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Debates about Islamophobia have been blighted by the question of whether the prejudice can be defined as a form of racism or as hostility to religion (or a combination of the two). This paper sheds light on this debate by presenting the findings of a new nationally representative survey, focused on the UK, that contrasts perceptions of Muslims not only with perceptions of other ethnic and religious minorities but also with perceptions of Islam as a religious tradition. We find that prejudice against Muslims is higher than for any other group examined other than Travellers. We also find contrasting demographic drivers of prejudice towards Muslims and towards Islam. Across most prejudice measures we analyse, intolerant views are generally significantly associated with being male, voting Conservative and being older, although not with Anglican identity. We find, however, that class effects vary depending on the question's focus. Anti‐immigration sentiment – including support for a 'Muslim ban' – is significantly correlated with being working‐class. However, prejudice towards Islam as a body of teachings (tested using a question measuring perceptions of religious literalism) is significantly correlated with being middle‐class, as is negative sentiment towards Travellers. Using these findings, the paper makes an argument for supplementing recent scholarship on the associations between racism and Islamophobia with analyses focusing on misperceptions of belief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The UK government's 'Prevent' counter‐extremism policy was placed on a statutory footing in 2015, requiring specified authorities including NHS providers by law to work to 'prevent people being drawn into terrorism', leading to calls for a boycott on ethical grounds. Since 2016, mental health professionals have been embedded within counterterrorism police units in 'Vulnerability Support Hubs', to assist in the management of individuals referred to Prevent perceived to have vulnerabilities related to mental health. Drawing on data obtained through Freedom of Information requests, this paper examines these hubs in the context of Prevent's racial politics. It examines the pseudo‐scientific concept of radicalization through the lens of racialization theory and explores the whitewashing and colourblindness endemic to most research and practice at the nexus of counterterrorism and mental health. Four ethical issues arising from the hubs are highlighted: (a) the securitization of care, including the way counterterrorism concerns appear to influence medical treatment regimes; (b) harm, including potential criminalization; (c) the erosion of patient agency and confidentiality; and (d) the pathologization of political dissent. It is argued that due to the UK's status as a leading innovator in the field of counter‐radicalization, all of these highly racialized phenomena hold wider relevance and augur a troubling direction of travel for counterterrorism's turn towards mental health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the concept of conviviality: the practice and negotiation of sharing space in suburbs with diverse populations. Australia has a growing Muslim population and reports of Islamophobia remain widespread. While there is some evidence, however, that forming intercultural connections can foster more positive attitudes toward religious minority groups, we know little about how Muslim and non‐Muslim communities share space in Australia. This paper presents the findings of a qualitative investigation into how conviviality is perceived in Australian suburbs with high concentrations of Muslim residents. Following qualitative, thematic analysis of 15 interviews with multicultural service providers who work with Muslims in Melbourne, Victoria, we conclude that conviviality is fostered by a sense of community between people who share similar backgrounds as well as increased opportunities to form intercultural social connections. We discuss the scholarly and policy implications of these findings, with consideration of existing arguments about the practices of sharing space in Australian cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports published within the issue which include the study on the phenomenon of Islamophobia, the collapse of Muslim identities, and the psychoanalytic inquiry of Islamophobia in India.

In this paper, I elaborate on the work done in a previous paper that described a psychological model that allows for a better understanding of the intra-psychic experiences of victims of acts of prejudice. The model, centered around the notion of a psychological boundary, or "skin of the self", provides a possible developmental trajectory for the formation of two separate but parallel functions of the skin of the self and describes the framework within which these functions determine the impact of prejudicial injuries. In the present work I extend these ideas to address large-group dynamics and integrate them with the pioneering ideas elaborated by Vamik Volkan in this area, while developing a few new concepts that I believe increase the utility of large-group dynamics in understanding the experiences of victims of Islamophobia, as well as shed some light on what might motivate perpetrators of it within the contemporary geopolitical environment, particularly in the United States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Islam is becoming an increasingly prevalent religion in Europe due to large inflows of Muslims over the last few decades. Previous social survey research suggests that the European public is critical of immigration from Muslim countries with concerns relating to integration and security. Using the 7th round of the European Social Survey and linking it to other data sources, this paper examines whether threat hypotheses can explain anti‐Muslim sentiment in Europe. The study finds that opposition to Muslims is significantly higher than opposition to migrants in general, particularly in Eastern and Central Europe. The threat hypothesis is not supported on a country level as counties with higher "stock" of Muslim population and higher number of Islamic terrorist attacks are more welcoming towards further Muslim immigration. Furthermore, the study finds that women are more opposed to Muslim immigration than men. The wider implications of these findings and alternative explanations are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims to demonstrate how the mosque of Votanikos has emerged as a reconciliation initiative with a wider reconciling dynamic within Greek reality and history. It places the initiative of the construction of the mosque in its wider context, while also considering the idiosyncrasy of Greek Islam, historical conditions, tensions from within, and pressures from without. The mosque of Votanikos can and should be perceived as initiating the healing of wounded memories and as a high‐impact symbolic reconciliation initiative reaching out to the grassroots level of society. The paper employs critical discourse analysis, examining the foreign and Greek media coverage of the issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intercultural relations benefit from the social psychological study of arguments made by different groups about joint projects of mutual concern. This focus allows researchers to map representations of the project in question, among communities in different cultural milieus. This paper presents a study looking at Arabs' views on the project of integration. Arabs' perspectives revolved around six argumentative themes: cultural, economic, psychological, religio‐cultural, socio‐political or stigma‐related. After comparing all claims on