A Twitter campaign called #ExMuslimBecause is offering encouragement and moral support to those leaving the faith in the wake of a series of shocking Islamic terrorist attacks in France, California and elsewhere.
At the same time, though, many Muslims are "taking issue, saying that the hashtag is 'hateful,' and is being used as an excuse for Muslim-bashing at a time of increasing fear of Islamophobia," the BBC reported.
The Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain started the campaign recently, arguing it wanted to defend people's right to leave the faith and criticize it without fear or intimidation.
"If you are an ex-Muslim or thinking of leaving Islam, join our global solidarity campaign by sending your photo with #ExMuslimBecause telling us your reason for leaving Islam," the council said in a statement. "You can also send us a 1 minute video and Tweets.
"If you have safety concerns and are unable to show your face and identity, please feel free to hide your face and use a pseudonym. We will additionally 'cartoonize' your photo with Photoshop effect to ensure you remain anonymous."
On the Twitter page of #ExMuslimBecause, several people offered reasons why they left the Islamic faith.
"I learned the truth about Islam," one man wrote.
"Why can't women have 4 husbands? What is up with the constant inequality?" a woman tweeted.
"Ex-Muslim because: My dad ... said: 'There's no such thing as rape in marriage, in Islam, you're a liar,' when I asked him to tell the man he'd married me off to at 17 to stop raping me," a woman wrote.
"Brave Muslims are supporting #ExMuslimBecause campaign," a man wrote.
"I'm a Muslim & support #ExMuslimBecause no one should be subject to threats violence & death because of their ...," another person wrote.
On The Huffington Post, Ali A. Rizvi wrote he wasn't surprised by how the campaign has quickly gained support following the recent terrorist attacks.
"In Muslim-majority countries, they are often being lashed and imprisoned for blogging, hacked to death in open daylight, or sentenced to death for writing poetry," Rizvi wrote. "Here in the West, they are often being disowned from their families, ostracized from their communities, and even murdered by their own families in 'honor killings.'"
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