One of Swansea University’s football teams has caused minor outrage this week by seemingly using an official end-of-year photograph as a platform for Islamophobia. Although ostensibly a ‘fun photograph’, in which the players ‘hail’ their captain, the addition of the tagline ‘Allahu Akbar’ (which translates roughly as “Allah is the greatest”) appears to make a much more sinister statement, one that explicitly mocks of Muslim prayer worship for no real reason other than amusement.
This is of course, sparks debate as to what Swansea University students find acceptable. On one hand, this photo could be dismissed as a product of ‘lad culture’, a deliberately tongue-in-cheek picture designed to provoke interest, banter, and just a bit of a laugh. However, when this picture is looked at objectively, it shows a group of predominantly white men adopting and parodying a position of Islamic prayer. Say what you like about how ‘funny’ you think this photo is, but I believe it’s overtly racist, and as such, has no place on our campus.
Coming from Gloucestershire, a more rural, and therefore less ethnically diverse county, I feel very proud to live in a multicultural city such as Swansea, and have made friends of different backgrounds and religions. I love that the university celebrates the diversity of its students, Omani week last year, for example was a fantastic success. The mosque on campus is a physical sign of what should be an accepting a celebrating place.
Frankly, it sickens me that a photo like this can be allowed to be made, and made as an official photo of Sport Swansea. It undermines what the university stands for, and undoes hard work by both the University and Students’ Union, particularly the links made between home and international students by current and former International Officers Eva Donoghue and Mahaboob Basha.
It was speculated earlier today in The Waterfront that the International Officer position will be up for the chop in the upcoming Full Time Officer elections. The International Officer is responsible for making sure international students have the best experience, free from prejudice and discrimination, as they possibly can here at Swansea. So when things like this photo happen, it worries me. If this can happen with and International Officer, what sort of discrimination could happen without one?
It may be suggested that discussion of this photo has been limited amongst Swansea students due to fears over backlash from those in favour of it. Muslim students in particular may be afraid to come forward publicly and say that this photo offends them, considering the various Islamaphobic attacks we saw on the university mosque over the last academic year. Moreover, following the pole fitness scandal, the union has had to monitor any comments it makes through its PR department to a much greater extent, making it difficult for officers to make official quotes, and in turn, slowing, or preventing, articles such as this from being written.
However, by currently not talking openly about this photo, the only ideas that Swansea University and its student media are making clear is that they consider instances of casual Islamophobia like this to acceptable. Or even worse, they believe that these tensions are best resolved by metaphorically sweeping them under the carpet.
By Laurence Atkinson
The Siren 
Im sorry, but I have read some Facebook comments about this and it is quite ridiculous. This is not offensive, this is a team photo. This is an inside joke, that upsets no one apart, from those who have nothing better to do than creat controversy. Everyone in that photo has agreed to it and will keep it as a reminder of their football team. When it comes to religion, you get the classic, “oh no you cant say or do that because you might offend someone. Being religious doesn’t grant you any extra rights. Get a grip, there is no hate here. A pitiful excuse for a blog.
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There were a good few students who were offended by the photo, so this is simply one side of the story and of course there is a counter-argument for this, which you have expressed. This is just one view in a debate and we encourage our readers to agree or disagree with any views expressed by our writers.
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I think chucking phrases like Islamophobia out there is a bit far. As Eric says it was obviously an inside joke within the football team but when you present it to a public audience without any sense of how it was meant it can be regarded as very distasteful. I also enjoy the fact you presume everyone in this picture is white as if a glance can determine their ethnic or even religious backgrounds. Also, I wonder if everyone in the picture had been doing crucifix poses and the tagline had been “praise to jesus”, whether you would have bothered writing a blog about that. Obviously the picture is in bad taste but this blog is sensationalist and not helpful to anybody.
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A good point well made there Gareth. It’s probably just as wrong to assume that you can determine someone’s racial/religious standpoint just by glancing at a single photograph. Thanks for commenting.
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Apologies for “A pitiful excuse for a blog”, I always encourage debate. I was reading some Facebook comments which were quite ridiculous at the time. We all forget that these are just ideologies. I am a furious Pastafarian, it really gets me when people microwave super noodles or even twiddle around tagliatelle. But I remind myself that they have the right to. Lets not encourage this attitude where people want to censor everything just because it might offend someone.
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No worries, we just appreciate people engaging with our articles in any case! Agreed, everyone can share opinions and it’s what we like to encourage.
But totally with you on microwaving Super Noodles. Unforgiveable.
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