WikiIslam:Sandbox/Islamophobia - essay: Difference between revisions

Islamophobia predated the September 11th terrorist attacks but received little recognition until 2001. Consequentially, media's fixation on Islamic terrorism fortified (intentionally and unintentionally) Western animus towards Muslims. A study conducted in 2008 revealed that around 50% of American Muslims report feeling discriminated against, compared to 31 percent of Mormons and 25 percent of nonreligious people. In Eastern countries, 57% of people perceive the west as intolerant towards its Muslim citizenry. This same document mentions that prejudice is more prominent within less educated circles, and that Republican Party members are more likely to have unfavorable opinions concerning Islam. Nevertheless, American Muslims report higher level of assimilation when compared with Africa, Asia and Europe.  

These studies are not conclusive. One study conducted by the FBI reports that Islamophobia's presence is largely imagined, and that Muslims experience far less hate crime than other prominent minorities. "FBI-tabulated incidents of anti-Islamic hate crime fell from 157 in 2011 to 130 in 2012, a decrease of 17.2 percent. Incidents of hate crime spanning all victim groups dropped by only 6.8 percent, 6,222 to 5,796."