Farid Hafez, Author at Bridge Initiative

09 Jan 2018

Normalizing the far right in Austria

This op-ed by Bridge Initiative Senior Research Fellow Farid Hafez originally appeared in TRT World. In the past, far-right parties would have been ostracized, but now it’s a question of how to accommodate them. This poses dangers... read the complete article

Editorial

03 Jan 2018

Austria’s new programme for government: En route to a restrictive policy on Islam?

This op-ed by Bridge Initiative Senior Research Fellow Farid Hafez originally appeared in Qantara. The word “Islam” appears a total of 21 times in the Austrian coalition’s new programme for government, which is entitled “Zusammen. Für unser... read the complete article

Editorial

03 Jan 2018

When the Fear of Muslims Leads Jews to Whitewash the Far Right

“In Austria today, the real anti-Semitic threat is from Muslims, not Nazis,” argues Martin Engelberg, one of Austria’s first Jewish post-war members of parliament, who ran for the Liste Sebastian Kurz, the new name for... read the complete article

Editorial

19 Dec 2017

Why secularism secures Islam’s independence in Europe

This op-ed by Bridge Initiative Senior Research Fellow Farid Hafez originally appeared in Daily Sabah. There is no proof of the link between the numerous terrorist attacks in Belgium over the last few years and a very... read the complete article

Editorial

30 Nov 2017

Converging Islamophobias in Europe: The Visegrad Four Countries and their Western ‘Forerunners’

This op-ed by Bridge Initiative Senior Research Fellow Farid Hafez originally appeared in Maydan. It was a weird moment: Shortly before the Austrian elections on 15 October this year, candidates of the then-winning parties, Sebastian... read the complete article

Article

16 Nov 2017

Anti-Semitism, Homophobia, and Islamophobia: The Rising Far-Right in Poland

November 11 is commonly known as Independence Day in Poland. Government and political leaders usually commemorate the reinstatement of sovereignty at the end of World War I. For political leaders, it is a celebration of... read the complete article

Editorial

06 Nov 2017

Swinging to the right: Austria bans face veils

This op-ed by Bridge Initiative Senior Research Fellow Farid Hafez originally appeared in Daily Sabah. It seems quite intentional that the ban on full-face veiling in public places, infamously known as the so called “Burka Ban,” came... read the complete article

Editorial

06 Nov 2017

In Austria, the problem is not the far-right party

This op-ed by Bridge Initiative Senior Research Fellow Farid Hafez originally appeared in Al Jazeera. Last year, many observers who were worried about the rise of the far-right in Europe and the United States felt relieved after the former... read the complete article

Editorial

02 Nov 2017

Post-election Austria: A New Era for the Institutionalization of Islamophobia?

This op-ed by Bridge Initiative Senior Research Fellow Farid Hafez originally appeared in The New Turkey. Unsurprisingly, Austria’s national parliamentary elections ended up in a strong vote for the right. With a fulminant participation of... read the complete article

Editorial

25 Sep 2017

October elections in Austria: Beware of Islamophobes

With the campaign for elections to the Austrian National Council in full swing, a gloomy picture is already emerging on the issue of Islam. Since 2008, Austria′s Muslim population, largely made up of low-skilled workers,... read the complete article