Islamaphobia is Racism: A Resource for Teaching & Learning About Anti-Muslim Racism in The United States

Spreading the word about this very important resource: The Islamaphobia is Racism Syllabus.

“Inspired by the #FergusonSyllabus, the #StandingRockSyllabus, the#BlackIslamSyllabus and others, this reading list provides resources for teaching and learning about anti-Muslim racism in the United States. Although “Islamophobia” is the term most recognizable in public discourse, it does not accurately convey the making of racial and religious “others” that fuels the forms of discrimination Muslims face in the United States.

The term Islamophobia frames these forms of discrimination and their roots solely as a problem of religious discrimination. Calling this a “phobia” suggests that this discrimination is solely a problem of individual bias, which obscures the structural and systemic production of anti-Muslim racism….

…By focusing on understanding Islamophobia as anti-Muslim racism, this syllabus challenges the idea that the problem is one of individual bias and that simply knowing more about Islam will necessarily lead to a decrease in anti-Muslim racism.

Instead, it suggests that learning more about how structures of violence, inequality, and war have produced anti-Muslim racism and discrimination and its wide-ranging impact on everyday life is essential in order to challenge its assumptions, logics, and practices. While the readings include pieces that address recent events like the 2017 “Muslim ban” executive order, they also show that similar policies extend to both earlier moments and other communities.

This is an interdisciplinary syllabus with social justice education as its objective. It is not meant to be an exhaustive or comprehensive list of resources or readings, but instead provides one possible curated list of teachable texts and materials that provide a good introduction to each section.”

Ubuntu,

From Aspiring Humanitarian, Relando Thompkins-Jones