Unsubstantiated claims that Muslims are offended by people who decide to don a poppy are making the rounds on social media recently.
However, after attempting to find any headlines and stories online corroborating the dubious claim, we came up completely empty-handed.
What did appear in the long list of search results was a slew of links to articles debunking the baseless assertion that the blood of those who follow the Islamic faith will instantly boil over at the mere sight of someone with a poppy pinned to his or her chest.
Apparently, this hoax has been resurfacing just in time for Remembrance Day for the past few years and serves nothing more than to foment misinformation and misunderstanding at best, or hateful prejudice at worst.
Many tens of thousands of Muslim troops fought, bled, lost limbs and died or came home psychologically shattered for the Allied cause during the Second World War. Rows of crosses are not all that adorn military graveyards. There is also no shortage of crescent moon headstones, as well as stars of David for that matter, recognizing the different faiths that worked together to end Nazi tyranny.
The effort to dismantle the Third Reich's oppressive military rule was to liberate people and allow self determination free from threat of imprisonment. That includes granting a person the basic human right to freedom of thought and faith without fear of repercussion and persecution.
Even if there is a Muslim who is offended by the poppy out there somewhere, that person would not be representative of the majority. Just like people of many different faiths, many gladly volunteer to sell poppies to raise funds and observe a moment of silence, perhaps even for their own ancestors who laid down their lives on the battlefields in Europe as well as the Middle East, often as cannon fodder ahead of other troops.
Remembrance Day is about solemnly reflecting on the terrible cost of conflict and taking time to honour the sacrifices of so many people, including Muslims and Jews, who sacrificed everything for the hope of a brighter, freer future for all humankind.
We should also never forget that the Second World War in large part spawned from Hitler's ability to focus his people's resentment on a minority scapegoat, and millions of people died as a result of his manipulative ambition.
So as we prepare to honour the memory of those who without hesitation sacrificed so much in service to humanity, let us rise above the divisive distractions that seek to pit us against people who are different from us.
— Ducatel is the Round Up's editor
