Muslim School gate “Sinicized” in China’s campaign to eliminate visual traces of Islam in cities

Chinese authorities have “Sinicized” the historical gate leading to the Beijing Muslim School, eliminating its distinctive Arabic shapes and green decoration.

The site had become a familiar sight in the area, and a visual testimony to the presence of Hui Muslims in the nation’s capital.

Locals say that the internal parts of the school will soon be “Sinicized” as well.

During the Cultural Revolution, the school had to adopt a secular name as Beijing no. 135 Middle School, but it became again Beijing Hui Middle School in 1979, and Beijing Muslim School in 1985.

“Sinicizing” mosques and Islamic centers means stripping their architecture of distinctive Islamic features and references, making Islam invisible in Chinese cities.

Recognized by the CCP and the government as an “ethnic” minority, Hui Muslims are a religious group, which includes those Muslims who are ethnically Han Chinese and speak various forms of the Chinese language.