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Illustrations by Marie-Shirine Yener
A social media post from the Middle East, illustrated by a 22-year-old woman in Paris, earns attention on our continent as well as overseas.
It addresses a concern without borders -- verbal harassment of Muslims, particularly women wearing hijabs -- and offers suggestions for trying to defuse the hostility.
Although the sketches and text originally were posted three months ago, they gain fresh relevance here amid reports of post-election jeers, chants and grafitti aimed at immigrants and Muslims. The presentation was reposted in full, as the creator encourages, a few weeks ago by a New York-based news site called Upworthy.
More recently, a New York transit incident sparks discussions of "bystander intervention" strategies to assist lone targets.
In that Dec. 1 case, 18-year-old college student Yasmin Seweid -- born in Brooklyn -- says three men yelled anti-Islam insults, called her a terrorist and tried to yank off her hijab around 10 p.m. on a Manhattan subway car while fellow passengers watched. "Everyone was looking," she tells a CBS affiliate. "No one said a thing. Everyone just looked away.”
Marie-Shirine Yener: "I felt like I had to try to do something."
In Ann Arbor on Nov. 11 near the University of Michigan, a man reportedly demanded that a student remove her hijab, which she did.
For her part, Parisian illustrator Marie-Shirine Yener, who uses the pen name "Maeril," tells The Independent newspaper in London why she drew a four-step guide for helping public intimidation targets:
"I have witnessed, during the last months and years, the number of hate-motivated actions against Muslims increase rapidly. I felt like I had to try to do something with what I have, and that is drawing and writing."
Her drawings and pointers, initially posted Sept. 1 by a Facebook page called The Middle Eastern Feminist, apply a strategy called ""non-complementary behavior" -- a psychology tactic aimed at disrupting an oppressive connection someone is trying to create. "I encourage everyone to apply this method to every kind of harassment they witness," Yener tells British journalist Narjas Zatat.
At the Facebook page, creator Hawzhn Azeez, a native of South Kurdistan, she says shares the artwork and pointers "to raise awareness of how to help when such things happen before our eyes. That way one cannot say they didn't know what to do. . . . Please don't hesitate to share this guide as it could push a lot of people to overcome bystander syndrome."
Her post earns 3,200 likes and is shared over 3,000 times in three months.
Here are Yener's four steps, followed by precautions from Azeez and a commenter at her page.
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Safety guidance
Azeez, administrator of The Middle Eastern Feminist on Facebook. suggests:
Do not, in any way, interact with the attacker. You must absolutely ignore them and focus entirely on the person being attacked.
It is important to emphasize that choosing to speak up could result in one being targeted by the attacker as well. Take every precaution necessary. . . .
This technique is the one that gives the least opportunity for violence to escalate. There are, of course -- and unfortunately -- exceptions, situations where it won't be enough. I wanted to showcase a strategy that has worked many times for many people. . . .
You can also call the police and video the interaction. There are many ways of responding and what we are trying to do here is give part of the way in which we can support Muslim women who wear hijab. This is by no means a definitive guide. Stay safe and take precautions.
Commenting on that post, Karin J of Uppsala, Sweden, cites personal experience at a bus stop ("not islamofobic harassement, just the ordinary male harassement") and advises:
This cartoon gives the impression that the harasser will leave when ignored. This is unfortunately not always the case.
If you step in to help, be prepared that the situation can turn nasty for you both. Still worth showing civil courage, but remember it is risky.
