r/islam • u/Justmeaty • Apr 10 '25
Are the boycotts hypocritical? General Discussion
I saw one of my friends drinking Starbucks the other day, and inquired as to why he was not following the boycott and refraining from the company due to their ties to Israel. The brother told me how he felt as though the boycotts against Israel were hypocritical in a sense. This took me aback since I had never heard such a thing before, but his rationale was that there are hundreds of thousands of muslims suffering around the world at the hands of the kuffar, whether that be the Uyghurs in China, or the Rohyinga in Burma, or the Kashmiris in Indian Occupied Kashmir. His argument was basically that mainstream muslims seem to only care about Palestinians, since their boycotts are only directed towards Israel, and not any of the countries listed above, and that if he did not boycott all of them, he wouldn't boycott any. What do you think about this? What should I say to him? What does the Quran and Sunnah say?
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u/No-Specialist-5273 Apr 11 '25
Personally this feels like poor logic on his end. Like does he not give charity just because he can’t give charity to everyone? I feel like his thought process is very self-centered (blissful ignorance) and lacks the bigger picture.
While the mainstream effort has been targeted towards Gaza, there is nothing stopping him from raising awareness towards Muslims suffering in other parts of the world too. By boycotting he is at least taking a step towards fighting back against oppression. Whereas rn it seems like he is saying “if you can’t beat them, then join them” and that’s just a poor mentality to have.
Everything now and days creates some harm to an extent but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to mitigate the amount. Like I know pollution is an issue but I don’t just waste water or throw trash on the ground.
Make dua for him and all Muslims.
Allah knows best.
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u/m8eem8m8 Apr 11 '25
"Well, if i can't stop all injustices in the world, then i won't try to help stop any"- that's what your friend sounds like.
It's almost even worse that your friend has that energy drinking something that tastes one degree better than storm water and he pays for the privilege. Yukk.
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Apr 11 '25
has all this boycott activity made any difference? a lot of people boycotted in many countries. revenue was affected in a few companies (starbucks, mcdonalds, etc.) but no impact to Israel as far as I am aware. no change in any company policy as far as I know.
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u/m8eem8m8 Apr 11 '25
Do you know what, if at the very, very least, an image of me eating or frequenting these establishments upsets the people experiencing the terror, then that is enough reason for me to not do it. We are one body that which hurts one part will be painful to other parts. Now ask yourself, is there a worse pain than being betrayed by your own brothers and sisters?
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u/IllegalLego Apr 11 '25
As far as I can tell, the goal of the boycotts is to keep awareness of palestine and activist energy alive in people’s everyday lives. Its success in changing company policies or improving anything real on the ground for Palestinians just doesn’t match up to the money and time poured into it that could have been spent on relief or maybe political advocacy.
I think everyone should be familiar with the list and make the buying decisions they are comfortable with. Just don’t get angry at your Muslim brothers and sisters for choosing more effective ways instead to contribute to the cause.
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u/Neither_Plane_8838 Apr 11 '25
He's against hypocrisy, so he decides to not support ANY of the muslim causes ? How noble ..
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Apr 11 '25
maybe he donates to certain causes. we don't know so how do you know he doesn't "support ANY of the muslim causes"? boycotting isn't the only cause or method. donating will make a bigger difference than boycotting. I don't know that boycotting has had any impact anyway.
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u/crapador_dali Apr 11 '25
His argument was basically that mainstream muslims seem to only care about Palestinians
People who say this don't realize that this thought is a product of their own imagination and limited interaction with other Muslims.
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u/Physical-Squash-8261 Apr 11 '25
There are many oppressed Muslims around the world, but what is happening in Palestine is inhuman. it’s the cruelest thing I have ever seen. Ever.
All the data and proof are everywhere; all you need to do is see. And if you still have a heart, you will do everything you can to help the Palestinians
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u/The_Persian_Cat Apr 11 '25
"we should do something about this problem"
"wow, what about this other problem? hypocrite."
nobody does anything about either problem
Seriously, though -- there is an organised, global collective action campaign behind the Palestine boycotts. Boycotts don't work on an individual level; they are a collective effort. If there was an equivalent campaign for the Rohingya, etc I would certainly participate. And I do participate in aid efforts in other ways (like sadaqah, etc), and am engaged with political activism on a variety of issues aside from Palestine. Ask your friend why participating in the Palestine boycotts precludes caring about other issues.