integration across the communities involved (the Arab minority and the Maltese majority), we describe Arabs' positive, negative and mixed/ambivalent socio‐political claims in detail, complementing a previous study on majority views. This enables a discussion of Arabs' perspectives in view of the semiotic resources relevant to localised intercultural relations. Arabs' argumentative themes clearly reflect three key patterns: (a) social representation of integration as difficult but necessary, (b) minority representation of the majority group as being resistant to integration and (c) de‐essentialism of ingroup and outgroup. These patterns contrast with the majority members' arguments in significant ways. Findings are discussed theoretically in view of how minority arguments re‐present social processes to advance or resist intercultural projects, and substantively in terms of the application of these findings for ameliorating intercultural relations in local communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, I explore the impact of Islamophobia on contemporary Muslim identities. I examine how Islamophobia and the question of Muslim identities appear in the cultural uses of symbols and media discourses in the West and in the psychoanalysis of a Lebanese-American woman who identified as a "secular Muslim." The paper discusses how Islamophobia, through its creation and propagation of Muslim stereotypes, flattens the depth, diversity, and historicity of Muslim identities; it examines, as well, how Muslims internalize these stereotypes. This internalization and the direct experiences with injurious speech, discriminatory acts and hate crimes may lead to shame. Driven by shame, Muslims may sever the tie to their cultural background or idealize their Islamic religion or culture, perceived to be located in the space and time of the "glorious Islamic past," as in the case of Islamic fundamentalism. While these strategies may protect Muslims from their painful shame, they risk collapsing their identities. I also discuss some of the social defenses employed by Muslim communities facing Islamophobia, which may reinforce the stereotypes they are desperately trying to fight. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tracing the shifting historical and contemporary discourses of self‐representation among upper caste American Hindu immigrants, this paper reflects upon the rise of diaspora "Hindutva Democrats" in the post‐2020 American political landscape. What makes "Hindutva Democrats" a peculiar political embodiment is their manipulative use of the language of social justice for addressing racism in America while downplaying, if not outright refusing to acknowledge, glaring human rights abuses against minorities (for issues such as casteism and Islamophobia) in India and in the Indian diaspora. Together, these confounding and inconsistent political stances illuminate the problem of the neoliberalization of calls for racial justice, amplified by narratives of American exceptionalism and its favorable capitalist ties to India in the contemporary political landscape. This analysis of the Hindutva Democratic movement illuminates the ways in which performances of race, caste, and racialization are embedded in historical, institutional, and gendered ideological projects across borders. These performances create insidious impediments toward the achievement of the global human rights which are foundational to sustainable peace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When Donald Trump imposed the "Muslim ban" what was surprising was the absence of any pretense to make it political. It wasn't a ban against some countries, it was a ban against Muslim countries or pithily against Muslims. But then what happens when the fear of intrusion underlying "banning" finds its realization in lynching? In the existing discourse on Islamophobia, how do we understand not only the Muslim who isn't allowed to enter but also the Muslim who is quite simply killed for having entered ages ago. In this paper, I share the trajectory of Muslims in India through history, politics, and psychoanalytic theory to present the case of Islamophobia in India. Developing on Edward Said's Orientalism (1978) and Gil Anidjar's, Secularism (2006), I explain how in the secular nation state of India, the phobia isn't of Islam; rather, it is of religion. The religion is identified as Islam. In this identification, national identity and religious identity are at loggerheads such that Muslims in between are left with an impossibility -- they cannot be Indians as long as they are Muslims and they can never not be Muslims. In exploring the incidents of lynching, this paper presents a psycho-political reading of Muslims in India and their impossibility of being Indian. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about the topics discussed during the conference organized by the College of Psychoanalysts in Great Britain and hosted by the University of Manchester on June 26-28, 2017 is presented. The event became a rich site of conversation between diverse scholars in different fields and nationals who discover the other side of Islamophobia. The conference also featured keynote speakers who explored possible meanings of jihad and the symptoms of Islamism.

Taqiyya is an Islamic juridical term whose shifting meaning relates to when a Muslim is allowed, under Sharia law, to lie. A concept whose meaning has varied significantly among Islamic sects, scholars, countries, and political regimes, it nevertheless is one of the key terms used by recent anti-Muslim polemicists such as Robert Spencer or Daniel Pipes, and has been used by US Prosecutors to explain terrorist behavior. This paper seeks to summarize the complex uses of the term and show how a specific concept in a legal system can be used and interpreted by both adherents of that system and enemies in a wide variety of ways, taking on different meanings while referring to effectively the same set of practices. The term is debated in a scholarly way in the scholarly literature, as an ethnographic term, and finally, as an operational concept used as a tactic in a war and demanding countertactics tailored to it. The paper will discuss the social purpose of having such ambiguous concepts available within one's society, and the idea that making the ambiguous specific can be a valuable weapon in polemical attack. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this paper, critical discursive psychology is used to analyse the Islamophobic discourse by the far‐right party Britain First in its “solidarity patrol” video. Britain First patrolled in Golders Green, North London, to show support for Jewish communities following the ISIS shooting at the kosher supermarket in Paris on January 9, 2015. The Charlie Hebdo shooting and the shooting at the kosher supermarket (as well as other attacks by members of the Islamic State) have led to Muslims being seen as a threat to Britain and exposed to Islamophobic attacks and racial abuse. This presents far‐right parties in the United Kingdom with the dilemma of appearing moderate and mainstream in their anti‐Islamic stance. The analysis focuses on how Britain First used the shooting at the kosher supermarket in order to construct Jews as under threat from Islam. The analysis also includes visual communication in the solidarity patrol video that was used to provide “evidence” that Britain First supported Jewish communities. Results are discussed in light of how Britain First used aligning with Jews in order to appear as “reasonable” in projecting its anti‐Islamic ideology and how critical discursive psychology can be used to show how conflicting social identities are constructed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this