right to tell me not to be afraid of Islam. Because I have every reason to be afraid & you are gaslighting me!
The definition of Islamaphbia is an ‘irrational’ fear of Islam
I’m perfectly rational when I tell you I am afraid. pic.twitter.com/NxM430mwE0— Bernie (@Artemisfornow) May 12, 2024
“This deeply misogynistic video suggests women who do not wear the hijab are somehow sullied as they go about public life. The law, as currently implemented, is allowing charities registered under 'the advancement of religion' to spread misogyny with impunity.” NSS campaigns officer Alejandro Sanchez said.
"Legislators should now urgently reconsider 'the advancement of religion' as a charitable purpose," Sanchez added.
Maryam Namazie, a spokesman for the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and One Law for All, said that “an OTMF video says if women dressed 'modestly,' they wouldn't be raped or sexually assaulted. This is exactly why modesty culture is the extension of rape culture. It always blames the victim, never the perpetrator.”
"Under the guise of promoting religion, Islamic 'charities' like OTMF continue to promote Islamist values, like Sharia rules, including on amputation and the imposition of the veil and sex segregation on women and girls,” Namazie added.
"When will the Charities Commission and Government give precedence to the rights of minoritized women and girls? When will they stop enabling religious fundamentalists in their efforts to deny universal rights and normalize misogyny?" Namazie also said.