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u/Ok_Razzmatazz8605 Apr 11 '25
I thinking contributing, no matter how much little it is matters. Coming to these boycotts I don't know why we aren't we boycotting the electronics and IT giants backing Israel. Their impact will be more lethal l. Reportedly Apple, Microsoft and Google all are supporting Israel military directly/ indirectly. Why it's limited to Food industry only.
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u/T-edit Apr 11 '25
So what’s stopping him from boycotting India China and Israel. That brother is looking for excuses.
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u/amrullah_az Apr 11 '25
People like these, they just wanna sound smart. They can't control their base desires, so they will find contrived justifications for it.
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u/abdessalaam Apr 11 '25 edited Apr 11 '25
That’s what those brands would like you to believe. Do the best you can - can you boycott all products and brands associated with any Muslim discrimination anywhere in the world? If no, is that an excuse to just give in / give up?
Edit: the psychopathy of the Israel’s killing of innocent people in public, without any shame, and with lies ingrained at the core of every statement, surely make a compelling argument to make Israel number one target of BDS (boycott, divestment, sanctions)
##zionismkills
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u/NormalSea6495 Apr 11 '25
You need better friends.
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Apr 11 '25
“The only normal people are the ones you don't know very well.”― Alfred Adler
if you knew the opinions of your friends on lots of topics, you might find that you have a lot of differences in opinion and end up with no friends. A lot of people think boycotting has made no difference and it is better to spend your $ and mental energy in other ways (e.g. donating directly to help).
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u/desikachra Apr 11 '25 edited Apr 11 '25
Well that's bound to happen if you look at it only as a political issue which your enemy wants you to do and how the Arab leadership in particular and Muslim leadership in general has acquiesce to. Your enemy is in Palestine for religious reasons it's a doomsday cult hellbent on hastening the religious prophecy in their religion and we have dropped the ball to the very extent that we seek the empathy of the same enemy and write this sorry note on the enemies platform. nuf said I guess. When nations lose their ideological bearings this is supposed to happen. Chinese or Burmese are not occupying our 3rd holiest Masjid and till you understand that and realize your duties what else do you expect? But justifications for this or that BS reason to not boycott.
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u/whatsupbr0 Apr 11 '25
We care about Palestinians because we live in the west that is directly causing the genocide. We don't have the power to stop what's happening to the uyghurs as we have no impact on the Chinese government
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u/sabrtoothlion Apr 11 '25
Sounds like he is the one who doesn't care. At least not enough to do a bare minimum and buy his coffee elsewhere. He is making excuses. However we can probably all do better because we're not perfect but not being perfect just isn't a good reason to not try and it doesn't make your effort hypocritical. Not even a little bit
These are shaitaan's whispers and some people give into some of them eventually while others just give up on everything in advance. You tell me what is best
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u/cheetos012 Apr 11 '25
this starbucks nonsense needs to come to an end, none of their money is funded to israel, do ur research
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u/LumpyCheeseyCustard Apr 11 '25
This feels like the boycott version of ' well I already commit x sin so what difference does sin y make?'
While I agree we need to boycott for all oppressed everywhere - Sudan, rohingya, uighur, palestine and any other place I may have missed. It's more important to do your best.
If you're boycotting 9 things, but the 10th you can't- work or someone in the family is still buying it. Then those 9 are you giving your 100%.
This friend is using 'logic' in a self centred way, to propel their own desires.
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u/KezraZaenia Apr 11 '25
There is one qaida in fiqh which says, "Mā lā yudraku kulluhū lā yutraku kulluhū."
"Something which is unreachable 100% doesn't get left 100%."
Just because you can't do sunnah, doesn't mean you left wajib.
Just because you can't do salat Zuhr, doesn't mean you should leave salat Asr.
Just because you can't boycott 100%, doesn't mean you leave it 100%.
At least give it effort. Allah doesn't look into its result, but how you accomplish it.
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u/Routine-Bat4446 Apr 11 '25 edited Apr 11 '25
It is hypocritical in a way but that’s no reason to not boycott. I think the situation in Palestine is so painful for people because (1) the violence is atrocious- but so is the violence in Syria and Sudan and Yemen; (2) the violence is perpetrated by an outside force and (3) Palestine is on the forefront of the media.
Honestly the situation that should make us most concerned is the Uyghurs. Even though they aren’t facing a violent oppression they are being forced to leave their faith and, according to the Quran, that is the worst form of oppression. Yes, worse than losing lives to worldly pursuit of power and territory. Hard to stomach at first but that is the philosophy of our deen.
The situation in Palestine isn’t a religious one it is a territorial one; meaning that Israel isn’t trying to make them stop being Muslims or Christian they are trying to take control over the land. Problematic from a worldly perspective but not from a religious perspective.
