y are armenians so racist?

[Sip]

Re: y are armenians so racist?

Anyway.... the first response I got here on this forum was terrible, basically saying "everyone hates you people, so don't expect Armenians to be any different" ....But I want to thank you others for more positive responses,

You said you were "shocked" of the racism by Armenians. I was trying to bring you back to a little reality that it is NOT just Armenians. As the others have told you, Armenians are probably not going to be particularly hostile toward you but still, you shouldn't delude yourself that muslims are "liked" by Armenians. They are not. The Iranians are an exception ... Armenians in Iran have lived side by side and Iran has traditionally been a very good neighbor.

The other problem you will face is that the cancer of Islam is also spreading in Armenia. As a people who tend to stick to their Christian Church for some form of national identity (the USSR did ease that for a while), again you will find distrust and dislike of anything that threatens that identity (e.g. Islam). Now as a tourist, you will probably not encounter any problems (seems that's mostly what you care about). But don't expect the people there to "accept" you into their midst. ... that won't happen so easily

[Esra]

Re: y are armenians so racist?

@Sip ....I don't think i'll be deluding myself... It's because pathetic brainwashed people like you exist, the true cancer of this world...But not to worry, I only have pity on such weak people

[Mos]

Re: y are armenians so racist?

Well, there were Armenian elements stirring up unrest towards the end of the Ottoman Empire. This, however, was in response to the massacres towards Armenians which went unrecognized by the international communities.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1896_Ottoman_Bank_Takeover

Any "Armenian element" in now way justified what the Turks did to the Armenians. And let's not forget, that they blamed the West on helping the Christian minorities, and till this day cry about the West being biased against the Muslim Turks, thus accepting the Armenian Genocide.

[Federate]

Re: y are armenians so racist?

Well, there were Armenian elements stirring up unrest towards the end of the Ottoman Empire. This, however, was in response to the massacres towards Armenians which went unrecognized by the international communities.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1896_Ottoman_Bank_Takeover

All Armenian unrest stopped after the 1908 constitutional revolution that overthrew the Sultan. So for 7-8 years, there was absolutely no excuse to be used to massacre us further.

[Mos]

Re: y are armenians so racist?

Thank you! I hope to visit Armenia someday. God-willing!

You will find a very sharp contrast between the place of your origin (Iraq) and Armenia. Armenia is a post-Soviet country and you will see the prevalence of Russian things all over. Russian is de-facto second language. Of course our cultural elements their (churches, monasteries, museums) and the beautiful nature remain strong. The nature also is another sharp contrast, Armenia is very rugged and mountainous. Yerevan, capital city, is a typical post-Soviet city with European flavours mixed in. One issue you may have is language barrier. Many Armenians speak Armenian and Russian, though English can sometimes be a problem. I see how much Persians struggle to communicate with taxi drivers, shopkeepers, etc. There is one mosque in the whole country, it's a old Persian Mosque in Yerevan that's been kept throughout the ages. Though there are almost no Muslims living in Armenia, you will see Persian tourists going there or Persians from embassy or university.

Every group of people has its racists and ignorant people. If you were a Turk or maybe even a black person, I would discourage you from visiting Armenia, but other than that you should be fine.

http://www.alshadi.am/index.html

[Siggie]

Re: y are armenians so racist?

I think the widespread sentiment Sip is describing is accurate. I see this daily in the US (and in a diverse part of the country like Los Angeles!). I have heard enough about the same in Europe, to assume it's similar there. Seems like Esra getting upset about him saying this, is a bit of the case of shooting the messenger.

I have heard religious scholars say the same about Islam. Note, they also acknowledge that Christianity has many violent messages too. But they make it sound (I don't know that I've heard anyone directly say this) as if Islam is more violent than Christianity even. I do not if this is the case, because I have not read any of the Quran.

Personally, I don't think interacting with a fundamentalist christian would be terribly different (albeit more familiar) than a fundamentalist Muslim. It's more about the degree of religiousness and less about which religion, for me.

[Siggie]

Re: y are armenians so racist?

That said, let me add...

I hope that you are not discouraged from visiting Armenia. I believe that what's in our hearts typically reveals itself in our attitudes and behavior (often subtly and without our conscious awareness). People will pick up on fear and apprehension... They may not recognize it as such, but they will pick up on some negativity. If you go there with the belief that it is a country full of fellow human beings who are not that different from yourself, you will be fine and people will treat you well in return.