paper, we examine Shakespeare's sixteenth‐century play, The Merchant of Venice. Anti‐Semitism is a key theme in this play. The well‐known central character, Shylock, is a Jewish man ridiculed and victimised because of his identity. Much literary research has been done on the anti‐Semitism of the play, and many social studies have compared anti‐Semitism and Islamophobia, but scarcely any research brings a Shakespearean play from the sixteenth century into the context of twenty‐first century Islamophobia. There are a number of similarities between the manner in which Shylock is ostracised and the current victimisation that Muslim communities are facing in Europe and more specifically the UK. With this in mind, we explore contextual and thematic elements of this play and argue that it is possible to apply the way Shylock is unfairly victimised on stage because of his identity as a Jew to the treatment of some Muslims today. In particular, the treatment he faces shares stark similarities with the types, impacts and consequences of Islamophobic hate crime today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the United States today, Muslim identity is highly stigmatized. Much of this can be attributed to an increasing climate of Islamophobia. The current study finds that some Muslim Americans are confronted with another source of stigma: other Muslims. Using interview data with 23 Muslim Americans in and around Houston, TX, this study examines the intersection of religious out‐group and in‐group stigma in the lives of Muslim Americans. Findings suggest that stigma comes not only from non‐Muslims, but also from other Muslims. Some Muslim Americans are especially vulnerable to religious in‐group stigma. Those who are most acculturated to non‐Muslim, Western culture often face criticism from Muslim communities, be they inside or outside the United States. These Muslim Americans find that they are not perceived as fully Muslim or fully American, and therefore denied the full benefits of either status while simultaneously bearing the burden of both. This paper articulates the multiple dimensions of stigma faced by Muslims in America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The difficulties in defining hate crime, hate incidents and hate speech, and in finding a common conceptual basis constitute a key barrier toward operationalisation in research, policy and programming. Definitions disagree about issues such as the identities that should be protected, the types of behaviours that should be referred to as hateful, and how the 'hate element' should be assessed. The lack of solid conceptual foundations is reflected in the absence of sound data. These issues have been raised since the early 1990s (Berk, 1990; Byers & Venturelli, 1994) but they proved to be an intractable problem that continues to affect this research and policy domain. Objectives: Our systematic review has two objectives that are fundamentally connected: mapping (1) original definitions and (2) original measurement tools of hate crime, hate speech, hate incidents and surrogate terms, that is, alternative terms used for these concepts (e.g., prejudice‐motivated crime, bias crime, among many others). Search Methods: We systematically searched over 19 databases to retrieve academic and grey literature, as well as legislation. In addition, we contacted 26 country experts and searched 211 websites, as well as bibliographies of published reviews of related literature, and scrutiny of annotated bibliographies of related literature. Inclusion Criteria: This review included documents published after 1990 found in academic literature, grey literature and legislation. We included academic empirical articles with any study design, as well as theoretical articles that focused specifically on defining hate crime, hate speech, hate incidents or surrogate terms. We also reviewed current criminal or civil legislation that is intended to regulate forms of hate speech, hate incidents and hate crimes. Eligible countries included Canada, USA, UK, Ireland, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Australia and New Zealand. For documents to be included in relation to research objective (1), they had to contain at least one original definition of hate speech, hate incidents or hate crimes, or any surrogate term. For documents to be included in relation to research objective (2), they had to contain at least one original measurement tool of hate speech, hate incidents or hate crimes, or any surrogate term. Documents could be included in relation to both research objectives. Data Collection and Analysis: The systematic search covered 1 January 1990 to 31 December 2021, with searches of academic databases conducted between 8th March and 12th April 2022 yielding 35,191 references. We carried out country‐specific searches for grey literature published in the same time period between 27th August and 2nd December 2021. These searches yielded a total of 2748 results. We coded characteristics of the definitions and measurement tools, including the protected characteristics, the approaches to categorise the 'hate element' and other variables. We used univariate and bivariate statistical methods for data analysis. We also carried out a social network analysis. Main Results: We provide as annex complete lists of the original definitions and measurement tools that met our inclusion criteria, for the use of researchers and policy makers worldwide. We included 423 definitions and 168 measurement tools in academic and grey literature, and 83 definitions found in legislation. To support future research and policy work in this area, we included a synthetic assessment of the (1) the operationalisability of each definition and (2) the theoretical robustness and transparency of each measurement tool. Our mapping of the definitions and measurement tools revealed numerous significant trends, clusters and differences between and within definitions and measurement tools focusing on hate crime, hate speech and hate incidents. For example, definitions and measurement tools tend to focus more on ethnic and religious identities (e.g., racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia) compared to sexual, gender and disability‐related identities. This gap is greater in the definitions and measurement tools of hate speech than hate crime. Our analysis showed geographical patterns: hate crime definitions and measurement tools are more likely to originate from Anglophonic countries, especially the USA, but hate speech definitions and measurement tools are more likely to originate from continental Europe. In terms of disciplinary fragmentation, our social network analysis revealed that the collaboration and exchange of conceptual frameworks and methodological tools between social sciences and computer science is limited, with most definitions and measurement tools clustering along disciplinary lines. More detailed findings are presented in the results section of the report. Authors' Conclusions: There is an urgent need to close the research and policy gap between the protections of 'ethnic and religious identities' and other (less) protected characteristics such as gender and sexual identities, age and disability. There is also an urgent need to improve the quality of methodological and reporting standards in research examining hate behaviours, including transparency in methodology and data reporting, and discussion of limitations (e.g., bias in data). Many of the measurement tools found in the academic literature were excluded because they did not report transparently how they collected and analysed the data. Further, 41% of documents presenting research on hate behaviours did not provide a definition of what they were looking