What is “Islamophobia”? The word came into use in the 1980s. The 1997 Runnymede Report entitled “Islamophobia: A Challenge for Us All” defined Islamophobia as “the dread, hatred and hostility towards Islam and Muslims perpetrated by a series of closed views that imply and attribute negative and derogatory stereotypes and beliefs to Muslims.” The report further said that Islamophobia is based on “an outlook or world-view involving an unfounded dread and dislike of Muslims, which results in practices of exclusion and discrimination.”Another major report by the European Monitoring Center on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC) entitled “Summary Report on Islamophobia in the EU after 11 September 2001” documented acts of discrimination and racism against Muslims in 15 EU member countries after Sept. 11. The report concluded that “Islamic communities and other vulnerable groups have become targets of increased hostility since 11 September. A greater sense of fear among the general population has exacerbated already existing prejudices and fuelled acts of aggression and harassment in many European Member States. At the same time, attempts to allay fears sometimes led to a new interest in Islamic culture and to practical inter-faith initiatives.”
In 2007, Louise Arbour, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights at the time and who has now become the president of the International Crisis Group, said that “bigotry and prejudice, especially in regard to Muslims, were common in Europe,” and she “called on governments to tackle the issue.” Basing her remarks on a report by Doudou Diene of Senegal regarding intolerance toward Muslims in Europe, she added that Europeans “are shocked at times when it is pointed out that bigotry, prejudice and stereotyping is still sometimes very present in their attitude toward others.”
There is no doubt that Islamophobia is a major problem facing both Muslim minority communities and Western societies. It is a divisive issue and a breeding ground for mistrust, hatred and extremism. Some in the West tend to ignore it as a form of “Muslim exceptionalism.” But this is the wrong diagnosis. Islamophobia is a real problem lived by real, ordinary people. And it is a form of racism and discrimination. It must be fought to defend the agenda of human rights for all.
Some Western governments and secular groups oppose the UN resolution on the grounds that it singles out a particular religious community rather than defending the rights of all individuals. They also argue that this resolution may be used to curb freedom of expression in Muslim countries. Both criticisms are groundless. Defending the rights of Muslim communities does not contradict defending the rights of other individuals. It is not any different from anti-Semitism. The only difference is that while many countries have adopted anti-Semitism laws, there are no such provisions for Muslim communities that face similar attitudes of discrimination and incitement.
It is rather baffling to see human rights groups criticizing measures to protect the rights of Muslim minorities in majority non-Muslim countries. Islamophobia is clearly a form of racism and discrimination and must be fought against just like any other form of racism. Furthermore, Islamophobia, in whatever form it emerges, creates deep divisions and walls of separation between Muslim and Western societies. Addressing the issue openly and with determination is absolutely necessary to stop the further deterioration of relations between the two communities.