[Sip]

Re: y are armenians so racist?

I don't see much difference in visiting Armenia or Germany with respect to Islam. Show up to Germany with hijab and niqab and all that .. people will not be hostile towards you but that doesn't mean they will like or accept you. There actually seems to be a pretty big anti-islamic movement in Europe as well.

I mean even in a place like Norway you have a loonatic that goes nutz and shoots up 80 kids and blows up parts of the city in his fight against "Islam" (sure not saying he was particulary rational but the sentiments are there whether we want to talk about it or not). Islam has very big image problems in the world and it is not getting any better unfortunately. Things will get uglier and uglier unless these "peace-loving" muslims that we keep hearing mentioned become much much more vocal and MUCH more active.

[Mos]

Re: y are armenians so racist?

One big factor in the hostility towards Islam in Europe is the over immigration, demographic crisis, and social problems as a result. Thus a negative perception of Muslims is created as they are seen as coming and breeding and destroying the state. This is also a result of the failed multicultural policies in Western Europe. Armenia fortunately does not have that problem, and I hope it never does. Mass immigration of a single group, especially one that statistically breeds more can be dangerous for the demographics and can create a lot of tension. We cannot have those multicultural policies destroy Armenia.

@Esra Of course it depends who you talk to. If you talk to Turks, Azeris, Pakistani, and other Muslim people brainwashed and influenced by these groups, they may very well say that Armenians are very hostile towards Muslims, that they destroy Mosques and massacred people just because they were Muslim. Of course it's Turkish BS, but they will try to make you think that Armenians are some sort of anti-Muslim racists. So be careful of that also.

[Esra]

Re: y are armenians so racist?

I think it's Sip's attitude that's making me become defensive towards him, even i'll say that the media concentrates only on the religious fundamentalists, I don't agree with them myself nor are their actions Islamic. But they are the ones people look at.

As for Sip, there's a difference between informing me and calling my faith a cancer, the latter is his own views and prejudice. and....

"It is spreading like cancer through Europe.... "

"The other problem you will face is that the cancer of Islam is also spreading in Armenia........But don't expect the people there to "accept" you into their midst. ... that won't happen so easily "

He seems quite happy about this fact......Sorry but this does not sound like a person who has "lots of Muslim friends" ........ If he's constantly stating that the faith of his friends is a "cancer"... turn a blind eye to his words if it suits you but... This to me will clearly come across as hatred.....

"Maybe I need to open my eyes but I did not hear or see a SINGLE muslim stand up to these idiot muslims to tell them they are wrong. Not a single one. So what does that tell me about this "peaceful" Islam? "

"Sure there are some progressives that love to claim Islam is a "religion of peace" but that's just words. In reality, we are not seeing a peaceful Islam in the world in action (maybe in passive existence but that is kind of useless). "

He is condemning even the peaceful Muslims so Just what chance do I have??

Now how long will you hide behind the excuse of the west and have the attitude of
"Oh everyone hates Islam in the west, so it's okay for me to hate them too!" ... there is no excuse for that, especially if an individual like me is approaching you in a peaceful way and actually showing positive interest and complimenting your country and culture... What is this? ... if someone kindly comes to you in the street and politely smiles saying help, would you slap them in the face?

I've lived in the west and i'm not naive to the racism, DON'T YOU THINK I'M AWARE THAT I'M HATED??.. I'm more aware than you that we are hated because i've had the racism it all my life so i KNOW it when i see it!....You complain about the peaceful Muslims not standing up to the fanatics, have you ever tried standing up to "Christian" fanatics?... they will KILL you... just like the "Muslim" Fanatics......

Still, someone is coming to you in peace, inquiring about your country, and then you call their faith a cancer and tell them they are hated, complain and moan about their faith and give them the impression that you hate them too..... sorry but that's hardly hospitable.... And to use the global hatred of Muslims as your excuse to do this is quite low actually. Especially if the individual comes in peace.... peace works both ways don't forget!

Either way... Assalamo Aleikum - Peace be upon you all.....whether you appreciate or notice it or not..it's up to you.