at. Given the importance of this policy domain, it is vital to raise the quality and trustworthiness of research in this area. This review found that researchers in different disciplinary areas (e.g., social sciences and computer science) rarely collaborate. Future research should attempt to build on existing definitions and measurement tools (instead of duplicating efforts), and engage in more interdisciplinary collaborations. It is our hope that that this review can provide a solid foundation for researchers, government, and other bodies to build cumulative knowledge and collaboration in this important field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2014, observers of Chinese society have noted an upsurge in Islamophobic sentiment among China's ethnic majority Han. China's Muslims, in particular those who identify as Hui and Uyghur, report an increase in harassment, both online and in person. This Islamophobic backlash occurs in conjunction with retrenchments by the Chinese state on the right to practice religion. What gives rise to this increase in bigotry? This pilot study examines official discourse about Islam through an inductive analysis of the presentation of Muslims in China's state media. Using a process of constant comparative analysis, I examine the state media's portrayal of Muslims in the flagship newspaper, The People's Daily. Drawing from a sample of 70 articles published between 2014 and 2018, I argue that the party's depiction of Muslim minorities in China emphasizes ethnic rather than religious identities, while coverage of global Islam emphasizes Islam as dangerous and associated with extremism. I contend that such depictions carry the unintended consequence of arousing suspicions about China's Muslims among Han. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extreme right is currently on the rise throughout Europe, making use of the Continent's economic and social problems to bolster its cause. It is also making increasing use of the Internet to spread its message and build a virtual world that it hopes will one day be reflected in reality. Until now the bulk of research into the extreme right's use of the Internet has focused on the online activities of political parties and organised groups. But the horrific acts of the Norwegian terrorist, counterjihadist and lone wolf Anders Behring Breivik, and his promotion of those acts and the ideology behind them by way of the Internet, has provoked an array of microblogs - that is, cutting-edge web presences made up of provocative short sentences, single images or video links. They idolise Breivik and reveal the potent use the extreme right is making of alternative media. The creators of these pro-Breivik counterjihadist sites are often young people well-versed in the use of the multi-faceted new media and as such they are able to create an appealing vision of their brave new world. They often work independently, producing a virtual worldview from the seclusion and relative anonymity of home computers. They are creating virtual places of congregation, community and validation for vulnerable young people in search of identity, purpose and meaning. In doing so, a new range of radical voices is being cultivated and added to current extreme right discourse. This paper will examine the extreme right's use of the Internet and the specific use made by its pro-Breivik, counterjihadist voices - the new voices of the extreme right. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses Jacques Rancière's conception of the partition of the sensible to interrogate the aesthetic regimes and spatial coordinates that animated public debate about Park 51-the Islamic community center near the World Trade Center site in Manhattan. Understanding conflicts over mosques as potential struggles over the conditions of membership in a community, I suggest that many of the arguments in favor of Park 51 reinforced a partition of the sensible in which Islamophobia could resonate. At stake in these debates-which turned on different understandings of the distance that separated the proposed center from the WTC site-is the relationship between American Muslims and the narratives of trauma constructed around the September 11th attacks. I conclude by exploring the projects proposed by Park 51 organizers as potential sites of everyday micropolitics that could subtly 'jolt' existing orders in the interest of reconfiguring the 'common sense' of a community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The meanings attached to 'race' across the globe are myriad, particularly as anti-Islamic discourse once again links race and religion. Yet scholars lack a common terminology to discuss this phenomenon. This article hopes to expand critical race theory and scholarship across national lines. This critical examination of recent race-related scholarship provides scholars with empirical suggestions to uncover and document the different processes, mechanisms, trajectories and outcomes of potentially racialized practices that essentialize, dehumanize, 'other,' and oppress minority groups while imbuing privileged groups with power and resources in nations across the globe. Ten empirical indicators will allow international researchers to assess the particular situation of different groups in different nations to determine whether, and the extent to which, they are subject to racialization. Specifically, this paper calls for a unified terminology that can accurately account for and address race when and where it occurs and a global broadening of a critical comparative dialogue of racial practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Australian Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, Peter Dutton, has framed the mid‐1970s immigration of Lebanese affected by civil war as Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser's "mistake". His remarks sparked controversy in the parliament and the media. The issue became a contest of frames between the Murdoch media, which supported the Minister's "mistake" frame and argued his right to "tell the truth", and the Fairfax media, which viewed the Minister as being "racist" for "scapegoating" the Lebanese community. Along with archival documents, this article examines the context and coverage of the Minister's remarks, noting that the frames presented in the media "indexed" those adopted amongst political elites, while failing to re‐examine the historical record. This case study demonstrates the power of framing and the media's tendency to accept rather than challenge frames used by those in the political contest, with the result that errors in the representation of history were never corrected. This article draws on framing theory and indexing theory and concludes that the "mistake" frame for the Lebanese feeds into narratives that serve to "other" Muslim and Arab groups, fanning fears and mobilising a discourse of Islamophobia around the exclusion of "undesirable" immigrants on the basis of "cultural fit". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper considers how our understanding of religious identifications may be enriched through social psychological theorizing on group identity. It reviews a range of work (for example, sociological and social psychological) concerning Islam and Muslim identities and develops the case for viewing religious identities as constructed in and through argument. It then seeks to draw out the implications of such an approach for understanding group relations. Although minority religious identifications are often assumed to undermine social cohesion, the social networks within and between groups can contribute to inter-group harmony. For example, reciprocal relationships characterized by trust and reciprocity can constitute forms of social capital that facilitate civic integration. Yet, how such social networks are used and how relationships are developed depends on group members' understandings of their collective identity. As this is contested, it follows that analyses of intergroup relations must attend to group members' identity-related arguments and the strategic concerns that lie behind them. The utility of this perspective is illustrated briefly with empirical material (arising from interviews conducted with Muslim activists) which hints at the importance of investigating social actors' own theories of social capital and how it can be developed. