Reykjavík Grapevine - 19.05.2017, Page 10

Anti-racist activist Bjartmar Oddur
Þeyr Alexandersson went to a racist
conference recently held in Reyk-
javík, where a strange assemblage
of international conservatives dis-
cussed how to “modernise Islam.”
"He cannot take any pictures of the
guests. He needs to stay there with
the rest of the photographers," said
Valdimar Jóhannson, one of the coor-
dinators of the event held earlier this
month at the Grand Hótel, as he held
my upper arm in a firm grip and looked
straight into my eyes. Pressing harder
on my arm, he added: "You will be sure
that you do not twist anything which
will be said here."
As we entered the hall I could see a
lot of familiar faces, mostly of people
known for their controversial opin-
ions about immigrants, especially
Muslims. But there were also a few
people who were there just to see what
all the fuss was about regarding key-
note speaker Robert Spencer, whose
website Jihad Watch publishes articles
about Islam, and the dangers Spencer
and others believe come with it.
Snake oil and baldness
As I take a seat, I note that this confer-
ence would be a perfect venue to sell
hair-growth products to older men—
and probably plenty of snake oil as
well. Next to me sits an older woman,
“the cheerleader,” as I like to think of
her. She cannot hide her excitement to
hear Spencer talk, and is contentiously
saying that he is a hero to her. When
the meeting starts, Valdimar presents
the first speaker, Christine Williams.
There is no way that this woman can
be a racist, he avers, since she has so
many races in her: she is one-quarter
Indian, one-quarter Scottish, one-
quarter Chinese and one-quarter black
(Valdimar doesn’t specify the nation-
ality).
The cheerleader can’t understand
why Williams is speaking for so long.
“I came here to listen to Spencer, not
this ‘nigger,’" she says.
“This meeting is
not for you"
When the Q&A starts, the imam of
one of Iceland’s Muslim congregations
stands up to ask Williams a question.
You can smell the tension in the air.
Before he’s finished asking the ques-
tion she’s already talking over him,
and the crowd follows suit. The cheer-
leader screams “Sit down! This meet-
ing is not for you.” The crowd cheers
and jeers, obviously uninterested in
starting a dialogue about the osten-
sible subject of the conference.
Then, the moment we’ve all have
been waiting for: the rock star is in-
troduced, and the fans go wild. The
cheerleader jumps from her seat and
claps her hands at a fanatic pace. Spen-
cer enters the hall escorted by a body-
guard, in a country where not even the
president or prime minister has one.
When he starts to speak, silence falls
in the room. The admiration and en-
ergy in the eyes of the audience could
be used to power a Tesla.
Cannot trust them
Robert is charming, but that’s what
is scary about him. He is well spoken,
and good at finding out what scared
people want to hear to fuel their ha-
tred of Muslims. He uses his gifts
of salesmanship to push on people
the idea that you should be scared of
1.6 billion people on this planet. His
main argument is that all Muslims
are a possible threat, since it says in
the Quran, according to one interpre-
tation, that Muslims can lie to non-
believers about their actual beliefs.
Therefore, you cannot trust them.
We should not allow them to take
part in politics, business or charities,
since the Muslim Brotherhood has
a plan to use these channels to take
over the Western world. At the same
time, Spencer repeats, he has noth-
ing against Muslims. He wants to do
everything possible to integrate them
into our community—we should just
be on guard regarding their activities.
Booming Business
Here’s the problem with his argument:
we live in a democracy, and Spencer’s
position is an attack on individual
rights protected by a constitution that
says we cannot discriminate against
people based on their religion. Even
if we actually believe that Muslims
are really trying to take over Western
civilization, that belief does not trump
the constitution. Spencer’s argument
is an attack on democracy and hu-
man rights. We have a justice system
that guarantees you’re innocent until
proven guilty by a court of law. Spencer
wants to have the power of the inves-
tigator, the prosecutor and the judge.
To Spencer, this is a business—and
let me tell you all, business is booming.
Words:
Bjartmar
Oddur Þeyr
Alexandersson
Top Photo
Ómar Sverrisson
Author Photo
Art Bicnick
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gpv.is/ugh08
It is a tale often recounted to il-
lustrate the backwardness of
Icelandic farmers in times past:
that time they rode into Reykjavík
to protest the coming of the tele-
phone. Those weary of the ubiquity
of phones today might feel that
these yeomen of yore were right to
try to nip this one in the bud. Sadly,
the story is not entirely true.
Yes, over 200 farmers did ride to
town in 1905 and were prevented
from entering the Parliament
building by police. However, they
were not protesting the advent of
the telephone, but the telegraph,
a technology already becoming
outdated by the early 20th cen-
tury. What they wanted instead
was the wireless radiotelegraph, a
far more modern technology then
being introduced by the Marconi
Company. So, more a protest in fa-
vour of wifi and against landlines
than a Luddite revolt.
The wireless radiotelegraph was
not only the cheaper option, but
had the added benefit of not
having to go through the hated
Danes, since transmissions could
originate from anywhere. However,
Hannes Hafstein, Minister of Ice-
land in the colonial Danish govern-
ment, was not impressed and went
ahead with plans to lay a cable
from Copenhagen to Seyðisfjörður
and thence overland to Reykjavík.
The Danes bore most of the cost,
but in return gained considerable
influence over the burgeoning
Icelandic phone system. The task
was completed a year later, and
the minister exchanged telegrams
with the king in Copenhagen. The
next great phone dispute in Ice-
land came with privatization a cen-
tury later, but that is another story.
Words: Valur Gunnarsson
10 The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 08 — 2017
OPINION
BLAST FROM THE PAST
The crowd
cheers
and jeers,
obviously
uninter-
ested in
starting a
dialogue.
Bjartmar Does Spencer:
Merchant
of Fear

Our photographer, Ómar Sverrisson, also took photos
from the protests— see them on page 58
An artist's rendering of the author with
Robert Spencer, in a "punchy" mood
Farmers vs.
Phones
Farmers gathering in Lækjartorg. The
square and the street that connects to
it are named after the canal that crosses
the square, which since the picture was
taken has been buried underground.
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