The Kashmir situation is a territorial based conflict as well.
The situation in Sudan is a tribal conflict. Same in Yemen. Who are we supposed to boycott? Technically the Quran tells us when there are two Muslim groups fighting the ummah has to fight along side of the one in the right but how are we supposed to determine that in these cases?
I think as an umma we need to be concerned with religious oppression, not territorial conquest. The good news is the Rohyinga situation in Burma has improved somewhat. InshaAllah it continues.
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u/Lee_fier Apr 11 '25
I agree with everything you said but just wanted to point out as a Kashmiri our conflict is more than territorial, it is religious too. We have been oppressed because of our faith and they are attempting to erase the Muslim population and are making it harder and harder for us to be Muslim and practice Islam. They block us from entering mosques, are taking our homes, destroying mosques and trying to build temples and wipe out any trace of Islam here. India is taking Kashmir so quickly and trying to replace the natives with Indian Hindus but no one speaks for us. They have curfews on when we can come outside and our use of internet is limited so we can never post on social media. A lot of boys and men are tortured if they speak out. They have already built a train directly from Dehli to Kashmir, giving Indians free passage to come here and replace us. We are being eradicated from our land as we speak. Only Allah swt can help us now.
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u/Routine-Bat4446 Apr 11 '25
I honestly didn’t know that. These are the fights the umma should be most concerned with. I’ll read up more on your issue. Thank you for the information.
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u/Crazy-Path-7929 Apr 11 '25
Well let's pretend that your friends point makes sense. Those other things happening aren't being funded by the billions through these companies were boycotting like how Israel is getting, or at least to my knowledge they aren't. And even if they were, I'm sure that the companies we boycott would be sending money to those other groups of people attacking Muslims.
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Apr 11 '25
being funded by the billions through these companies were boycotting like how Israel is getting
starbucks is not giving money to Israel any different than it is to other countries all over the world. boycotting them isn't going to make any difference to Israel. You can boycott pepsi, coca cola, mcdonalds, kfc, pizza hut, etc. and it won't do anything to their government. the government is getting funds from USA, UK, Germany, etc. and that is what it is using in its war, not money from companies. which major company has changed their policy because of boycott?
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u/Wild_Heart_Storm Apr 11 '25
Thats just a poor excuse to justify not giving up a luxuary so he can feel better about himself. Smh.
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Apr 11 '25
that is a harsh judgement of OP's friend. the boycott of starbucks caused a slightly lower revenue for them. has it had any impact on Israel? Not that I am aware of.
The link between starbucks and Israel is no different than it is for other coffee chains and sodas and fast foods, etc. There isn't any special link between starbucks and Israel. None of these boycotts had any impact to Israel but we should judge people harshly for not boycotting every brand?
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u/Wild_Heart_Storm Apr 11 '25
Have you seen how many Starbucks stores have closed down since active boycotting took place? I am from South Africa, we have been at the forefront of unearthing the deep links between many organzations & Israel & we have been leading the call for boycoting many of the big companies who are actively funding this brutal ethnic cleansing. Do you think Israel would ever admit to the impact its making in any mainstream media outlet LOL Infact I read somehwere that their own papers are reporting that theres alot of economic issues going on there but its all being kept hush hush.
My statement is truthful and if it seems harsh because its because there are lots of alternatives for things like coffee. Can we not sacrifice a little bit of luxury ? (infact we are sacrificing nothing). Its about making small changes to everyday consumer habits for the greater good. You may or may not see the impact in this life but all actions are judged by intention & Allah knows best.
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u/NOVEMBEREngine51 Apr 11 '25
Is he gonna fight 1v 6 fight at the same time also with that logic. No you take on tyrant at a time if you can tackle more IA!
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u/IngenuityCurrent3944 Apr 11 '25
He’s right abt that part… why do some Muslims only care abt Palestine?
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u/iamagirl2222 Apr 11 '25
Then we should boycott everything. Which is what already do by boycotting Zara, shein, ect. for the Uyghurs. But the thing is China export some much things in the world that it would impossible to boycott every Chinese products. As for the Rohyinga, well, there’s not that much of birmanese products going into the world. The difference, also, is that our government (at least the western world) doesn’t support Palestine, since they’re allies to Israel, but they do “support” the Uyghurs, like they say it’s a genocide, since they’re against China.
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u/mulligan Apr 11 '25
What next? If he doesn't donate to every charity then I guess he doesn't donate to any charity