Today in Islamophobia

Today in Islamophobia: In the United States, according to new reporting out by Futurism, META is refusing to remove from it’s platforms hundreds of posts which stand as flagrant violations to it’s own guidelines when it comes to hate speech targeting American Muslims, while in Europe, mainstream politicians are trying to give old and debunked Islamophobic tropes a new and dangerous lease of life, and lastly in the United Kingdom, the anti-Muslim hate-monitoring group Tell Mama says that the catalogued instances of ant-Muslim hate and prejudice within the first half of 2026 have surpassed the total annual count for 2023. Our recommended read of the day is by Asma Khalid for The Atlantic, which examines how anti-Muslim rhetoric has moved from the margins to being openly celebrated by lawmakers, leaving us in an era defined less by fear than by outright hate.

United States

Islamophobia Has Corroded American Values | Recommended Read

I’m not usually one to read much into the symbolism of anniversaries, but this year marks both 250 years since the founding of the United States and 25 years since 9/11. I can’t think of one without the other, because September 11 not only transformed how the United States interacted with Muslims abroad and at home; it also changed our collective view of American values around citizenship, identity, and civil liberties. As 9/11 retreats further into the past, strangely, anti-Muslim rhetoric has grown—no longer veiled or marginalized but actively celebrated by those in power. Prominent lawmakers have made it clear that they don’t see people like me as Americans. “Muslims don’t belong in American society,” Representative Andy Ogles of Tennessee wrote on social media in March, the same month that Representative Randy Fine of Florida wrote, “We need more Islamophobia, not less.” “Every single Muslim holding public office in America is a trojan horse, and a threat to both national security and our republic,” Representative Nancy Mace of South Carolina recently posted. For the past three years, I’ve been working on a PBS documentary series tied to America’s 250th anniversary called American Muslims: A History Revealed that tells these and other stories. I wanted my sons to have a fuller vision of American, and Muslim, history. The 9/11 era shaped so much of my adult life. It changed not just how we deal with one another—domestic surveillance laws, TSA checks, a political shift in American partisan politics—but also how we interact with the rest of the world. I had hoped that the era of the U.S. fighting in the Middle East wouldn’t be a patriotic inheritance for my boys. But if anything, we seem to be stuck in an even worse version of 9/12—one governed less by fear than by outright hate. read the complete article

Meta Declines to Remove Horrific Posts Calling for Violence Against Muslims, Calling Them “Cockroaches” and Saying It’s “Time for Hunting”

Back in 2022, the Center for Countering Digital Hate released a blistering report finding that social media platforms Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok all failed to remove 90 percent of Islamophobic content from their platforms. Facebook, in particular, had only stepped in to moderate seven out of 125 posts flagged by the Center, in direct violation of its own community guidelines on “expressions of contempt.” Fast forward four years, and it’s clear the platform has only become worse. As we reported over the weekend, the social media platform is currently teeming with various forms of Islamophobic and anti-Arab content. It’s a noxious blend of propaganda and misinformation, with often AI-generated imagery whipping viewers into a bigoted frenzy; many who interact with the miasma of online hatred then post more intolerance, harassment, and calls for violence — both from the state and by private citizens — against Muslim Americans. While Facebook’s older, more conservative user base has long been a haven for Islamophobia, the recent frenzy is reaching a fever pitch directed at residents of Dearborn, Michigan, who make up the largest Arab-American community in the United States. Much of that vitriol can be traced back to white supremacist social media personality Jake Lang, who recently shared an AI-generated flyer calling on his reactionary followers to wage a “crusader march on Dearborn” on Tuesday, August 18th. Despite dripping in obvious references to anti-Muslim violence, Facebook refuses to take the post down. read the complete article