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, there has been considerable concern about whether Muslims living in Western countries are targets of prejudice. A considerable amount of survey-based evidence suggests that Muslims are victims of discrimination. This paper tested this hypothesis. Two lost-letter experiments were conducted to test whether the difference in returned letters would be attributable to whether the addressee was Muslim or Swedish. The results show that Muslims receive far fewer letters than do Swedes. However, this discrimination only appears when the lost letters contain money; in which case, the finder gains by not posting the letter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much research in intergroup relations concerns the potential for interventions (e.g. intergroup contact) to reduce majorities' discrimination against minorities. In this paper we focus on how minority group members construe such interventions, especially as they affect their abilities to act in terms of their collective identity to realize social change. In addressing this issue, we focus on a minority's beliefs and theories concerning the intergroup dynamics lying behind their marginalization. Our data are qualitative and concern British Muslims' analyses of the dynamics of Islamophobia. Specifically, we explore two theorizations of Muslims' marginalization. Both share a concern with improving Muslims' collective position in Britain. However, they construe the dynamics to Islamophobia in very different ways, and this shapes their approach to intergroup contact and dialogue. Our analysis is informed by, and seeks to complement, social psychological theorizing on social change and intergroup contact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus (COVID‐19) outbreak a global pandemic, spurring dramatic changes in public health policies, travel between countries, and (trans)national economies, as well as in religious and political institutions. In the United States, in particular, the pandemic provoked and revealed an increasingly fraught relationship between scientific, religious, and political sources of information and leadership—an American "crisis of authority" wherein many Americans distrusted scientific and medical establishments. This article explores how Shi'i Muslim institutions and leaders of metro Detroit navigated these competing authorities, even as their communities faced entrenched societal inequities, including anti‐Muslim racism (Islamophobia). Through interviews with Shi'i religious leaders in Dearborn, Dearborn Heights, and Detroit, supplemented by digital and in‐person ethnographic research at five major Shi'i mosques, we show how major Islamic centers and leaders argued for the efficacy, safety, religious value, and legality of COVID‐19 medical guidance and led extensive community outreach initiatives to help their struggling communities. Supported by religious scholars in Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon, their guidance offered messages of hope and resilience, as well as an emphasis on the community preservation and selflessness (caring for others) exemplified by the Family of the Prophet. They also emphasized how religious and scientific knowledge intersect, as per the sacred texts of Islam (the Qur'an and hadiths). Their approach compels us to better understand how sources of religious authority can tether vulnerable communities to forms of (legitimate) knowledge in times of upheaval, divisive politics, and misinformation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Islamophobia has seen a disturbing rise in British and international contexts; however, we see limited attention being afforded to this in the context of Higher Education (HE), particularly the impacts of this through the lens of staff members. HE continues to frame itself as a post‐racial, secular, progressive, and inclusive space, yet is perpetually opposed due to its surreptitious and violent incidences of racism, classism, sexism and ableism. We discuss here, using liberatory‐based and autoethnographic methodologies, Muslim staff members' experiences and insights of Islamophobia in UK HE institutions (HEIs)—a severely underrepresented group and largely invisible issue in the academy. We highlight the need to expose, challenge, question, and destabilise the continuous victimisation of Muslims within these spaces and beyond. We unpick issues related to intersectionality and different levels of exclusion by exploring the sense of belonging felt by Muslim staff; specific challenges and episodes of Islamophobia faced; and ways the sector can dismantle Islamophobia and begin developing practices to genuinely support anti‐Muslim, anti‐racist inclusion and social justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schools are key contexts for the development of adolescents' critical consciousness. We explored how three dimensions of the classroom cultural diversity climate (critical consciousness, color‐evasion, and multiculturalism) related to adolescents' critical reflection (i.e., perceived societal Islamophobia) and intended critical action (i.e., political activism). Our sample included adolescents experiencing high (second generation, Muslim, N = 237) versus low (non‐immigrant descent, non‐Muslim, N = 478) stigmatization in Germany. Multilevel analyses revealed that for both groups a critical consciousness climate, but not a color‐evasive or a multicultural climate, was positively associated with perceived societal Islamophobia and intended critical action. Thus, to promote adolescents' critical consciousness, schools should go beyond emphasizing a common humanity and celebrating cultural diversity and include explicit discussions of social inequity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article provides an overview of literature pertaining to anti‐blackness and racism in Poland. Much of the literature on anti‐blackness and racism in Europe has focused on certain hegemonic powers in Europe. This literature reviews seeks to add another country to explore the topic. The article first discusses how anti‐blackness conversations are formulated in general and then shifts to examine Poland, exploring how these conversations on immigration, economic issues and Islamophobia add to a broader discussion of Europe's problems with anti‐blackness more broadly. From here, the article examines and dismantles the notions that Poland is isolated from the African continent and that Poland's historical and contemporary population can be viewed as totally homogenous. Self‐identified Afro‐Poles are discussed as a focal population of Black Poles, showing that there are generational interactions between the African continent and Polish society in the last section. This review seeks to add a new case study into the discourse of anti‐blackness and racism in Europe. I argue that cases like Poland are valuable and necessary to develop fuller conceptualizations of anti‐blackness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Turk is a looming figure in Martin Luther's theological imagination, emerging again and again as a rhetorical tool and historical reality in his thought and work. Yet, Luther's treatment of the Turks has received relatively little attention despite continuities in his polemical project with the Jews. In the 1540s, Luther outlined a systematic theological interrogation of Muslims' humanity and applied his own Christian theological anthropology to determine that, on the basis of belief in the Koran, Muslims do not fit the criteria to be human persons. This article examines this claim to identify ways theology and cultural bias worked in tandem to reinforce this nefarious commitment in Luther's thought. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article introduces the conceptual distinctions between "mediated" and "immediate" Islamophobia. "Mediated" Islamophobia refers to the fact that most people who express Islamophobic sentiment do not know (m)any Muslims and know little about Islam; their knowledge about Islam and Muslims, and any Islamophobic sentiment they may have, come from the exposure to traditional and/or social media. Given the documented Islamophobic bias of many "Western" media, "mediated" Islamophobia may be on the rise. On the other hand, research has shown that what we call "immediate" Islamophobia is less of a problem: People who know Muslims personally, live close to them and are better informed about Islam, are less likely to be Islamophobic. This article uses empirical data to contribute to the discussion of immediate, face‐to‐face experiences of residents in two Muslim‐concentration areas in Melbourne, Australia, with a reference to the "contact theory." We analyze residents' perceptions of Muslims and Islam based on everyday encounters with their (Muslim) neighbors, and Muslims' perceptions and direct experiences of Islamophobia. We use data collected through a survey and follow‐up interviews to support our conceptual argument. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a recent article, Nesbitt-Larking (2007) postulated the notion of ‘deep multiculturalism’, dependent, at least in part, on dialogue and on ‘host’ societies questioning their core values. In this commentary I suggest that whilst such a proposal is indeed a worthy ideal, the social psychological processes underpinning how this can be achieved need to be adequately addressed if such a vision is to become a reality. Using Social Representation Theory, I hope to explicate the operation of power, ideologies and collective memory on the process of representation, and suggest that understanding this process may better enable one to manage the obstacles involved in a project of deep multiculturalism. Drawing on Whiteness studies, I suggest that for a host society to question their core values, certain unconsciously held values need first to be illuminated; however, in so doing, I postulate that caution is exercised in order that such exposure does not perpetuate racialising representations. Using the concepts of anchoring and objectification, I propose that highlighting the similarities and shared experiences of a society's members may be a more successful strategy for achieving deep multiculturalism, than focusing on diversity and difference. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Islamophobia and related incidents of hate-crimes, religious discrimination and profiling are increasingly being researched to have adverse effects on Muslim adults and children alike. Rising episodes of anti-Muslim religious bullying are being reported from schools, classrooms and playgrounds across the globe and, hence, need to be accounted for, recognized and mitigated. This study uses child-participatory research methodology to understand experiences of American Muslim children regarding Islamophobia. It was conducted with 26 children participants (N = 26) studying in Grades 5-8, at an Islamic School in the United States. Drawings and semi-structured focus group discussions were used for data collection. Findings revealed that Islamophobia should be characterized through a unique child-centric lens, to recognize how it affects the lives of Muslim children. Narratives and silences of female participants highlighted how gendered Islamophobia has become so common for young Muslim girls that it has become 'invisible.' It was seen that children's perception of Islamophobia often becomes a projection of parental influences. Participants put forward resilience techniques, which pave ways for social work interventions with Muslim children. The study ends with a school social work model directed towards prevention and reduction of Islamophobia, which educators, schools and social workers can implement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Meta‐dehumanization contributes to a vicious cycle of hostility. This study extends the literature by investigating antecedents and outcomes of meta‐dehumanization in the context of Muslim–non‐Muslim relations. Specifically, control over terrorism (COT) and threat were tested as predictors of meta‐dehumanization among non‐Muslim British nationals (N = 313). The results revealed that lower perceptions of COT predicted increased threat, which in turn predicted meta‐dehumanization. Meta‐dehumanization, consequently, predicted Islamophobia via increased dehumanization of Muslim people. The results were significant while controlling for political orientation and intergroup contact. This research highlights the unsettling cycle of meta‐dehumanization and intergroup hostility. Theoretical and practical implications of this research are discussed. Please refer to the Supplementary Material section to find this article's Community and Social Impact Statement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, national populist politics has been translated with the emergence of two overlapping narratives of Islamophobia and anti‐EU immigration media discourses. Such discourses have been made highly visible in the increased spike in hate crimes that have been a hidden cost of the national(ist) debate about Britain leaving the European Union (Brexit). This is the context in which we can trace a remarkable shift in the state representation of the schooling of the South Asian/Muslim community and the reclassification from promoting South Asians as central to the future of a modernised multicultural Britain (1970s) to positioning Muslims as a 'suspect community' (2020). This article unpacks two cultural moments in the critical exploration of the State production of the Muslim School within a post‐Trojan Horse era. First, a national dominant image of the Muslim School operating within the State ascribed 'no‐go' ethno‐religious Muslim neighbourhoods, as a repository of regressive (extreme) Islamist religiosity; thus, reconstructing their religious belief as racialised identities, as they disconnect from British values. Second, the No Outsiders programme, with the accompanying framing of intolerant (Muslim) parents. In this case, the ensuing tension between 'homophobic Muslims' and 'British values' sets in place a homogenisation of differences. Deploying a simultaneity of categories of difference perspective, we address an underlying discursive re‐politicising of South Asian ethnic communities as religious communities, which is resulting in a perpetual negotiation of the meanings attached to being Muslim. This will enable an international application of the article beyond the specific focus on the city of Birmingham, identified in the international media as the Jihadi capital of Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The status of India as the world's largest democracy is often lauded, but the re‐election of the overtly Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party in 2019 has increased concerns about the threat to