Today in Islamophobia

Today in Islamophobia: In the United Kingdom, reports of crimes across the Avon and Somerset regions targeting Muslims have risen by 240% between 2022 and 2025, meanwhile in the U.S., members of the Texas State Board of Education approved a rewrite of the state’s high school social studies curriculum to incorporate what critics are calling “anti-Muslim” ideology, and lastly in Sweden, one of the country’s political party has submitted evidence to three UN Special Procedures, urging them to take action over what it describes as “Islamophobic rhetoric from the Sweden Democrats (SD)”, the country’s nationalist, right-wing populist party. Our recommended read of the day is by Loui Ridi for The New York Times on his experience as a Palestinian-American living in the West Bank amidst increasing violence, intimidation, and attacks by Israeli settler militias seeking to force his family and others from their homes. This and more below:

International

To Save My Home, I Fly the American Flag | Recommended Read

I’m a U.S. citizen, and have been for the past 17 years. But I was born and raised in the West Bank, in Qusra, where I am writing from now. Throughout my childhood, I watched our land and freedom be stolen from us by Israeli policies that expanded illegal settlements and deepened Israel’s military occupation of the West Bank. Now, those policies have emboldened settlers to make me a prisoner in my own home. As a Palestinian, I have next to no rights here. That’s why I’ve put an American flag above my house: I hoped that my American identity might afford me a degree of protection that my Palestinian identity could not. Illegal activity by Israeli settlers in the West Bank is nothing new. For decades, they have taken over Palestinian hillsides and family olive groves, choking our economy as they seize tracts of Palestinian agricultural land. Israel subjects Palestinians to military law in all of the West Bank. Israeli settlers in the West Bank, by contrast, live under civilian laws and are granted many more freedoms. If you’re Palestinian, something as small as a visit to the grocery store or as urgent as an emergency visit to the hospital becomes an hourslong journey of humiliating checkpoints, iron gates and military outposts. International human rights groups have called this system apartheid. The settlers who attack our villages — radicals with racist ideology toward Palestinians — are often armed. Being harassed by them has become a daily occurrence for many; walking in your front yard a death wish for others. read the complete article

Swedish far-right party’s rhetoric on Muslims taken to UN

A Swedish political party has submitted evidence to three UN Special Procedures, urging them to take action over what it describes as Islamophobic rhetoric from the Sweden Democrats (SD), the country’s nationalist, right-wing populist party. The submission warns that such rhetoric could undermine Muslim religious rights as Sweden heads towards a general election. Visionpartiet — or Visionparty in English — filed the 21-page submission on 26 August, raising concerns about alleged violations of religious freedom, xenophobia, racism and anti-Muslim targeting by the SD. It argues that the party’s rhetoric could affect Muslims’ ability to live openly and practise their faith in Sweden. The local party, founded in early 2023 as a pro-minority group, accuses the hard-right SD of moving beyond rhetoric ostensibly focused on combating extremism and increasingly targeting Islam, Muslim institutions and Muslims in Sweden. The submission focuses on SD MP Richard Jomshof, whose outspoken opposition to Islam has drawn criticism in Sweden. read the complete article

Worshippers in West Bank tear-gassed as Israeli attacks on mosques surge

Israeli forces have fired tear gas into a mosque in the occupied West Bank, leaving worshippers inside struggling to breathe, hours after settlers tried to set fire to a second mosque in the territory. The attacks on Tuesday came as the Palestinian Ministry of Religious Affairs said at least 13 mosques have been “violated” by the Israeli military or settlers since the start of the year. Footage, verified by Al Jazeera, showed worshippers at the mosque in Madama, near Nablus, coughing in the aftermath of the tear gas attack. One elderly man was seen bent over as another tried to help him. The ministry said Israeli forces “fired tear gas canisters” into the mosque as people gathered for their evening prayers. The attack “resulted in several elderly worshippers suffering from suffocation and caused widespread disruption to the congregation”, it added. The attack in Madama came hours after Israeli settlers tried to set fire to another mosque in the nearby town of Bazariya. Photos and videos from Nur al-Din Zanki Mosque showed blackened burn marks around a window of a room and Hebrew phrases sprayed on the exterior walls. read the complete article

