Tuesday, 04 August 2020_As muslims celebrated Eid around the globe, controversy marked the annual celebration in the UK after Health secretary Matt Hancock imposed a lockdown banning families from gathering across Greater Manchester and parts of east Lancashire and West Yorkshire where there is a sizeable Muslim population.
The announcement was made the night before Eid, when Muslims would have already made plans to meet families and loved-ones, sparking disappointment and frustration, especially as the government remained silent while thousands gathered at beaches around the country.
Despite putting on a brave face the disappointment was clear throughout the Muslim community, not just those in Manchester and the North of England. It seems just like carers, schools, scientific advisors, even nurses, the government were finding a new group to blame for the poor handling of the coronavirus.
For many in the British Muslim community, pinning blame on them in such a way is indicative of the ruling conservative party who have a long history of islamophobia including leader Boris Johnson who described Muslim women as bank robbers and letterboxes.
In this vein the situation in neighbouring Ireland couldn’t be more different. There Muslims were invited into Dublin's Croke Park Gaelic sports stadium to practice their Eid prayers with members of other faiths invited to speak at the celebration which was televised on Irish national TV. Since the start of the pandemic Ireland have had just over 26,000 cases with 1,700 deaths. a far cry from the rising numbers plaguing the UK.
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