I can understand people objecting to a major development in their own neighbourhood on planning, heritage and infrastructure grounds. But let’s call a spade a spade. The opposition faced by two recent and unrelated developments in Baulkham Hills and Camden was and remains largely one of sectarian and racial prejudice.

This doesn’t mean that all Camden residents opposed to the Quranic Society’s 1,200 pupil school development are racist. Yet sadly their voices are being drowned out by bigots who wish to use this issue as an excuse to fight some wacko monocultural jihad. Bigots like the fools who plonked two pigs’ heads on the subject property. Bigots whose poison has led to one young resident telling the Herald today that “most students at her school were against the proposal and were often openly racist.”

Still, you can’t blame the ignorant for their blissful ignorance. If huge numbers of Australians have fears of Islam and anyone deemed associated with it, it is also the fault of Muslim religious institutions and their leadership for failing to focus their energy and resources on public education, community service and outreach that has generated goodwill for many Christian denominations.

Let’s face facts. Tabloid beat-ups have meant the notion of the paedophile priest is just as commonly held as the Muslim terrorist. Yet people also associate churches with drug and alcohol counselling, feeding the homeless and other acts of charity. And they have formidable PR machines. Sadly, Muslim peak bodies are too busy squabbling to worry about charity and media relations.

Following the London bombings, it took many Muslim peak bodies (with the exception of the comparatively savvy Islamic Council of Victoria) 21 days to condemn this attack. Many still couldn’t understand why non-Muslim Australians were afraid of home-grown Muslim kids wearing suicide vests and jumping on a Sydney train or Melbourne tram.

In Sydney, one peak Muslim body arranged a meeting on media strategy for a Thursday morning at 10am. Perfect timing for those with full time jobs and/or businesses. Now that the dog whistling of the Howard years has (hopefully) ended, will Muslim religious bodies and imams allow younger, more educated and more savvy Aussies of good will (both Muslim and non-Muslim) to take over community relations?