India's multinational democracy and the rule of law. India is not the only democracy facing challenges related to majoritarian nationalism; there has been a worldwide rise in the language of majority 'rights' in democratic systems. The importance of analysing the extent to which the rights of majorities are being increasingly institutionalized within democratic systems has therefore increased. It is vitally important to identify whether tendencies toward ethnic democracy are increasing (and the conditions under which they do so). There may well be red flags that emerge in democratic systems, heralding the potential direction of travel. This article proposes a methodology to identify degrees of ethnic democracy using a combination of formal and informal measures and illustrates it by assessing India through an examination of anti‐Muslim policies and rhetoric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years--particularly since the beginning of the refugee crisis in 2015--the political debate about issues of Islamophobia and resentment of Muslims has gained new momentum. Our research contributes to the growing experimental literature focusing on these phenomena. Unlike most previous empirical investigations, the present study does not examine "large scale" discrimination against Muslim minorities in situations which occur only periodically throughout an individual's life (e.g., on the rental-, labor-, or partner market); rather, it sheds light on (minor) discrimination events that occur on a day-to-day basis. Such "everyday discrimination" has been shown to be particularly detrimental to physical and psychological health. Specifically, our research examines the effect of open displays of religious identification--wearing a Muslim headscarf--on everyday discrimination against female Muslims. We report the results of two natural field experiments in Switzerland designed to examine such forms of day-to-day discrimination. Study 1 focuses on differential sanctioning, whereas study 2 investigates differences regarding helping behavior. We found pronounced discrimination against women wearing a headscarf in two distinctly different types of everyday interactions. In both scenarios, headscarf-wearing confederates were treated less favorably than bare-headed ones: they were sanctioned more often for violating the "stand right, walk left"-norm on escalators and received less help when asking for a favor (borrowing a mobile phone for an urgent call). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 'reactive transnationalism hypothesis' posits a relationship between discrimination and transnational practice. The concept has generally been studied using quantitative methods, but a qualitative approach augments our understanding of two context‐specific dimensions: the nature of the discrimination involved, and the types of transnational behaviour that might be affected. Drawing on in‐depth interviews with Bangladesh‐origin Muslims in London, Luton and Birmingham, in the UK, we demonstrate how anti‐Asian and anti‐Muslim racism have been conflated with intensified anti‐migrant racism in the context of 'hostile environment' immigration policies and the EU referendum (Brexit), producing an amplification of racist discourses associated with purging the body politic of its non‐white bodies. The insecurity generated is altering some people's relationships to Bangladesh, incentivizing investment in land and property 'back home'. While this represents an example of 'reactive transnationalism', we argue that 'protective transnationalism' might be a more appropriate way of describing the processes at work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Muslim communities have frequently been the victim of vilification and discrimination in Australia and the broader Asian region. This article discusses and compares the narratives around Muslim vilification in Australia and Sri Lanka. Despite the fact that these two nations are vastly different in size, demographics and cultural history, I will argue that there are remarkable similarities in how Muslims are subject to attack in both nations. The hate speech occasioned against Muslims in Sri Lanka and Australia is shaped by almost identical narrative structures and is cultivated in similar online environments. In both cases, anti‐Muslim animus is fuelled by a fear of displacement and perceived contamination of what nativists regard as ethnically sovereign territory. I will argue that the underlying sub‐text in both cases is owed to a repulsion to the physical presence of Muslims which can be understood in terms of Mary Douglas' concept of the moral pollutant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a heightened interest concerning the understanding of prejudice toward Muslims in Europe, steadily increasing since 2001. This study aimed at investigating whether the phenomenon of Islamophobia could have two different manifestations (i.e., Islamoprejudice and Secular Critique of Islam). In particular, we assessed whether two social attitudes, Right‐Wing Authoritarianism (RWA, i.e., authoritarian aggression, and conservatism) and Social Dominance Orientation (SDO), could predict differently the two dimensions. Moreover, we wanted to investigate the different influence of the two dimensions in relation to the perceived threat from terrorism. A sample of 366 Italian adults participated in the study completing a self‐report questionnaire. Data were analyzed by means of a structural equation model. Results showed that RWA and SDO were differently related to Islamoprejudice and Secular Critique of Islam, suggesting that certain forms of critique of Islam should not be associated with individual prejudice, because motivated only by secular, democratic, and universalistic convictions, denoting the traces of cultural biases. However, the nonprejudicial and apparently less problematic dimension of Islamophobia, that is, Secular Critique, does not preserve people from perceiving the threat from terrorism, in the same way as Islamoprejudice. Implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Policy Studies Journal is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The UK has emerged as an influential global player in developing policy to counter violent extremism, and therefore it is important to consider the emerging evidence about the impact of this policy in education. The Prevent duty came into force in the UK in 2015, placing a legal responsibility on schools and teachers to implement anti‐terrorist legislation and prevent young people from being drawn into extremism or radicalisation. This article reviews all of the material based on empirical studies in England involving school teachers and students published between 2015 (when the duty was introduced) and the beginning of 2019 (27 articles and reports in total), to consider the impact of the policy on schools. The key themes emerging from our analysis of this evidence base are related to (1) the ways the policy is interpreted within Islamophobic discourses, (2) the emergence of Britishness as a key feature of fundamental British values and (3) the implications of framing Prevent as a safeguarding issue. We argue that the evidence gives support to those who have been critical of the Prevent duty in schools, and that it seems to be generating a number of unintended and negative side‐effects. However, the evidence also illustrates how teachers have agency in relation to the policy, and may thus be able to enact the policy in ways which reduce some of the most harmful effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite increasing anti‐Muslim sentiments, the implications of religious discrimination for Muslim‐American adolescents' well‐being remain understudied. Drawing