Search
SearchToday in Islamophobia: In the US, Rep. Andy Ogles says Muslims “don’t belong in American society,” while representing one of the largest Muslim populations in the American South, meanwhile at Georgetown University, multiple community groups are condemning an anti-Muslim post made by the University’s Republican chapter, in which the group said “Muslims have no place in American society,” and lastly, in the United Kingdom, the chief executive of the Islamophobia Response Unit expressed his concern regarding the newly-released government definition of “anti-Muslim hostility,” noting that it creates “an extremely high threshold for most discrimination cases.” Our recommended read of the day is by Alexander Seale, Stefania D’Ignoti, and Jessica Bateman for Hyphen, on how Muslims in the European cities of Nice, Monfalcone, and Thuringia are marking the holy month of Ramadan as nationalist parties on the continent are reshaping the politics of public space. This and more below:
International
Ramadan in Europe’s far-right heartlands | Recommended Read
Tens of millions of Muslims across Europe have been fasting during the holy month, as Ramadan takes place amid the strongest far-right surge the continent has seen in a generation. From France’s Mediterranean coast to north-eastern Italy and the eastern German state of Thuringia, nationalist parties that once railed against Islam from the sidelines are now in power in local and regional governments. In many places, debates over migration have hardened into scrutiny of Muslim visibility itself — making the holy month not only a spiritual observance but a test of how comfortably faith can inhabit public space. What unites these places is not a single experience of repression but a shared awareness that faith unfolds within politics. The rise of the far right in Europe is often measured in parliamentary seats and election results. During Ramadan, its effects appear in quieter ways, in who feels able to gather openly, where a prayer mat can be laid and how visible celebration can be. read the complete article
The imperial war against Iran: The trap of religious framing
Among the tales resurgent in current discourse surrounding the confrontation with Iran is the notion that this is, at its core, a religious war: a clash of civilizations, a collision of faiths, a theological reckoning dressed in the armour of geopolitics. In recent days, religious symbolism has been wielded with theatrical prominence in the rhetoric surrounding the US-Israeli imperial posture toward Iran. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has invoked the spectre of holy war, casting the Iranian regime as Amalek—that ancient antagonist of Jewish scripture, the people whose memory Israel was commanded to "erase." He quoted the liturgical verse, "Remember what Amalek did to you, and act," a passage from Deuteronomy traditionally recited before the festival of Purim, draping contemporary state policy in the vestments of ancient prophecy. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump accepted the blessings of his church within the White House itself, framing his decisions as divinely anointed. His Secretary of Defence, Pete Hegseth, has become entangled with symbols of militant faith, including tattoos that evoke the Crusades—"Deus Vult" ("God wills it") and the Jerusalem cross—emblems historically steeped in the fusion of sword and scripture. These images seem choreographed to summon support for war through the incantations of the sacred, painting conflict in the hues of destiny, duty, and divine will. Though religious rhetoric colours the discourse, the structure, motivations, and alliances defining this confrontation tell a different story. The present war is not, in its essence, religious. It is a struggle rooted in settler colonialism and geopolitics—a contest over economic resources, power, influence, and the reshaping of Middle Eastern order. To misdiagnose the conflict as religious is to calcify identities, deepen polarisation, and drain diplomacy of its legitimacy. read the complete article
United States
Andy Ogles Says Muslims Don’t Belong in America. Thousands Live in His District
Republican Congressman Andy Ogles of Tennessee represents one of the largest Muslim populations in the American South. This week, he said Muslims “don’t belong in American society.” His comment, posted on social media along with the assertion that “pluralism is a lie,” reverberated quickly across the country, but was especially jarring for the tens of thousands of Muslim constituents in his Middle Tennessee district. In neighborhoods south of Nashville, from Antioch to Murfreesboro, Muslim residents responded with a mix of anger and exhaustion, as well as concern that such ideas coming from their very own Congressman could fuel harassment and violence at a moment when tensions are already running high. “He is trying to gain relevance through attacking our community in the election cycle,” says Sabina Mohyuddin, an American-born Muslim who lives in the district and leads the Tennessee-based American Muslim Advisory Council. She estimated that roughly 30,000 Muslims live within the Fifth Congressional District alone. Ogles’s comments have been part of a broader rise in anti-Muslim rhetoric among Republicans, as the party increasingly turns its attention from immigration at the southern border to warnings about Islam and Muslim communities in the United States. read the complete article
Tensions erupt in Congress over anti-Muslim posts
Congressional Democrats and Republicans clashed furiously on social media Thursday night over blatantly anti-Muslim posts by right-wing House members and senators. Why it matters: Republicans are growing more emboldened than ever in their expressions of unapologetic Islamophobia in recent weeks in response to a series of violent attacks on U.S. soil amid the Iran war. "We need more Islamophobia, not less. Fear of Islam is rational," Rep. Randy Fine (R-Fla.) posted to X Thursday. Said Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), responding to a post with side-by-side photos of the September 11th attacks and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, wrote: "The enemy is inside the gates." "Name one country that is freer and safer because Muslims moved there," Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) posted. All three Republican lawmakers were swiftly and harshly condemned by their Democratic colleagues. read the complete article