United States

State education board advances anti-Islamic rewrite of Texas social studies lessons

State Board of Education members on Tuesday preliminarily approved a rewrite of what Texas high schoolers learn in social studies, largely disregarding pleas from Muslims who testified that schools should teach how people of Islamic faith positively contributed to world history. The Republican majority instead advanced a recommendation, for example, that would require public school students to learn that “radical Islam” motivated the 9/11 attacks, as opposed to more narrowly focusing on terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda and extremists such as Osama bin Laden. A Muslim American EMT was notably among those killed while attempting to save lives during the tragedy. The board also greenlit a proposal that students learn about early Islam through the lens of “the Prophet Mohammed’s brutal military campaigns against Jewish and Christian tribes, the normalization of slavery, and the taking of female captives as harem slaves.” No credible Islamic scholar would find such a portrayal accurate, the Muslim Texans argued. The members also declined to revive an expectation that schools teach about Muslim contributions to algebra and astronomy. Students testified earlier in the week that the decision to instead portray Islam as violent will cause significant harm to them and their classmates. read the complete article

Baltimore County school board member apologizes, meets with Muslim leaders over Facebook post

Mosque leaders met Wednesday with Baltimore County school board member Maggie Litz Domanowski, who has come under fire for reposting a social media meme that was criticized as anti-Muslim. Domanowski publicly apologized before the meeting and was given a tour of the Islamic Society of Baltimore. During the meeting, Domanowski and Muslim faith leaders discussed what they described as the harm caused by a Facebook post she shared. A student also spoke about being bullied because of her faith. The post featured Linus, the Peanuts character, holding a sign that read, "If you fear MAGA will take away women's rights, then you should learn about Sharia law." Domanowski shared the post and commented, "Not wrong." The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) condemned the post, saying it promotes false claims about Islam. The organization also offered to teach Domanowski about the Islamic faith. read the complete article

Author Rozina Ali's new book explores the roots of Islamophobia in the U.S.

In the post-9/11 era, American Muslims became the target of government suspicion, mass surveillance and overreach because they happened to share a faith with the attackers. That was the America that investigative journalist Rozina Ali grew up in. So when she started her book on the roots of Islamophobia in the United States - fear that turned to hatred - she searched for the start of that bigotry and found that it took root well before America was attacked. The faith has long been depicted as foreign, as different, as dangerous, and that's despite Islam being part of the country since its founding. She tells this story through four families across eight decades in her new book, "Seasons Of Fury." Tell me about the family you open the book with - the Jabaras. ROZINA ALI: The Jabara family - you know, the father served in the Army. He was such a proud member of various organizations in their small town. And I really wanted to show how even this quintessential American small-town family had been shaken by anti-Arab and anti-Muslim surveillance and targeting by the government. FADEL: And this wasn't in the post-9/11 era. This was in the '60s, '70s. ALI: Absolutely. The Israel-Arab war of 1967 really shaped the political identity of a lot of Arab Americans living especially in Michigan. And FBI agents were visiting people in mosques or inquiring about who was attending mosques. And this was in 1968, 1969. Anti-Muslim sentiment in this country has been so closely intertwined with national security issues. And this idea that Muslims are foreign and that they present a national security threat because they're foreign really took hold after 1967. And I do think that's one of the reasons why anti-Muslim sentiment remains one of the most enduring forms of racism in the United States today. read the complete article

Hochul responds to Trump's reaction to her wearing hijab: 'I'll never apologize'

