As I reported last month, some nobody who writes for the free London tabloid Metro argued that comedy legend John Cleese was "ruining his legacy" with his Islamophobic posts on X. Cleese, much like J.K. Rowling, is a liberal, but he's not sitting quietly by as the leaders of his country stand by as a religion that believes in beheading infidels amasses more and more political power.
A couple of Saturdays ago, we told you that even England, which has a king, was taking part in the "No Kings" protest, except that there, the press just called it an anti-far-right protest. And believing that the country is slowly being handed over to Muslim migrants arriving on dinghies and supposedly seeking asylum. That's the term they use in the U.K. … not illegal alien, or illegal immigrant, or even migrant, but "asylum-seeker." From what are these military-aged Muslim men seeking asylum? Certainly not religious persecution. And they certainly have no intention to assimilate.
Shadi Hamid, a columnist at The Washington Post, has published a column making "a case against assimilation." Let's hear him out a bit:
My new @washingtonpost column:
— Shadi Hamid (@shadihamid) April 8, 2026
Why do Muslims need to be like everyone else? A case against assimilation. https://t.co/XreIcwhW5y pic.twitter.com/bETO4dkmlO
Should a minority community's right to be in America depend on their willingness to converge with the cultural mainstream? No, it shouldn't depend on that. It shouldn't depend on anything. We're all Americans, after all. pic.twitter.com/B54I3NEBHR
— Shadi Hamid (@shadihamid) April 8, 2026
Muslims are different in certain ways. How could they not be? Islam shapes how its adherents think about family, sexuality and what it means to live a good life. Simply put, Islam is also a more public religion than Christianity.
— Shadi Hamid (@shadihamid) April 8, 2026
Practicing Muslims — despite being repeatedly asked to — can’t disavow “sharia” even if they wanted to. The sharia includes guidelines on how to pray, fast and otherwise observe what it means to submit to God in daily practice.https://t.co/XreIcwhW5y pic.twitter.com/4GMGIBAzKj
— Shadi Hamid (@shadihamid) April 8, 2026
Muslims are significantly more religious and observant than the rest of the American population. Is this a problem? No. Republicans are also significantly more religious than the overall population and we don't ask them to "assimilate." pic.twitter.com/ss9logL8qr
— Shadi Hamid (@shadihamid) April 8, 2026
Uh-oh. Hamid got a "hello" from Data Republican:
Hello Mr. Hasim,
— DataRepublican (small r) (@DataRepublican) April 8, 2026
You've already reached levels of institutional validation that remain inaccessible to nearly all Americans: a professorship at Georgetown, a position on the Washington Post's editorial board.
At that point, saying you still need to prove yourself is like Taylor…
The post continues:
… Swift insisting no one listens to her music.
If assimilation feels out of reach, it isn't because the system has excluded you. By any reasonable measure, it has already brought you into its highest ranks. What remains is a decision about whether you're willing to fully embrace where you already stand.
And all signs point to "no."
This is a you problem.
I'm not sure if Hamid was born in the United States or if he's an immigrant, but a lot of people asked the same question I ask: There are 57 Muslim countries in the world … why do you choose to move to a Christian country and then complain about being expected to assimilate?
Sounds like a case for Islamism.
— Andy Ngo (@MrAndyNgo) April 8, 2026
Hamid mentions that "Islam is also a more public religion than Christianity." It's also a more political one.
Raises the question, if immigrant groups want to retain their native culture rather than assimilate, why immigrate in the first place?
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@christopherrufo) April 8, 2026
I am a noted immigration hawk, but I have to congratulate you for making a case against Muslim immigration far more successfully than I ever could have.
— Jeremy Carl (@realJeremyCarl) April 8, 2026
Your sense of entitlement is remarkable.
This you?https://t.co/bRHNjMbjrb
— Bob (@Shariakill) April 8, 2026
I agree Muslims aren't under any compulsion to assimilate. I just simply don't want you here.
— John III Sobieski (@JohnIVSobieski) April 8, 2026
This might fly if the story wasn’t constant demands for concessions from the “mainstream” you’re deriding. Good luck.
— Chris McKeever (@chrismckeever) April 8, 2026
The issue, at its core, is that Islam is antithetical to western life. We made a distinction between church and state at this country’s founding. There is no such distinction with adherents to Islam. Church is state. State is church. It dictates one’s actions and mission. It both…
— The Saltiest Deplorable (@saltydeplorable) April 8, 2026
The post continues:
… explains why muslims can’t be “like everyone else” and why they’ve no place in America. Us citizenship and Islam are antithetical.
Further proving that the only reason to be here is a mix between invasion and taking advantage of what was built by our ancestors because it far exceeds what's available back in their home countries.
— Airborne (@abnheel) April 8, 2026
I just came to check on ratios and comments. Banger of a post @shadihamid
— Rick Wilson’s Dog (@SCchumer) April 8, 2026
Yeah, he's getting destroyed in the comments. A lot of people are saying he's making a great case for deportation, but he was born in Pennsylvania to Egyptian parents.
As I wrote recently, a lot of people were uncomfortable when London's mayor led a Ramadan takeover of Trafalgar Square for a public prayer. One member of Parliament called it an "act of domination," and that's what it feels like. Hamid says Islam is a more "public" religion, which only contributes to that feeling. I wrote back in February about a father and son blasting a school board for allowing a group to hand out Qurans and hijabs to celebrate World Hijab Day. Is it OK if we say, no thanks?
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