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How American Politics have been Affecting Islamophobia

The recent years have been marked by widespread hatred directed at the Muslim

community in various western countries, including the United States. The framing of Muslims as

irrational, dissenting, and security threats to the west has led to the enactment of strict laws and

policies targeting them. Multiple studies have established that the rising Islamophobia is an

outcome of historical experiences, heightened by the political interests of some individuals and

organizations (Clemons 472). After the September 11 terrorist attacks, the United States

witnessed a surge in anti-Islamic preconceptions, as was shown in adopting special policies to

inhibit terrorist acts done by Muslim extremists (Hobbs and Nazita 271). Discussions of fake

news are common over the media. Yet, most of those in power, together with a large section of

the public, are not keen on facts that can determine how to approach various public policy issues

(Sediqe 674). Counterterrorism is one area that has been affected by policies made without

considering science and proper facts. Consequently, the policies meant to curb terrorism have

contributed to the discrimination of Muslim Americans. Through careless statements, political

protests, counterterrorism measures, and immigration ban policies, American politics has played

a role in advancing Islamophobia.

Statements made by American politicians influence Islamophobia by advancing the

negative portrayal of Muslims in media, affecting the way they live in American society. The

impact has been more visible under the Trump administration. Two years into his presidency,
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Trump made public statements and actions that greatly impacted Muslims’ lives (Lajevardi and

Kassra 112). For instance, he falsely stated that Muslims in New Jersey celebrated the September

11 attacks on New York’s twin towers. Under his administration, several policies were adopted

to prevent some Muslims from entering the United States completely. He also boasted about a

plan to implement a database to track Muslims. While some experts argue that some of the

President’s utterances were an act of expressing his freedom of speech, it concerns when the

head makes such states of state (Lajevardi and Kassra 126). President Trump’s statements are

proof of the longstanding stereotype centered on the notion that American Muslims cannot be

loyal to the US because their religion pits them against the United States. Consequently, they are

expected to prove their loyalty continually.

Another way in which American politics advance Islamophobia is through

counterterrorism policies and actions. According to Clemons et al. (472), the counterterrorism

objective remains a top priority for American law enforcement agencies. Although some terrorist

attacks have happened in recent years, the lack of attacks equitable to the scale of September 11

indicates that some of the complex intelligence gathering and law enforcement efforts have

disrupted terrorism. However, the policies and measures implemented as part of a

counterterrorism strategy sometimes result in unnecessary Islamophobic discrimination. Several

studies back the conclusion that Muslims should not be the primary focus of counterterrorism

efforts (Calfano et al. 479). The Muslim community has effective safeguards such as mosques

and community centers that allow Muslim leaders to engage with the people to prevent

radicalization. Yet despite the clarity, American politicians have continued to enact policies and

measures that reflect a prejudiced belief that a heightened level of Islamic religious devotion is

an indicator of inclination for one to become a terrorist.

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Still, over the recent years, a section of right-wing political activists has been advancing

the notion that Sharia law would somehow increase its influence and ultimately replace the

Constitution as the central legal framework. The fear-spreading protests have received backing

from some political campaigns aimed at increasing turnout in elections and force some issues

such as Sharia law into local legislative debates across the country (Sediqe 675). For instance,

the 2010 “Save Our State Amendment” campaign in Oklahoma was meant to inhibit the state

judiciary from considering international law and Sharia law. The proposal received backing from

70 percent of the state’s voters (Hobbs and Nazita 274). While implementation of the ban was

halted by a court injunction based on the constitutional provision for the protection of religious

rights, other states such as Louisiana, Arizona, and Tennessee managed to adopt the ban.

American politics advance Islamophobia through policies that criminalize Muslim

identity Symbols such as the hijab for Muslim women and beard among Muslim men. Hijab is a

Muslim marker that shows a religious affiliation and cultural aspect for people originating from

predominantly Muslim countries (Dana et al. 1). Nonetheless, after the September 11 attacks,

counterterrorism responses have heightened systemic racism against Muslim Americans, and

external identifiers of dress, accent, and skin color serve as heuristics for a religion depicted as a

threat to American culture national security. Anecdotal evidence indicates that Muslim women

who wear hijab are more likely to experience Islamophobia stigmatization since the hijab depicts

one of the dominant markers of belonging to the Islam religion (Dana et al. 3; Saleem et al. 221).

Incidences of anti-Muslim harassment and bullying have become so rampant that some Muslim

women have considered altering their dress code in a desperate attempt to stay safe. Some

Muslim clerics have been forced to issue a “fatwa” allowing women to stop wearing the hijab as

it subjects those who wear the headscarf to danger. Most of the perpetrators have been
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committing the Islamophobia-inspired attacks by invoking President Trump’s name (Dana et al.

14). Perhaps the perpetrators are inspired by Trump’s stringent policies that banned Muslim

entry into the US. On numerous occasions, some American politicians have likened Islam to

disease. For instance, in 2020, Trump’s national security adviser compared Islam with

“malignant cancer,” thereby warranting tough policies and measures as a way of safeguard the

US from terrorist attacks.

Other than American politicians and political protest groups' direct statements, the

immigration policies also contribute to Islamophobia. While immigration has been an issue faced

by American administrations since the September 11 attacks, the topic became more

controversial under Trump rule. Although President Trump’s initial attention was on the

immigrants from South America, over the course of his campaign and administration, the issue

became framed primarily on an anti-Muslim stance (Calfano et al. 483). The significance of

immigration as an agenda item and its framing as the main focus on Muslims can explain why

the introduction of the executive order banned the entry of Muslims from certain countries. The

ban was received by Trump supporters who viewed it as a cue to signify a new approach towards

addressing the issue of Muslim presence in the US (Saleem et al. 217). The ban was framed in

Islamophobic terms, where Muslims are viewed as a threat to national security. The immigration

ban is also the reason, Islamophobic attacks and harassment incidences increased between 2016

and 2020.

Overall, Islamophobia is a complex issue. Statements made by American politicians

influence Islamophobia by advancing Muslims' negative portrayal as a threat to national security.

Counterterrorism policies and measures also advance the phenomenon through profiling

Muslims as the likely primary perpetrators of terrorism acts. At the same time, policies that
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criminalize Muslim identifiers such as the Hijab not only advance Islamophobia but also

contribute to anti-Muslim attacks and harassment. Immigration policies targeting people from

predominantly Muslim countries also advance Islamophobia by sending a signal that Muslims

are not allowed into the US. The immigration ban policies are based on Islamophobia framing.

Even though changing culture and attitude may take a long time, most of the aspects related to

Islamophobia can be tackled through policy changes.

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Works Cited

Calfano, Brian Robert et al. “Trumped up challenges: limitations, opportunities, and the future of

political research on Muslim Americans.” Politics, Groups, and Identities 7.2 (2019):

477-487. https://doi.org/10.1080/21565503.2017.1386573

Clemons, Randy S., et al. “The narrative policy framework and sticky beliefs: an experiment

studying islamophobia.” international journal on minority and group rights 27.3 (2020):

472-500. https://doi.org/10.1163/15718115-02702002

Dana, Karam, et al. “Veiled Politics: Experiences with Discrimination among Muslim

Americans.” Politics & Religion 12.4 (2019), pp. 629 - 677.

https://doi.org/10.1017/S1755048318000287

Hobbs, William, and Nazita Lajevardi. “Effects of divisive political campaigns on the day-to-day

segregation of arab and muslim Americans.” American Political Science Review 113.1

(2019): 270-276. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0003055418000801

Lajevardi, Nazita, and Kassra AR Oskooii. “Old-fashioned racism, contemporary islamophobia,

and the isolation of Muslim Americans in the age of Trump.” Journal of Race, Ethnicity

and Politics 3.1 (2018): 112-152. https://doi.org/10.1017/rep.2017.37

Saleem, Muniba, et al. “Social identity threats: How media and discrimination affect Muslim

Americans’ identification as Americans and trust in the US government.” Journal of

Communication 69.2 (2019): 214-236. https://doi.org/10.1093/joc/jqz001

Sediqe, Nura A. “Stigma Consciousness and American Identity: The Case of Muslims in the

United States.” PS: Political Science & Politics 53.4 (2020): 674-678.

https://doi.org/10.1017/S104909652000075X
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