Islam and Muslim Contact Unit

The term Islamophobia was first use in print in 1991 and was defined in the Runnymede Trust Report as unfounded hostility towards Islam, and and then misgiving or dislike of either or most Muslims. The word has been coined because there is a sore reality which needs naming anti-Muslim prejudice has grown so recollectably and so rapidly in recent years that a new item in the vocabulary is needed so that it stinkpot be identified and acted against. (Sajid 2005) The term Islamophobia was coined by way of analogy to xenophobia, which is a dislike or fear of people from other countries or of that which is perceived to be foreign or strange.Some definitions suggest xenophobia as arising from unreason or unreason this can also be said for islamophobia. Islamophobia can be characterized by the sentiment that all or most Muslims ar religious fanatics, have violent tendencies towards non- Muslims, and reject concepts such as equality, tolerance, and democracy. It is a new form of r acism where Muslims, an ethno-religious group, atomic number 18 constructed as a race. A set of prejudicial assumptions are made of the entire group to the detriment of members of that group.During the 1990s many sociologists and cultural essay writer toronto analysts observed a shift in racist ideas from ones ground on skin color to ones based on notions of cultural superiority and otherness. (Sajid 2005) In Britain and other europiuman or Western countries, Manifestations of anti-muslim hostility has been exemplified in many verbal as well as physical attacks on Muslims in public places and attacks on mosques and desecration of Muslim cemeteries. Before 9/11, in Western countries negative stereotypes and remarks in speeches by political leaders, implying that Muslims are less committed than others to democracy and the rule of law.There was a rise in the number of shun crimes against Muslims in capital of the United Kingdom in 2010, these hate crimes were being encouraged by m ainstream politicians and sections of the media, a study pen by a former Scotland Yard counter-terrorism officer, published January 26, 2010, says that attacks ranging from death threats and murder to persistent low-level assaults, such as spitting and name-calling, are in part whipped up by extremists and sections of mainstream society. Lambert headed Scotland Yards Muslim liaison unit, which helped improve relations between the police and Britains Islamic communities.The study mentions no newspapers or writers by name, just alleges that the book Londonistan, by the Mail writer Melanie Phillips, played a part in triggering hate crimes. Londonistan is a book about the spread ofIslamismin theUnited Kingdomover the past twenty years. When London was hit by suicide bombers in July 2005, the dirty little secret was finally out. Great Britain had been the European hub of Islamist extremism for more(prenominal) than a decade. Under the noses of British intelligence, a network of terro rists and their sympathizers had used Britain to plot, finance, recruit and train for atrocities in the United States and around the world.The scale of this activity was so large that exasperated European security system agencies dubbed Britains capital city Londonistan. (Phillips 2006). In Europe and in America as well, it can be seen in far-flung and routine negative stereotyping in the media and everyday discourse in ways that would not be pleasing if the reference were, for vitrine, to Jewish or black people. (Dodd 2010) Islamophobia is heightened by a number of contextual pointors. One of these is the fact that a high proportion of refugees are Muslims.Demonization of refugees is therefore keep goingly a coded attack on Muslims, for the linguistic process Muslim, asylum-seeker, refugee, and immigrant become synonymous in the popular imagination. In this case, the common experiences of immigrant communities with unemployment, rejection, alienation and violence have combin e with Islamophobia to make integration really difficult. This has led Muslim communities to suffer higher levels of unemployment, poor housing, poor wellness and higher levels of racially motivated violence than other communities. (sajid 2010).For example, in 2003, when the Home Office produced a batting order about alleged deceit and dishonesty amongst people seeking asylum, it chose to illustrate its concerns by focusing on someone with a Muslim name. France has been wracked by tensions over its rapidly growing Muslim minority. Another example of this would France banning the wearing of Islamic veils and other face coverings earlier this year, claiming they were both degrading and a security risk. Belgium has passed similar legislation, and Switzerland banned the building of minarets, the tall spires which often stand next to mosques. Ghazi 2006) A large discharge that fuels the fires in the battle against Islamophobia is the drawing of cartoons offending the Islamic prophet, M uhammad. More particularizedally, this issue began later 12tower cartoons, most of whichdepictedthe IslamicprophetMuhammad, were published in the DanishnewspaperJyllands-Postenon family 30, 2005. These Danish cartoonists targeted Muhammad as a way to attack the Muslims freedom of free speech and religion. In Muslim societies insulting Muhammad is the