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) responded to President Trump's reaction to her wearing a hijab at the Islamic Cultural Center of New York, saying, "I'll never apologize." While at the Islamic Cultural Center of New York on Friday, Hochul wore a hijab, as seen in a video clip posted on X on Sunday by the account End Wokeness, which has more than 10 million views as of Wednesday. Trump shared a screenshot of the video on Truth Social on Tuesday, writing, "Kathy Hochul, considered the Worst Governor in the Country, in a recent picture working hard to get the Arab Vote, even though they can’t stand her! Congestion Pricing in Manhattan is hurting her with everybody, but especially the people for whom she wears the hijab. The whole thing is CRAZY!" Hochul shared Trump's response on X, writing, "I was a guest in a Muslim house of worship and showed respect for the people who welcomed me. That used to be standard in this country before you came along. I’ll never apologize for treating people of any faith with dignity, no matter how Islamophobic you and your enablers are." read the complete article

United Kingdom

Fear and anxiety amid rise in religious hate crime

Religious communities are facing "fear and anxiety" amid a surge in reports of anti-Muslim and antisemitic hate crimes. Reports of crimes across the Avon and Somerset Police area targeting Muslim people have risen by 240% between 2022 and 2025, while those targeting Jewish people have increased by 163% over the same period. Professor Adeela Shafi from the Bristol Muslim Strategic Leadership Group said the figures, uncovered by a BBC Freedom of Information (FOI) request, were "startling". read the complete article

Surrey mosque vandalized: Community leaders demand action against Islamophobia

The Fleetwood Islamic Center was vandalized over the weekend with someone writing “hateful and threatening” words on the building and leaving pieces of raw bacon. The RCMP Surrey Provincial Operations Support Unit (SPOSU) is investigating whether the incident was motivated by hate, which occurred sometime between 11 p.m. Friday (Aug. 28) and 5 a.m. Saturday (Aug. 28). In a post to Facebook, the general secretary of the Fleetwood Islamic Academy Society, Haji, Asif Ali, stated that the threats, “get out or die!” and “Islam is Trash,” were written on the walls outside of the mosque and were found the following morning by community members attending morning prayer. read the complete article

India

In a new book, a journalist tries to understand India’s deep suspicion of Hindu-Muslim couples

I had a long list of questions prepared in an attempt to understand the challenges the local police faced while dealing with love jihad cases, especially given the politics around it. But the SP sidestepped most of them during our early conversations. I quickly made peace with his initial reluctance to talk about love jihad. Under the banner of women’s safety, the Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in UP has rolled out both token and structural measures, ranging from anti-Romeo squads to dedicated women’s helplines and functional mahila thanas in every district. At a 2021 rally in Prayagraj, Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed that under BJP rule, women in UP now had both “security and rights”, praising Yogi’s tough stance on crimes against the state’s “sisters and daughters”. Over the years, friends in the force have also offered their own glimpses of how political heat seeps into police stations. A station house officer (SHO) from Lucknow once explained, “Look, when it’s a matter involving a Hindu girl and a Muslim boy, especially under charges like rape or concealment of identity, we have to be very strict. The woman’s side almost always triggers immediate political involvement. If we don’t file a chargesheet fast, we’re questioned.” Every love story turned into a case file. Every complaint is a ticking clock under political scrutiny. Law and order and women’s rights are two of the main poll planks used by the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and so there is an image to be maintained. read the complete article

Australia

"Islamophobic" Pauline Hanson Under Fire as Senate Debate Turns Bitter

Australia's Senate erupts into a tense debate over a censure motion against Senator Pauline Hanson, with Senator Faruqi condemning Hanson's past and present comments about Muslims and migrants while accusing both Labor and Liberal of contributing to a culture of scapegoating. Senator Thorpe supports condemning Hanson's language but moves to amend the motion, turning her criticism towards the Labor government over its failure to implement the National Anti-Racism Framework delivered by the Australian Human Rights Commission. The debate exposes a deep political divide over racism, Islamophobia, immigration policy and whether parliamentary censure represents meaningful action or political point-scoring. read the complete article

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