‘Blatant Islamophobic racism’: Democrats blast GOP Senator Tommy Tuberville over post linking NYC’s Muslim Mayor to 9/11
Senator Tommy Tuberville, a Republican from Alabama, was eviscerated on social media after he shared a post linking New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to the September 11 terror attacks. Mamdani is a Muslim, and was photographed breaking his Ramadan fast with New Yorkers at City Hall. On Thursday, Tuberville shared an image from an extreme right-wing social media account called "End Wokeness" that showed an image of Mamdani breaking his Ramadan fast next to an image of the 9/11 attacks. The account included the caption "Less than 25 years apart." Tuberville added his own commentary to the image, saying "the enemy is inside the gates." Democrats defending Mamdani descended on the former college football coach-turned-senator and denounced his racist post. Mamdani replied to the post but did not swing back at Tuberville. "Let there be as much outrage from politicians in Washington when kids go hungry as there is when I break bread with New Yorkers," he wrote in a social media reply. read the complete article
As GU Investigates College Republicans’ Post, Community Members Condemn Islamophobia
Two days after the Georgetown University College Republicans (GUCR) removed a post claiming Muslims are incompatible with a Christian vision of the United States, GUCR members deleted the group’s X account as the club faces a university conduct investigation following widespread community backlash. On March 11, university administrators condemned the post as Islamophobic and said they are investigating the incident. In a subsequent statement on its Instagram page, GUCR said the post did not reflect the organization’s values. “Last night, the Georgetown University College Republicans were made aware of an X post regarding Muslims in the United States,” GUCR wrote on the story post, which expired Thursday. “This post is inconsistent with the values of our organization, and was made without the knowledge of the executive board. It was promptly deleted upon its discovery. Since then, appropriate internal disciplinary action has been taken.” In the days leading up to and after the post about Muslim Americans, the account published multiple posts referencing minority groups in the United States, including one discrediting same-sex marriage licenses and one condemning birthright citizenship for “foreign aliens.” The Georgetown University Student Association (GUSA), Georgetown’s student government, said GUCR’s actions constitute harassment. read the complete article
Exclusive: Sole Muslim woman on Trump religious committee resigning in protest
The only Muslim woman on US President Donald Trump's religious freedom committee is resigning, Middle East Eye can reveal. Sameerah Munshi served on the Advisory Board of Lay Leaders on the Religious Liberties Commission, and is leaving the role "in protest" of the White House's decision to remove anti-Zionist Catholic commissioner Carrie Prejean-Boller from the panel, her resignation letter, seen by MEE on Thursday, said. Prejean-Boller revealed on X on Thursday that the president, who appoints all the commissioners, has now fired her for what she believes is her stand against genocide committed by Israel in Gaza, and her pushback against those who call her antisemitic for her anti-Zionist views. There are no Muslims appointed as commissioners - the top tier - on this Trump-exclusive project, which was established in May 2025 to report directly to the president, usually once or twice a year. All three Muslims involved were chosen by the administration to act in an advisory capacity: Munshi; director of the Religious Freedom Institute, Ismail Royer; and prominent scholar, Sheikh Hamza Yusuf. Munshi told MEE that ever since she first provided testimony to the commission in September 2025 on what she said was a constitutionally-protected right in schools to protest Israel’s killing of Palestinians, she started to feel isolated from the programme. read the complete article
United Kingdom
‘Why I’m Concerned the Government’s Definition of Anti-Muslim Hostility Won’t Help Most Victims’
After years of advocacy, the Government has released its definition of anti-Muslim hostility. As chief executive of the Islamophobia Response Unit (IRU), the UK’s leading charity providing free legal support to victims of Islamophobia, I’ve reviewed it carefully. While I acknowledge positive elements, I’m concerned it won’t help most people we support and, more widely, it will not be embraced by Muslim communities. My primary concern is the repeated requirement for intent. “Intentionally” or “intention” appears three times in the definition, creating an extremely high threshold for most discrimination cases. It will also mean that policymakers, politicians and others are likely to shy away from using the definition to call out discrimination against Muslims. This might happen because they do not understand the intention element. Further, they may simply use it as an excuse to reject clear examples of this behaviour because they cannot be sure of the perpetrator’s intent. A working group on anti-Muslim hostility was established by the then-Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner as part of the government’s “Plan for Change” safer streets mission, responding to 2024 data showing anti-Muslim incidents at their peak. The working group spent six months developing its recommendations. I understand that the final definition departs significantly from what the working group proposed. Why weren’t expert recommendations fully adopted? What changed, and why? Meanwhile, the Government’s call for evidence limited responses to 600–1,000 characters. How do you explain institutional barriers or racialised hostility in the space of a text message? This wasn’t a meaningful consultation. read the complete article