Today in Islamophobia

Today in Islamophobia: In the United States, Dearborn, Michigan’s Muslim American comuntiy has expressed fear and worry for their safety following an anti-Muslim protest led self-proclaimed “Christian cursader”, Jake Lang in the city, meanwhile in California, a large gathering of right-wing pastors and influencers gathered for a conference hosted by Turning Point USA, where several of them promoted Islamophobic viewpoints, and lastly in Canada, Quebec City’s Islamic Cultural Centre has issued a public warning for the first time this past week, reminding its community of security measures to increase safety in light of recent anti-Muslim incidents. Our recommended read of the day is by Josh Paul for Al Jazeera on how the Netanyahu government is using anti-Muslim bigotry to rally a Western right increasingly receptive to its message. This and more below:

International

Israel is betting on Islamophobia to save its standing in the West | Recommended Read

The whipping up of Islamophobia in the US has become visible and visceral, to the extent that many in the Muslim community now look back almost wistfully to the days of George W Bush, who made a point, in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks, of visiting a mosque and declaring that “Islam is peace”. Such efforts at inclusivity have almost vanished entirely from the Republican Party, replaced by an outright bigotry that has inspired a spike in anti-Muslim attacks, such as the shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego in May that killed two worshippers and a security guard. A recent proposal by Dallas Fort Worth international airport to add unobtrusive foot-washing stations for Muslims wishing to perform wudu (and presumably anyone else with dirty feet) was swiftly abandoned in the face of condemnation by Texas Governor Greg Abbott that the installation of such stations would be unconstitutional. Where is all this coming from? To be sure, some of it is a reflection of the politics that Trump has promoted since his very first day of presidential campaigning in 2015 to divide Americans by suggesting that the country’s White majority and its historic place atop the social hierarchy are at risk; in this context it is not only Muslims who are under attack, but all minorities, as demonstrated by his administration’s attacks on Black history or Hispanic culture. But when it comes to Islamophobia, there is a more targeted driver of the trend. In January this year, the government of Israel hosted an anti-Semitism conference in Jerusalem. This, by itself, is rather unremarkable. But what is noteworthy is who attended: leaders from across the European far right, including representatives from Poland’s PiS, Spain’s Vox, Hungary’s Fidesz, and France’s Rassemblement National. The event was, perhaps, the largest gathering of European right-wingers to discuss anti-Semitism since the US-led umerziehung (re-education) process in post-war Germany. read the complete article

United States

CAIR-Chicago reports rise in anti-Muslim discrimination cases

The Chicago office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations says the number of reported anti-Muslim and anti-Arab discrimination complaints is on the rise. CAIR works to defend Arabs and Muslims who have experienced hate crimes and discrimination. The Chicago office has been handling civil rights cases for more than 20 years, and found that between September of last year and August of this year, its team handled 845 cases. That figure is similar to 2025, when the total was slightly higher at 876. But it was up hundreds more, or about 40%, compared with 2024, when the total was 518. The cases span employment, housing, airports, government, the FBI, and schools. Rehab said the hostility to Muslims is "engineered and curated" in order to "pummel through the agenda of a special interest." read the complete article

Dearborn protest: Businesses respond to intense anti-Islam demonstration

A full day has passed since an anti-Muslim rally was held in Dearborn. However, on Wednesday the scene was much different, with businesses seeing an outpouring of love in response to all the hate. "Since all the hate’s been going on, the support’s been really great," said one business owner. "People have always loved to come out and support locally-owned small businesses. And I feel like we need to keep doing more of that as this goes on." An Arab American business owner says the rally on Tuesday was awful. Hundreds attended the anti-Muslim rally in Dearborn, with far-right agitator Jake Lang at the center of it. Police say 22 people were arrested that night. But Wednesday, it was business as usual, with a little extra love. read the complete article

The Metro: After anti-Muslim protest, Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud on belonging in America

“Terrorist.” “Trojan horse.” “Terrorist sympathizer.” These are the words top Republican officials have used to describe Muslim Americans in public office since Dr. Abdul El-Sayed won Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary two weeks ago. That’s following specific instructions from President Donald Trump about what Republicans should say to win the midterms. In the days after El-Sayed’s win, anti-Muslim hate targeting him online rose twenty-fold. That’s according to the Center for the Study of Organized Hate. Researchers who track this say the language itself has shifted: from calling Muslims a terror threat to calling them a threat to civilization. Last night, that rhetoric arrived in Dearborn. Self-described anti-Islamic activist Jake Lang and Detroit pastor Lorenzo Sewell came to the city with a promised pig roast, timed to the city council meeting — which had been moved to the Henry Ford Centennial Library over safety concerns. Police made 22 arrests. Jake Lang’s demonstration comes a week after an Alaska man was federally charged for threatening to kill Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud. The mayor has been answering this with something other than anger. Host Robyn Vincent spoke with Hammoud about what that message is, and how he’s working to keep Dearborn residents safe. read the complete article

