From the South China Morning Post, 13th September:
In contrast [to Pope John Paul II’s visit in 1982], for this papal visit, a group called Protest the Pope has lined up gay, feminist and secular groups to stage protests against the visit - and there has even been talk of serving the pope with an arrest warrant because of the abuse scandal. [That’s them above]
Why are these folk not excoriated as being “Cathophobic”?
Clearly because they have a case to make. And noone would consider calling them Cathophobic or Pope-ophobic. Yet if criticisms are made of Islam – of practices every bit as odious as the pedophilia in amongst Catholic clergy – they’re smeared as being “Islamophobic”. Though I think I begin to see that the term is used less and less. Perhaps there’s a glimmer in the MSM that it’s a bogus term. Vide Christopher Hitchens:
As for the gorgeous mosaic of religious pluralism, it's easy enough to find mosque Web sites and DVDs that peddle the most disgusting attacks on Jews, Hindus, Christians, unbelievers, and other Muslims—to say nothing of insane diatribes about women and homosexuals. This is why the fake term Islamophobia is so dangerous: It insinuates that any reservations about Islam must ipso facto be "phobic." A phobia is an irrational fear or dislike. Islamic preaching very often manifests precisely this feature, which is why suspicion of it is by no means irrational.
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References:
Benedict’s popemobile faces bumpy ride, South China Morning Post, 13 Sep 2010 [PDF]
A Test of Tolerance, Christopher Hitchens, Slate, 23 Aug 2010