on the rejection identification and disidentification models, we examined the mediating role of multiple group identities (i.e., religious and national) in the cross‐sectional associations between individual‐level religious discrimination and internalizing and externalizing problems among 13‐ to 18‐year‐old (M = 16.7 years, SD = 1.6) Muslim‐American adolescents with immigrant backgrounds. Moreover, building on the attributional ambiguity perspective, we examined the moderating role of group‐level religious discrimination in the form of Islamophobia. Religious identity did not mediate the relations between individual‐level discrimination and internalizing and externalizing problems, and these relations did not depend on youths' perceptions of Islamophobia. However, individual‐level discrimination was associated with American identity, depending on perceptions of Islamophobia. In turn, adolescents' Muslim and American identities were linked to less internalizing and externalizing problems. Implications of our findings for the development of programs and policies are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children's literature text sets can be powerful tools for teaching students about diversity and literacy, engaging students in authentic purposes for literacy practices while exploring complex issues such as Islamophobia. The authors discuss how an intermediate public school teacher integrated a children's literature text set project exploring Muslim characters and communities to foster students' critical thinking, deepen their comprehension, and develop their empathy. Discussion of the texts and multimodal responses inspired students to engage in further inquiry, reflect on stereotypes, and implement a social action project: a pen pal exchange with students in Bangladesh, a Muslim country. This unit provided a safe space for students to explore a complex issue while developing critical literacy skills. As students better understand and learn to empathize with diverse others through text, they realize that people share more similarities than differences, decreasing the potential for Islamophobia in classrooms and society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This mixed methods exploratory study illustrates the influence of pervasive misconceptions about Islam on the experiences of 314 adult Muslims across the United States. Quantitative results suggest that Muslim stress levels are comparable to the stress levels of other marginalized groups in the United States. Qualitative analysis revealed four themes that highlight the challenges faced by Muslims as well as their resiliency in the face of microaggressions and marginalization. Family therapists may utilize these personal accounts to expand their understanding of Muslim experiences, and to reflect on their own implicit biases toward Muslims in order to reduce chances of premature termination. Clinical implications include using resiliency-based models and creating collaborative partnerships with community leaders when working with this religious minority group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research demonstrates a common psychology of outgroup hostility driven by perceived intergroup threat among three groups and seven cultural contexts: non-Muslim Westerners, Muslims in Western societies, and Muslims in the Middle East. In Study 1, symbolic, but not realistic and terroristic threats, predicted non-Muslim Norwegians' intentions to join anti-Islamic movements. In Study 2, symbolic and realistic, but not terroristic threat, predicted non-Muslim Americans' willingness to persecute Muslims. In Studies 3 and 4, symbolic threat predicted support and behavioral intentions against the West among Swedish and Turkish Muslims. Finally, in Study 5, a comparison demonstrated that symbolic and realistic threats had the same effects on violent intentions among non-Muslim and Muslim Danes, and Muslims in Afghanistan. Meta-analysis showed that symbolic threat was most strongly associated with intergroup hostility. Across studies, participants with high religious group identification experienced higher levels of threat. Implications for intergroup research and prejudice reduction are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blatant dehumanization has recently been demonstrated to predict negative outgroup attitudes and behaviors. Here, we examined blatant dehumanization of Muslim refugees during the 'Refugee Crisis' among large samples in four European countries: the Czech Republic (N = 1307), Hungary (N = 502), Spain (N = 1049), and Greece (N = 934). Our results suggest that blatant dehumanization of Muslim refugees is (a) prevalent among Europeans, and (b) uniquely associated with anti-refugee attitudes and behavior, beyond political ideology, prejudice, and--of particular relevance to the refugee crisis--empathy. We also find that blatant dehumanization of Muslim refugees is significantly higher and more strongly associated with intergroup behavior in the Eastern European countries (especially the Czech Republic) than in Spain and Greece. Examining a range of outgroup targets beyond refugees, our results further illustrate that blatant dehumanization is not purely an ethnocentric bias: while individuals across contexts feel warmer towards their group than all others, they rate several high-status outgroups as equally or more fully 'evolved and civilized' than the ingroup. Our research extends theoretical understanding of blatant dehumanization, and suggests that blatant dehumanization plays an important and independent role in the rejection of Muslim refugees throughout Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used an identities approach to examine voting intentions in the June 2016 UK referendum on membership of the European Union ( EU). In April 2016, 303 British adults (58.7% women, age M = 34.73) indicated their voting intentions for the referendum and completed measures of identification with the national in-group, perceived threat from Muslim immigrants, belief in Islamophobic conspiracy narratives, Islamophobia, general conspiracist beliefs, ambiguity tolerance, and belief in a clash of civilizations. Path and mediation analyses indicated that greater belief in Islamophobic conspiracy theories mediated the link between Islamophobia and intention to vote to leave. Islamophobia and Islamophobic conspiracist beliefs also mediated the effects of perceived threat from Muslims on voting intentions. Other variables acted as antecedents of perceived threat or Islamophobic conspiracy narratives. These findings highlight the role that identity-based cognitions may have played in shaping voting intentions for the UK EU referendum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Review of Sociology is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In this article we address the affective dimensions and challenges of teaching about Islam and Islamic studies in the current American political and cultural environment and make two related arguments. First, we explain how the impact of certain kinds of digital media in the past few years has heightened the association of Islam with violence in the minds of many Americans, leading to a classroom affective environment characterized by the 'posttraumatic' experience of knowledge about Islam. Second, we argue that the pedagogical use of digital media as a tool for ethnographic and empathic engagement with individual Muslim lives can help meet this particular teaching challenge. We show how the pedagogical employment of digital ethnography can turn the affective power of digital media into a positive learning tool, and model its responsible social and intellectual use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]