Arnoud van Doorn converted to Muslim

Arnoud van Doorn. From anti-Islamic film-maker to hajj pilgrim

https://www.theguardian.com/world/shortcuts/2013/oct/23/arnoud-van-doorn-anti-islamic-convert-hajj

Why is a former member of Geert Wilders' anti-Islamic Party for Freedom – who made a film claiming Muslims are violent – tweeting from Mecca?

Name: Arnoud Van Doorn

Age: 47.

Appearance: White robes, white hat.

Nice. Is he some sort of Dutch medical orderly? Nope. These days he also sports a beatific smile.

He could be a happy medical orderly. He isn't. He's a happy Muslim.

Good for him. Why is that? Because he is currently doing the hajj.

Is that like the Netherlands' hokey-cokey? Again, no. It's the pilgrimage to Mecca that all Muslims are expected to perform at least once in their lives.

Ah. Been saving up for a long time, has he? About six months. He only converted from Christianity to Islam in April.

Fancy that. Well look, I'm very glad a middle-aged Dutchman is enjoying his religion, but I'm quite busy, so unless there's anything else ... He is not just any middle-aged Dutchman, mind you.

Oh no? Until his conversion, he was a member of the city council in The Hague, and a leading figure in Geert Wilders' anti-Islamic Party for Freedom, responsible, among other things, for producing the film Fitna, which argued that Islam, and Muslims generally, are violent, intolerant and bent on world-domination.

Quite a conversion then. Indeed. "According to some people I am a traitor," he told al-Jazeera at the time, "but according to most others I have actually made a very good decision."

Pretty much the same as before then? Yes, but with the people swapped around.

How on Earth does a professional Islamophobe end up converting to it anyway? Very gradually, Van Doorn says. He started by reading the Qur'an and was then persuaded to visit a mosque, where he was surprised to find himself made welcome and ended up staying all day. "I had a warm feeling, and I was really a bit confused," he says.

Perhaps he needed the loo? He says it was more than that. "It felt like a warm blanket … The more I learned about Islam, and the more I talked with other Muslims, the more I felt this is me." He now plans to launch a party to represent Muslims in Europe in a more positive light.

How sweet. And how's his hajj going? Fine. He's tweeting it, actually. So far it's mostly camel milk.

Through suffering we learn. I suppose so.

Do say: "I've always thought Abu Qatada would make a wonderful drag queen."

Don't say that to him.

Since you’re here... 

... we have a small favour to ask. More people, like you, are reading and supporting the Guardian’s independent, investigative journalism than ever before. And unlike many news organisations, we made the choice to keep our reporting open for all, regardless of where they live or what they can afford to pay.

The Guardian will engage with the most critical issues of our time – from the escalating climate emergency to widespread inequality to the influence of big tech on our lives. At a time when factual information is a necessity, we believe that each of us, around the world, deserves access to accurate reporting with integrity at its heart.

Our editorial independence means we set our own agenda and voice our own opinions. Guardian journalism is free from commercial and political bias and not influenced by billionaire owners or shareholders. This means we can give a voice to those less heard, explore where others turn away, and rigorously challenge those in power.

We hope you will consider supporting us today. We need your support to keep delivering quality journalism that’s open and independent. Every reader contribution, however big or small, is so valuable. Support The Guardian from as little as $1 – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.

Support The Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/world/shortcuts/2013/oct/23/arnoud-van-doorn-anti-islamic-convert-hajj

..