#YouAintNoMuslimBruv: The Very British Response to London’s Latest Terrorist Attacks Restores Our Faith in Humanity

By Nada Kabil On Dec 7, 2015

A police car is seen parked outside Leytonstone station in north London on December 6, 2015. Police were called to reports of people being attacked at Leytonstone around 19:00 GMT on December 5. The police have said that they are considering a knife attack the previous evening as a " terrorist incident" after reports that the man reportedly shouted "this is for Syria". The man was arrested after being Tasered by police. One man suffered serious knife injuries while two others received minor injuries. / AFP / LEON NEAL (Photo credit should read LEON NEAL/AFP/Getty Images)

The past year has witnessed quite a few terrorist attacks that have left the whole world shaken. With Muslims fearing being targeted for their choice of religion and blamed for the actions of people who claim to represent Islam, the people of the world have surprised us and given us faith in humanity once again.

On Saturday, a stabbing incident took place in the Leytonstone underground station in East London where a man tried to attack three people with a knife, claiming he did this for Syria. With it being ruled as a terrorist attack, one bystander yelled, “You ain’t no Muslim, bruv” and the phrase quickly went viral with Londoners standing in solidarity and defending Muslims.

Over the past year, we’ve seen similar hashtags in different situations, with Australians offering support to Muslims after the terrorist attack in Sydney with #IllRideWithYou, or when the hashtag #IstandWithAhmed appeared supporting the student who was arrested for bringing a homemade clock to school. Or when Parisians offered support and opened their doors to anyone stuck on the streets with the hashtag #PorteOuverte.

This time, Londoners showed a very British response to the terrorist attacks and made us have faith once again in humanity when the hashtag #YouAintNoMuslimBruv went viral. There is no us and them, we are all humans. No religion should be blamed for the actions of one.