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SearchToday in Islamophobia: In the US, with President Joe Biden abandoning his re-election bid, analysts are wondering whether Vice President Kamala Harris could reclaim the voters lost to Biden as a result of his steadfast support for Israel’s war Gaza, meanwhile in the UK, tensions remain high as violence and anti-Muslim sentiment continue to be stoked by far-right anti-immigration activists in Southport after a misinformation campaign blamed the killing of three children on “immigrants”, and in Australia, the government is still finding it difficult to appoint an Islamophobia envoy, now weeks after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese claimed an announcement was imminent. Our recommended read of the day is by Owen Jones for The Guardian on how the riots in Southport were caused not only by misinformation campaigns online but also by the widespread prevalence of Islamophobia in mainstream society. This and more below:
United Kingdom
The Southport riot brought to light the horrifying undercurrents in British politics | Recommended Read
The senseless killing of children understandably conjures up a very specific kind of revulsion and grief. But this was not what was on display close to the Southport mosque last night amid flying bricks, burning cars and anti-Muslim chants. Attention must be paid to Twitter, now called X: it always had problems, but under Elon Musk’s watch it has become a cesspit of disinformation and far-right talking points. Social media spread unverified and indeed false claims – for instance, that the suspect was a Muslim asylum seeker who arrived by boat. In fact, he is a Cardiff-born Briton with “no known links to Islam”, in the words of the BBC. Indeed, the police are increasingly focusing their inquiries on the suspect’s mental health. But the toxicity of social media is just one ingredient here: poisonous rumours are only effective if there is a receptive audience. Crucially, there is also a much broader rightwing populist ecosystem which was lacking before, stretching from some Conservative politicians to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party. Yesterday Farage fanned the flames by using X to ask if the “truth is being withheld from us” in this case, with a slimy attempt at plausible deniability by stating he did not know the answer. He now has “member of parliament” added to his name, granting respectability to this dangerous rhetoric. That there was an audience eager to believe the suspect was Muslim tells its own story. In the age of the “war on terror”, Islamophobia became a pervasive and respectable bigotry. At the end of the 2010s, more than a third of Britons – equivalent to about 20 million adults – believed Islam was “a threat to the British way of life”. Today’s far right has latched on to this widespread and mainstream bigotry. read the complete article
Agitators accused of Islamophobia for linking Southport attack to Muslims
British Muslims, activists and civil rights groups have decried riots in Southport and hate speech in the aftermath of a fatal stabbing attack, as they spoke of a sense of fear and rising Islamophobia. The northern English seaside town, which was struck by grief after a suspect stabbed children and adults on Monday at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday dance club, was plunged into chaos on Tuesday evening when rioters attacked a local mosque, chanted “F*** Muslims”, and assaulted police. More than 50 officers were injured during the riots which erupted after a peaceful vigil. Tensions heated up as online misinformation and speculation spread over the knife attack suspect. Unverified claims have suggested he is a Muslim and a migrant. Police have said the suspect is a 17-year-old who was born in the Welsh capital, Cardiff. He lived in a village near Southport. No further details about him have been announced since suspects cannot be named before they are charged. Furthermore, suspects under 18 have automatic anonymity. Figures such as the far-right agitator Tommy Robinson have stirred tensions, railing against Muslims and undocumented migrants after the attack while suggesting the government, police and media are conspiring to hide information from the public. read the complete article
Far-right exploiting Southport knife tragedy to attack Muslims, religious group warns
The UK’s largest Muslim group has warned far-right activists are exploiting the Southport knife tragedy to attack followers of the faith. The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) called on the government to intervene after rioting outside a mosque in the town on Tuesday evening followed the killing of three children at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class a day earlier. The MCB warned false information online had “wrongfully associated the crime with Muslims” after posts circulating on social media incorrectly claimed the suspect’s name was “Ali Al-Shakati” and that he had arrived in the UK on a small boat in 2023. MCB secretary-general Zara Mohammed said: “At a time of great tragedy, loss, and mourning, we must stand firm against the cynical forces of hatred and division. This does not represent our diverse Britain and the people of Southport. “The government must address the increasing rise of violent far-right extremism targeting Muslim communities. More must be done to tackle Islamophobia and offer reassurance at this time.” read the complete article
How Disinformation Fed a Far-Right Riot After a Deadly Stabbing in England
Although some details of the unrest remain opaque, one thing is clear, according to the police, lawmakers and experts in online extremism: Disinformation and far-right agitators fueled the violence. Supporters of the English Defence League, an extremist anti-Islam organization, were part of a large group that attacked a mosque in Southport around 7.45 p.m., according to a statement from the Merseyside Police Service, which covers the region. The targeting of the mosque, and the subsequent riot, came after false rumors circulated on social media on Monday, soon after news emerged that a man had stabbed multiple children and two adults at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class. The rapid spread of misinformation about the attacker’s identity left the authorities fighting a two-pronged battle on Tuesday: one on the streets of Southport, where the police were pelted with bricks and other objects, and another online, where lawmakers, local officials and the police seemed powerless to halt viral falsehoods. On X, the social media platform owned by Elon Musk, users shared false information about the attacker. Some posted what they claimed was the attacker’s name, which the police said was incorrect, but that information continued to spread. Others spread falsehoods about the attacker’s immigration status, incorrectly claiming he was an asylum seeker or that he had come to England illegally. Some of the posts received millions of views, fanning the flames of far-right narratives that oppose immigration. Tommy Robinson, an anti-Islam agitator who founded the English Defence League, and Andrew Tate, another extremist online personality, were among those who fueled speculation. read the complete article
The violence in Southport is the fruit of Islamophobia
On Tuesday (30 June) the quiet Merseyside seaside town of Southport was the site of a racist riot by a drunken far-right mob. Far-right activists descended on the town in the aftermath of the brutal killing of three children (Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice Dasilva Aguiar) and the significant injury to five more children and two adults, by a lone knife attacker on Monday morning. In the aftermath of the attack, various untruths and rumours started to circulate online, and were broadcast and amplified by a range of right-wing grifters. Claims were made that the attacker was a refugee, that he had arrived on a small boat, and that he was Muslim. None of this was true. And, in an unusual step, the police took to social media to clarify that the young person in custody had been born in Britain, to Rwandan parents (and therefore, almost certainly Christian) and had no links to the Muslim community. It made little difference as a range of right-wing commentators upped the ante and called their supporters to take to the streets. On Tuesday, far-right activists travelled to Southport with a clear and identified target: Southport Mosque. From Tuesday afternoon, far-right activists started to appear in the town, draped in England flags and carrying booze. read the complete article
United States
Gaza, Islamophobia, Family and the Environment Are the Top Issues for Muslim-American Voters in 2024
For months, as the war in Gaza raged on and student protests overtook American campuses, the question of just how much President Joe Biden’s steadfast support for Israel amid the war’s escalation would cost Democrats fueled endless debate. Many speculated that the anger that fueled the protests would come home to roost in November, as Muslim Americans in key swing states who had voted for Biden in 2020 would stay home, or worse, vote for Republican former President Donald Trump. Those fears appeared to pan out in state elections and primaries, as Muslim Americans chose to write in other candidates or voted “uncommitted” in protest. Now with the presidential race in disarray after Biden abandoned his reelection bid, observers are wondering whether Vice President Kamala Harris can reclaim those voters lost to the war in Gaza. Gaza is the primary reason that Muslims who voted for Biden say they would not vote for him again. Perhaps most relevant to the campaign of Harris, is the fact that the majority of Muslim voters say a permanent cease-fire in Gaza will strengthen the likelihood of their vote for a candidate regardless of party affiliation. Muslims are the most likely religious group to identify as “independent” voters. read the complete article
US Data Shows Continued Surge in Hate Against Muslims, Palestinians
A spike in “relentless” Islamophobia across the United States that began in October with Israel’s U.S.-backed attack on the Gaza Strip continued through the first half of this year, the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy group said Tuesday. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) released data showing the sustained surge in anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian hate from January to June 2024, with 4,951 documented complaints, a 69% increase over the same period in 2023. That came after CAIR received 3,578 complaints from last October through December, a 178% increase from a similar three-month period the previous year, as Common Dreamsreported when the data was published in January. The largest share of 2024 complaints related to immigration and asylum cases (19%), which is in line with 2023. That was followed by employment discrimination (14%), education discrimination (10%), and hate crimes and incidents (8%). read the complete article
