Survey: Most patriotic Brits are Muslims
Flying the flag ... British boxer Amir Khan
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By ANILA BAIG
Sun writer
I'VE always realised that Muslims are proud to be Brits and I'm glad that this survey has proved the point.
We've always known that Islamic values go hand-in-hand with British ones.
Unfortunately for us, it is the few bad apples that have given the majority of peaceful, law-abiding Muslims a bad name.
Those with any sense know how lucky we are to live in a country that lets us practise our faith freely.
Boxing champ Amir Khan is a great example. He is proud of his Islamic faith but also proud of being British. This is just the kind of role model we need.
We might not be flying the flag on our front porches but this poll proves Muslims are certainly flying it in our hearts.
MUSLIMS are more patriotic than the average Brit, a survey has revealed.
A massive 83 per cent of Muslims said they were proud to be British — compared with the national average of 79 per cent.
They are also more optimistic than the average Brit. Just 31 per cent said our country's best days are in the past. The national average is 45 per cent.
Half of those who took part in the poll about our national treasures believe Britain benefits from being multicultural.
The results of the survey — published today — shatter the myth that Muslims are not patriotic. And it confirms that icons such as boxer Amir Khan are part of a growing Muslim community happy to celebrate the Union Flag.
The poll of 2,000 Brits by think-tank Demos also found that Shakespeare, the National Trust and the Armed Forces are our most prized national treasures.
The spontaneous street-sweeping which took place across Britain after the summer riots was also held up as a source of national pride.
Tahir Shah, from the Muslim Public Affairs Committee, was not surprised at the results.
He said: "Most Muslims are not loud, radical, crazy lunatics like Anjem Choudary who want to get publicity for themselves. They want to get on with their lives quietly. They are proud to be British.
"Britain is a shining example. We know that in many other countries Muslims have it worse. In mainland Europe, countries such as France have introduced various Islamophobic laws.
"Muslims can practise their faith openly in the UK and many people are thankful for that."
Around 70 per cent of British Muslims were born in the UK, with 20 per cent arriving in the post-war immigration wave and just ten per cent arriving in the past decade.
Britain's Muslim population is around three million.
Ajmal Masroor, from the Islamic Society of Britain, said: "Muslim communities are very loyal to this country. Britain has values that are completely compatible with Islamic values."
Tariq Modood, director of the Centre for Study of Ethnicity and Citizenship, said: "Muslims can say to people, 'We are British and you've got us wrong' — or they can say, 'You don't think we're really British? Fine, we're not'. Only a very small minority do this."
Volunteers ... clean-up operation after riots
Kashif Hussein, 21, a student at University College London, said: "I feel British and Muslim but since 9/11 we have to show it more, to interact more, to show that we're not that stereotype."
Shahid Mursaleen, of British Muslim organisation Minhaj-ul-Quran UK, said of the poll: "I agree with the result, which was expected. We are proud to be British because Muslims have contributed to the success of Britain."
Omer El-Hamdoon, president of the Muslim Association of Britain, also backed the survey's findings.
He said: "A large proportion of Muslims in Britain have been born here, so they are definitely proud to be British. They feel that this country is their country."
Despite the Royal Family being people's seventh favourite national treasure, three in ten did not care about the monarchy or did not see them as a symbol of British pride.
Volunteering is the biggest single indicator of national pride, while good manners and even the patience to queue also made people feel patriotic.
Brit hits ... statistics, and Household Cavalry
Two-thirds of respondents said they had volunteered at least once during the previous year.
Max Wind-Cowie, the report's author, said: "The key thing that people were proud of is that British people volunteer more than people from other countries and that we're more socially engaged."
Andrew Mycock, a reader in politics at Huddersfield University and an expert in British identity, said: "The way we feel about patriotism is very much a lived experience.
"Discussing kings and queens and wars is very abstract. We can't feel an emotional tie.
"Given the choice of things that make them proud, people will go back to their local communities."
The poll also discovered that women are more optimistic about Britain's future than men.
And young people, often criticised for a lack of pride, are just ten per cent less patriotic than those aged 65 or older.
The survey also suggests that politicians' understanding of what inspires patriotism is flawed.
More than half of those questioned were proud of the contribution they made to society but many were deeply suspicious of the "big society" initiative championed by David Cameron.
But one thing is certain from these findings — it is still great to live in Britain.