Islamophobe Jake Lang Plans “Christian Crusade” Assault on Dearborn, Michigan

Michigan state politicians are being criticized for their silence ahead of a planned “Christian Crusader” demonstration in Muslim-majority Dearborn on Tuesday organized by white nationalist and anti-Muslim activist Jake Lang. Lang and fellow Islamophobic activist and Detroit pastor Lorenzo Sewell have planned an assault on Dearborn City Hall during a city council meeting on Tuesday evening. In his post on Facebook with a seemingly AI-generated poster advertising the demonstration, Lang encourages followers to join, saying “CRUSADE OR BE REPLACED,” seemingly referring to the white nationalist “great replacement” conspiracy theory. Sewell said that Lang is also planning a pig roast. Community leaders, including Christian figures, have called for unity ahead of the march — which is just the latest of Lang’s visits to Dearborn to harass Muslim residents and provoke them into responding for his audience of hundreds of thousands online. Dearborn has the highest proportion of Muslim residents of any U.S. municipality, and has become a frequent target of Islamophobic attacks from politicians and provocateurs like Lang. read the complete article

Arrests made as anti-Muslim protest targets Michigan's Dearborn

Multiple people have been arrested after an anti-Muslim demonstration targeting the Muslim-majority US city of Dearborn, Michigan, drew hundreds of counter-protesters and prompted heightened security. Anti-Islam protestor Jake Lang and his supporters gathered outside Henry Ford Centennial Library on Tuesday for an event he promoted as a "Christian Crusader" gathering, where confrontations broke out with counter-protesters. Dearborn police confirmed multiple arrests but said a final count would be released later. Authorities had deployed additional law enforcement resources ahead of the demonstration. read the complete article

United Kingdom

Anti-Muslim hate report figures 'alarming'

Reports of anti-Muslim hate and prejudice in London in the first half of the year have surpassed the total annual count for 2023, according to an organisation monitoring the issue. Anti-Muslim hate-monitoring group Tell Mama branded the statistics it had collated "alarming", saying the annual total was more than six times higher in 2025 than in 2021. It said the data showed a "sustained escalation of anti-Muslim hate" and behind each report was "a Londoner who was made to feel unsafe simply because of their faith". London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan said anti-Muslim hate "has absolutely no place in London", while the Met Police said arrests and charges for such crimes rose by 57% in the past year. read the complete article

International

Europe’s dangerous art of anti-Muslim doublespeak

European authorities’ relations with their Muslim citizens are mired in dangerous doublespeak. The official message is at times reassuring. There’s recognition of an increase in anti-Muslim hatred across Europe and calls on law enforcement agencies to be alert about violence against Muslims. In Brussels, at the European Commission, there is an Anti-Muslim Hatred Coordinator, tasked with combating discrimination and ensuring Muslims can participate in EU initiatives as fully-fledged European citizens. But the reality of daily political life is different. Islamophobia – or in EU speak “Anti-Muslim hatred” – is no longer the preserve of the far right. Mainstream European politicians’ discussions on migration and security are also loaded with direct and indirect jabs at Muslims and Islam. Generalisations abound about Europe’s 25 million Muslims being inherently drawn to extremism and terrorism, favouring life in parallel societies, and refusing to accept “European values”, which – according to some – seem to include drinking beer and eating pork. In this imaginary European society, Muslim women who wear the hijab are either victims of fanatical patriarchal oppression, or foot soldiers in a drive to replace indigenous white Europeans. Such Orientalism is not new. Today, however, Europe’s mainstream politicians are trying to give old and debunked Islamophobic tropes a new and dangerous lease of life. read the complete article

Australia

Darwin man charged over alleged ‘Islamophobic’ incident involving threats to family, guns seized

A Darwin man has been charged with Commonwealth offences and his guns seized following an alleged act of “Islamophobia”, where he is accused of making threats against a pregnant woman and her family. The man, 53, is alleged to have made racially-motivated threats against another man, his pregnant wife and their young child on June 7 in the Northern Territory capital. NT Police on Tuesday arrested him and charged him with two Commonwealth offences. read the complete article

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