ISLAMOPHOBIA IN THE POST-9/11 UNITED STATES: CAUSES, MANIFESTATIONS, AND SOLUTIONS by ANDREA ELIZABETH CLUCK (Under the Direction of Alan Godlas) ABSTRACT For the well-being of all Americans, it is necessary to understand and ameliorate the resurgence of Islamophobia in the post-9/11 USA. Many relevant works have been published since 2001; these can be organized according to whether they represent open or closed-view scholarship. Few seek, however, to comprehensively decipher the mechanisms and themes underlying Islamophobia. When these issues are explored, American Islamophobia emerges as a distinct, contemporary phenomenon with deep historical roots, driven by "othering" and exploited for personal gain. It becomes manifest in society in various ways, especially in polemical discourse. In order to better understand (and address) such polemics, we have focused on five themes within Islamophobic discourse: violence, relations with Judaism and Christianity, democracy, modernity, and misogyny. Finally, in order to mitigate Islamophobia, it is suggested here to further develop Christian-Muslim interfaith dialogue by including in it affective, behavioral, and cognitive methodological components. INDEX WORDS: Islamophobia, anti-Islamic sentiment, stereotypes, discrimination, racism, American Muslims, Islam in America, September 11, othering, polemics, clash of civilizations, clash theory, Bernard Lewis, Daniel Pipes, Robert Spencer, Christoph Luxemborg, