Islamophobia: its causes & effects 

 
The Holocaust was the deadliest genocide in global history, in which more than 17 million people 

were tortured and killed because of their faith: Judaism. Islamophobia is an exaggerated fear, hatred, 

and hostility towards Islam and Muslims mainly resulting violence. Why are these two global issues 

similar, and how is Islamophobia threatening to have a disastrous epilogue? Turkish president 

,Erdogan, was one of the first politicians to compare these two issues when he proposed that “Just as 

humanity fought against anti-Semitism after the Holocaust disaster, it should fight against rising 

Islamophobia in the same determined fashion”. Islamophobia is rapidly spreading in the entire world, 

however, the situation is getting out of control in the United States. 

Muslims are currently the biggest targets of discrimination in the United States as Islamophobia is 

on the rise ever since the 9/11 terrorist attack in which, around 3000 people died, as stated by CNN.. 

Responsible ones for such a deadly event were members of Al Qaeda, an Islamist terrorist organization​. 

Islamophobia is fed by ignorance, as people are usually misinformed or uneducated on this topic. Yes, 

Al Quaeda terrorists ​were Muslims, and do believe in Islam, however, that does not mean that all 

Muslims are malevolent . 9/11 attack raised the concern about terrorism, and unjustly imposed 

stereotypes upon the entire Muslim population. According to Mic, only 0.00625% of the entire 

Muslim community are part of ISIS. Islam is not Al Qaeda, and Islam is not ISIS. Islam is not a 

religion that promotes violence, torture, terror. To quote Quran, the Islamic sacred book,  cvcc 

“Whoever kills an innocent person it is as if they killed all of humanity”. Misinformation is partially 

caused by wrong portrayal of Muslims in media. A recent study by the University of Alabama indicates 

that terror perpetrated by Muslims receives 357 percent more attention in American media than attacks 

committed by non-Muslims. The study furthermore highlights that, terrorist attacks committed by 

Muslims received 105 headlines in national news outlets, compared with merely 15 headlines covering 
attacks by non-Muslims. These stories often used the words such as "militancy" and "radicalism" to 

depict Muslims in an overtly negative fashion which escalates the anti-Muslim sentiment and fear of 

Islam. Furthermore, media legitimises discriminatory policies by the Trump administration, which is 

yet another cause of Islamophobia in the US. President of the United States, Donald Trump, introduced 

laws that disempower Muslims. For example, in 2017, he signed an executive order that banned 

Muslims for 7 major Islamic countries from entering the United States which is also known as the 

Muslim ban. Authorities supporting Islamophobia are normalizing the discrimination, and bringing it 

closer to other citizens. As a result, people feel that they can rightfully insult, attack and demonize 

Muslims.  

One of the biggest ramifications of Islamophobia are hate crimes. According to the Center for the 

Study of Hate and Extremism, the rate of hate crimes against Muslims in the United States has tripled 

since the end of 2015 . Terrifying hate crimes are manifested in myriads of ways: verbal and psychical 

violence, insults, demonization,vandalization of communities and unfortunately, murders. Muslims are 

exposed to insults and threats, and are on constant alert as they do not feel safe in their country. 

Buzzfeed reports that Haseen Jasim, an ambitious students was nearly killed at her campus, when a man 

tried to run her over yelling “ Terrorist, terrorist!” She states that now, she is terrified to cross the 

street. Not only are Muslims not safe in bigger masses, but also in their homes. Yusor, Razan and Deah 

were students who lived a peaceful life in Chapel Hill. They were celebrating recent engagement in 

their family: eating in a warm atmosphere of their apartment, enjoying traditional meals, and making 

big plans for the future, they heard a knock on the door. On the other side of the door was their 

neighbor. Armed. With a gun in his hand. Driven by hatered towards Muslims, he entered their 

apartment andkilled all three of them. One bullet each. Execution style. So where are they safe? Where 

can they feel like they belong there?  

 Islamophobia is a public health issue, since it is very traumatizing for the victims. According to Smith 

college study, discriminated Muslims have greater stress, strained social relationships and unequal 

access to resources or medical care. Both their mental and psychical health are endangered. 

Islamophobia is implicated with the entire American community. Islamophobia increases fear of being 

discriminated withing other minorities, such as Mexicans and Hispanics If bigotry against Muslims is 

accepted and considered normal, how can they be sure that tomorrow they won’t be the victims of 

discrimination? Furthermore, religious discrimination cancels out one of the fundamental rights of each 

human being: freedom of religion, thus a highly desired pluralistic society can never exist.  

How can you contribute to the combat against Islamophobia? he first step in the long fight against 

Islamophobia is education. You need to familiarize yourselves with Islam and its culture, learn about 

its true values and nature of Muslims. Don’t be afraid of stepping in when you hear your friends, 

family members or even teachers discriminate Muslims: share your knowledge on the topic and help 

them educate themselves as well. You can donate to or join organizations fighting Islamophobia, such 

as CAIR, whose mission is to to enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, 

and empower American Muslims. Moreover, you must bond with Muslims in order to truly understand 

them. Walk up to your Muslim friend who’s sitting alone at lunch and talk to them. Talk to your 

Muslim neighbours. By doing so, you will firstly better understand them, see that not every woman 

wearing a hijab is related to terrorism, but more importantly, you will help them feel like they are a 

part of the community and you will undoubtedly decrease their sentiment of isolation and alienation. As 

Albert Einstein said “Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding.  
 Bibliography:

The impact of Islamophobia on the Muslim American community : accounts of psychological suffering,

identity negotiation, and collective trauma, Smith College study

Mack, David. “36 Anti-Muslim Incidents In The United States In The Last Month.” BuzzFeed News,

BuzzFeed News, 14 Dec. 2015,

www.buzzfeednews.com/article/davidmack/islamophobia-since-paris-attacks​.

Natasha Noman. “In One Quote, the Dalai Lama Just Nailed Something so Many Americans Need to

Hear.” Mic, Mic Network Inc., 16 Sept. 2016,

mic.com/articles/154344/dalai-lama-tells-european-parliament-there-s-no-such-thing-as-a-muslim-terroris

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“Mapping Islamophobia – Visualizing Islamophobia and Its Effects.” ​Mapping Islamophobia​,

mappingislamophobia.org/.

What it's like to be a Muslim in America , TED talk

Islamophobia killed my brother. Let's end the hate, TED talk

Rashid, Qasim. “Show This to Anyone Who Believes the Quran Teaches Violence.” The Independent,

Independent Digital News and Media, 10 Apr. 2017,

www.independent.co.uk/voices/islam-muslim-terrorism-islamist-extremism-quran-teaching-violence-mea

ning-prophet-muhammed-a7676246.html​.

Landau, Sidney I. Cambridge Dictionary of American English. Cambridge University Press, 2000.

“Islamophobia Is a Closed-Minded Hatred, Fear or Prejudice toward Islam and Muslim.” Islamophobia Is

a Closed-Minded Hatred, Fear or Prejudice toward Islam and Muslim, 10 Oct. 2018,

www.islamophobia.org/.