US reaches plea deals with 9/11 accused, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed
The United States has announced plea agreements with three men held in Guantanamo and accused of plotting the September 11, 2001, attacks, including alleged mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. The Pentagon did not release full details of the deals involving Mohammed, Walid bin Attash, and Mustafa al-Hawsawi, but US media reported the three would plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence rather than the death penalty. They were due to face trial in a military court at the maximum-security facility, but their cases have been bogged down in legal manoeuvring for years. Karen Greenberg, the director of the Center on National Security at the Fordham University School of Law, said the deals were a significant development. “It means a lot,” she told Al Jazeera. “It means that this trial, which has been put off for 12 years, will not happen. The issue has been resolved with this plea deal. It means the idea of bringing Guantanamo to closure is one step closer.” read the complete article
Australia
The government is struggling to fill its Islamophobia envoy vacancy
The government is still finding it difficult to appoint an Islamophobia envoy, weeks after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese claimed an announcement was imminent. Labor announced earlier this year that it would create two envoy roles to combat antisemitism and Islamophobia, with both forms of bigotry on the rise since Hamas's attack on October 7 and Israel's subsequent invasion of Gaza. Unveiling his anti-semitism envoy in mid-July, Albanese insisted there was “no delay” in the Islamophobia envoy process and promised to unveil the chosen candidate “very soon”. On Sunday, the prime minister confirmed he “has someone in mind” but did not flag a timing for the announcement. Albanese had initially intended to announce the two envoys at the same time in a show of social cohesion. But despite his public bullishness, filling the Islamophobia role has proven a headache for Labor as it struggles to respond to growing anger over its response to the conflict in Gaza. read the complete article
India
Hijab Ban In Olympics: France Against The “Freedom” Of Muslim Women In Sports?
From the opening ceremony of Olympics 2024 in which the French DJ poke fun at the ‘Last Supper’ and stirred controversy by offending religious sentiments of Muslims and Christians, the terms and conditions of this international sports fiesta have particularly emphasised on the ‘not so hidden’ islamophobia and unfair parameters of the ‘fake’ French freedom and global sports through a hijab ban. After the Olympics kicked off on July 26, the host country France has again provoked alarm by putting a ban on Hijab under its ‘costume-related guidelines‘, compelling wonderful Muslim sports-women to pick between their religious identity and passion. While criticising the utter desecration of human-rights, Amnesty International has said that ‘the violations of Muslim women’s and girls’ human rights through hijab bans in sports in France, details the devastating impact that hijab bans are having on Muslim women and girls at all levels of French sport.’ read the complete article
France
‘Islamic Republic of France’: AI and the Spreading of Islamophobic Conspiracy Theories Around the French Parliamentary Elections
In the wake of the recent European elections, Emmanuel Macron stunned the continent following his party’s disappointing showing by calling for a snap election to the French parliament. The move backfired, with Rassemblement National winning the plurality of the votes (33.21%) in the first round of elections on the 30th of June, with the leftist New Popular Front and Macron’s Ensemble trailing behind. This result resonated well beyond France, with Anglophone reactionary accounts celebrating the victory and intensifying pro-Le Pen posting before the second round. Amidst the Rassemblement National’s prevailing optimism, the party’s underperformance in the second round sparked disbelief; triggering the manufacturing of the apocalyptic visions of France ruled by the Leftist coalition. This Insight will map extreme-right discourse before and after the final parliamentary results. The analysis focuses on X, as it allows for tracking the mainstreaming of extremist content. Special attention will be paid to the use of AI in extremist propaganda, as it enables the mass production of text and images with little effort. Indeed, the images under consideration have been uploaded with staggering frequency, creating a multimedia repository for other accounts. This Insight aims to analyse a fluctuating reception of the results of the French elections by Anglophone extreme-right accounts, thereby opening up a broader discussion about the flooding of social media with AI-generated extremist content. read the complete article