Targeted by an Islamophobic Provocateur, a City’s Muslims Are on Edge

Abdullah H. Hammoud, the mayor of Dearborn, Mich., was chatting with residents on Tuesday morning when a group of children approached him, including a boy no older than 7. “He looked at me,” Mr. Hammoud recalled, “and he asked if the quote-unquote crusaders were going to kill him.” That evening, Dearborn, which is majority Arab American, would once again play reluctant host to a protest by Jake Lang, the self-proclaimed Christian crusader who calls Muslims “insidious parasites” and wants them all to leave the United States. He has been to Dearborn — a city of 110,000 people — at least four times in recent months. His events come at a time when some conservative leaders are promoting the idea that Islam is incompatible with American values. Mr. Lang hyped his Tuesday night “Christian Crusade” rally online as a “pig roast.” There were hundreds of supporters and counterprotesters, in a scene that seemed to teeter on the brink of violence. Trump-supporting Christian preachers barked out demands that Muslims accept Jesus as their savior. Many young Muslim men barked back that they, too, loved Jesus (honored as a prophet in the Quran) and the U.S.A. A group of neo-Nazis showed up with a swastika flag. A few men wandered around with assault rifles. “What we’re having a debate about is, you know, whose America are we talking about?” said Mr. Hammoud, 36, who is the son of Lebanese immigrants. read the complete article

Pastors at TPUSA summit push Christian nationalism amid Islamophobia

A bunch of right-wing pastors and influencers met up in California this week for a conference hosted by conservative activist group Turning Point USA, where several of them encouraged the promotion of hate, the pursuit of social domination and the use of churches as vehicles to promote MAGA ideology. This particular faith-based Turning Point USA event seems to have partnered with fewer registered sex offenders than in the past. But this event was disturbing for other reasons, namely the embrace of bigotry and the pulpit as a means of achieving political dominance. Speakers like far-right influencer Eric Metaxas and Erika Kirk portrayed her late husband and TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk as a martyr in a right-wing holy war against liberals and Muslims. The hate-mongering comes as Republicans have ramped up their Islamophobic rhetoric in advance of the midterm elections. read the complete article

Progressive Aisha Wahab wins California special election to fill Eric Swalwell seat

Progressive Aisha Wahab has been elected to Congress in a special election following a bitter intra-party battle over the seat formerly held by Eric Swalwell, who resigned in April after facing sexual misconduct allegations. While Wahab held a major lead throughout the race, Hernandez’s campaign received a significant boost as Super Pacs connected to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) poured money into the race. Track Aipac, which monitors the group’s funding of US politicians, recently reported that the lobby had spent nearly $6.4m to support Hernandez. Wahab, the first Muslim woman and Afghan American elected to the California legislature, told the Guardian there had been a sudden surge of critical ads that had misrepresented her record. She described the Super Pacs’ involvement as election interference, and said they were attempting to buy the seat. read the complete article

The Real Reason Islamophobia Shows Up Around Elections, feat. Mehdi Hasan

In response to Zohran Mamdani's mayoralty and the electoral wins of Adam Hamawy and Abdul El-Sayed, we've seen a particularly vicious and ugly wave of Islamophobia from the president and his party. Rep. Nancy Mace claimed that every single elected Muslim official is a "threat to both our national security and republic," while Trump bemoaned the electoral successes of "jihadists" all over the country. So what can we even do? In a nation that has barely moved beyond its knee-jerk GWOT-era bigotry, it seems like the hate isn't going anywhere anytime soon. read the complete article

Canada

Surge in vandalism, anti-Muslim rhetoric prompts vigilance at Quebec mosques

Boufeldja Benabdallah says for the past year and a half, he's witnessed a rise in vandalism and anti-Muslim rhetoric targeting mosques and cultural centres around Quebec — but he doesn't understand why. Still, the spokesperson and co-founder of Quebec City’s Islamic Cultural Centre says his community is responding the best way they can — with vigilance. For the first time in his memory, his mosque issued a public warning this past week reminding its community of security measures to increase safety in light of recent incidents. read the complete article

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