gravest of all crimes also considered blasphemy and punishable by death.Unfortunately, some events that followed these insults toward Muhammad ended in ninefold deaths. The Organization of the Islamic Conference has denounced calls for the death of the Danish cartoonists. The obvious denial of this request caused attacks on innocents and riots all over Europe. Some acts included bombing of Christians at church, burning of churches, slaughtering innocent children and other civilians, and one specific incident included killing innocent train passengers. Even before the Jyllands-Posten riots, there were plenty of anti-Muslim acts in Eu rope.One of which was the Dutch politician Pim Fortuyns assassination in 2002 for his anti-Islamic views. He called Islam a backward culture and valued to stop Muslim immigration. After his death his party made its de moreover in Parliament with a 17% seat share showing how popular he was at that time. Another example of Europes anti-Muslim views as well as the Islams intolerance for the belittling of their culture is the assassination of Theo wagon train Gogh In 2004. Van Gogh directed a short movie called Submission which time-tested to highlight the role of women in Islam.While the movie came in for a lot of criticism, van Gogh was kill in the same year over the movie. Specifically, the fear of Muslims became more prevalent in the United States after(prenominal) the events that occurred on September 11, 2001. In order to study Muslim Americans framing in the news media after 9/11, it is important to focus on two specific occlusions the first six-month period after the attac ks and the period after the first day of remembrance of September 11. The two periods are very important because the news good example entirely changed during these two episodes.In the first immediate six months after 9/11, the media representation was very positive, comprehensive, frequent and contextual. However, after the first anniversary of 9/11, the media coverage changed. It became very negative, stereotypical and exclusive. By the first anniversary of September 11, the portrayal of Muslim Americans in both print and cable news had completely shifted from the more frequent, positive, contextual,thematic, descriptive and comprehensive coverage to a more frequent, negative, stereotypical,episodicand exclusive coverage.The share of reporting on Muslim Americans declined, hate crimes skyrocketed and the positive public perception of Muslims that was created in the immediate period after 9/11 diminished. Eventually, this negative perception of Muslims manifested itself through a nti-Islamic riots and hatred of Muslim Americans in upcoming years. (Amiri 2012) September 11, 2001, and the days that followed produced strong feelings amongst non-Muslims as well as among Muslims in Europe.When people feel powerless and frustrated they are prone to hit out with violent language You dont belong here, or Get out of my outlandish now England is for white civilized English people are examples of the kind of violent language that was used in e-mail messages to the Muslim Council of Britain immediately following the attacks. These messages are significant, for they expressed attitudes and perceptions that are widespread amongst non-Muslims and that are recurring components of Islamophobia. Allen 2002) While over in the western hemisphere, the American government was trying to ensure the Americans citizens of their safety. In the first few days following 9/11 there were multiple news position questioning citizens, politicians, and government officials of what exactly went on that day. But what most Americans really wanted to make love was whether or not they can be safe knowing that people of the same race and religion as the terrorists were walking the streets.Although there was fear struck into the hearts of American citizens, Americans were too decent to even consider lashing out on Muslim Americans. Not only that but American didnt know even about their culture, religion, or race to hate them to extent that Europeans do. (Schwartz 2010). When it came time to get the point of views from the dollars mouth, Muslim Americans were more frequently covered in the news and more often interviewed as sources than before the events of 9/11.They were given a chance to speak for themselves rather than the commentators talking on their behalf offering their views on certain issues relating to Muslim Americans. (Abid 2011) What changed the American view of Muslims altogether was the start of the wars in Afghanistan. Americans who were considered to be Islamophobes were completely against the idea of thousands of soldiers losing their life trying to fight for a faith that what President Bush calls A religion based on peace, but hijacked by the terrorists. (Bari 2012) But Americans had an odd response to the anti-Muslim controversy they elected a president bearing an Islamic middle name, Barack Hussein Obama. This demonstrated that for their majority, Islamophobia was moot. Too few said so, but Americans seemed to have instinctively grasped certain truths that Islam would not simply go away, they would not change their view, they could not be defeated in a direct confrontation and that moderate Muslims would be valuable allies in defeating radical Islam. (Schwartz 2010)