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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In the United States, the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) held a news conference in San Diego to raise awareness over the dramatic spike in reported anti-Muslim hate incidents since October, meanwhile in Australia, Sky News Australia host Sharri Markson reveals the Albanese government will announce special envoys for anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, and in India, the holy month of Ramadan comes to a close as CJP reports that throughout the month there was a staggering number of anti-Muslim harassment cases across the country. Our recommended read of the day is by Fatima al-Kassab for NPR on how British Muslim citizens and public servants in the UK have faced a marked increase in abuse, death threats, and anti-Muslim harassment since the events of October 7th. This and more below:
United Kingdom
Muslim politicians in the U.K. have faced Islamophobia through Ramadan
In the U.K., Muslim politicians are getting verbal abuse. Many worry the government's new "extremism" definition targets them. Watching Gaza, it's an especially difficult Ramadan. SAYEEDA WARSI: Every Ramadan iftar event that I've been to, there's no celebrations. I always say that when you wake up in the morning, you think about Gaza. When you do iftar, you think about Gaza. AL-KASSAB: Sayeeda Warsi is the former chairwoman of the U.K.'s ruling Conservative Party. She says that, as a Muslim, she feels the pain of Palestinian suffering in Gaza. WARSI: There is a collective sense of trauma that is happening because of what we are watching unfold in front - on our screens. AL-KASSAB: She's worrying about the situation at home, too. In the U.K., Islamophobic incidents have more than tripled since October 7, when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel. Antisemitism has spiked, too. Death threats have been directed at Muslim politicians, especially the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan. In between speeches at this iftar, he told NPR how all of this abuse leaves him questioning whether the job is worth it. read the complete article
United States
Report shows increase in anti-Muslim hate across the US — including San Diego
The Council on American Islam Relations (CAIR) held a hews conference in San Diego to draw attention to what it's calling a spike in anti-Muslim hate. Nearly half of the anti-Muslim hate incidents in 2023 occurred between October and December, according to CAIR report. “8,061 complaints were filed for anti-Muslim incidents across the nation," said Tazheen Nizam, the executive director at CAIR San Diego. "In San Diego alone, our increase has been 300%, and a majority of these cases have been happening in the last three months of the year, since Oct. 7.” CAIR San Diego and speakers hosted by the organization stressed that the incidents impact every facet of life. “A lot of the cases that we receive in our office reflect employment discrimination — hate incidents happening in the community against businesses – [and] against students in K–12 and college campuses,” Nizam said. read the complete article
Prof. Farid Hafez sues GWU, Lorenzo Vidino for $10 million
Visiting Professor of Global Studies Farid Hafez is suing Lorenzo Vidino and George Washington University (GWU), among others, in a class action lawsuit for $10 million. The suit, filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia on March 24, alleges that Vidino, the director of the Program on Extremism at GWU, as well as other defendants, received compensation from the United Arab Emirates in exchange for “concoct[ing] and widely publiciz[ing] a false narrative accusing Hafez of terrorist ties and Muslim Brotherhood associations despite the fact that Hafez had no credible associations with any radicalized Islamists or the Muslim Brotherhood.” Other defendants in the suit include those who instigated a raid of Hafez’s home in Austria, leading to his detention by Austrian authorities in 2020. Hafez’s academic scholarship focuses on Islamophobia. At the College, he has also taught courses on religion, politics, and far-right populism in the global context. Studying Islamophobia has not always been easy, Hafez said in an interview with the Record, especially in his home country of Austria. “Continental Europe is a place where you cannot have an honest discussion about race and racism — and specifically, not about anti-Muslim racism,” Hafez said. read the complete article
Photos challenge misconceptions about what it means to be an American Muslim
In one photo, Julo stares down the camera dressed in a tie-dye t-shirt, dreadlocks and a red snapback cap. In another, Adbul wears low-waisted jeans, a motorcycle jacket and a decadent fur scarf. Candace is pictured in a pair of Nike Air Jordans, her long platinum hair stark against her black shirt. These are some of the faces featured in “Muslims in America,” an ongoing photography series by British artist Mahtab Hussain. “I grew up always being told that Islam is a way of life, but I didn’t really know what that meant,” Hussain told CNN over a video call. “But going to the US and meeting all these communities, people from all walks of life, all over the world, it’s really interesting how this Islam fits in with the culture.” Like an intricately woven tapestry, the series stitches together the many people who share his identity, which is underrepresented in the US. In 2017, the Pew Research Center estimated there were 3.45 million Muslims living in the US — and projected that by 2040, Muslims would replace Jews as the country’s second-largest religious group after Christians. By 2050, the same study also predicted that the US Muslim population would grow to a total of 8.1 million, or 2.1% of the total population. Despite these figures, the experience of Muslims today can be misconstrued or entirely lacking from the cultural conversation. read the complete article
Australia
Government to announces special envoys for anti-Semitism and Islamophobia
Sky News Australia host Sharri Markson reveals the Albanese government will announce special envoys for anti-Semitism and Islamophobia to deal with the disintegration of social cohesion in Australia. It comes as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong stand accused of presiding over the worst rise in anti-Semitism since World War II, according to Ms Markson. The idea is the two figures would report to the Prime Minister rather than just the minister for multicultural affairs. read the complete article
India
The 'Othering' Of Muslims In Indian Cinema
Cinema, indeed, can be considered the most potent tool in opinion formation, a fact very well known to Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels who used it as a medium for the propagation of Nazi ideals and the genocide of Jews in Germany. Popular cinema’s ability to intrude on the mass psyche is also visible in India, where cricket and Bollywood determine how we think and act. It has determined our idea of nation and nationhood, showcasing characters that an Indian wishes to be. However, Bollywood’s idea of nationhood often replaced ‘Indianness’ with ‘Hinduness’—they often resorted to homogenising the nationhood using one religion by excluding another. This exclusionary practice against Muslims in Bollywood did not start with the rule of the BJP—it became more direct with their rule. The various symbols, stereotypes, and situations employed in Bollywood movies constantly attempted to ‘other’ the Muslims, thereby reinforcing Hindu nationalist agendas. read the complete article
Ramdan shadowed by targeted violence: lynching, assaults, and harassment taint the holy month in India
During this month of Ramdan, a month considered holy by Muslims, India saw many incidents targeting the Muslim community in India. This period, which is supposed to be a time of self-sacrifice, prayer and piety, was marred by Islamophobia and conflict. Ramadan in India began on March 12, and will be ending with Eid on April 11. Not only were instances of anti-Muslim hate speeches and religion-based violence reported, many instances of Muslims being targeted for offering prayers were reported across the length and breadth of India. Most of these incidents reported were related to physical assault. read the complete article