With Islamaphobia on the rise, a pair of YouTube hosts from the Netherlands set out to highlight the extent of the prejudice that has many in the Western world blaming Islam for the extremist acts of the Islamic State.
Sacha Harland and Alexander Spoor, who run the channel Dit Is Normaal, wrapped a Christian Bible in a fake Quran cover and read several passages aloud to passersby on the street. ”Ridiculous,” “unbelievable,” and “aggressive” were some of the words Dutch citizens use to describe the verses that were read to them. The video was posted on Dec. 4.
“To me, this sounds like they want to oppress you and force you to believe what they believe,” one person complained, after hearing biblical passages that ordered the cutting-off of disobedient women’s hands and the killing of homosexual men. Another citizen insisted, “The story in the Bible is told very differently.” From another observer: “The Bible is a lot less harsh and a lot more peaceful.”
People went on to confidently say they were bothered that “some people see these old writings as the absolute truth,” and also that the Quran seems much more violent than the Bible.
They were, of course, flustered to ultimately learn the verses were actually from the Bible—not the Quran at all. ”It’s all just prejudice. I always try not to be prejudiced myself but apparently I am,” one man admitted after Harland and Spoor unveiled the real book they were holding in their hands. Others simply laughed and hung their heads, embarrassed. The lighthearted video instills a message many would do well to remember.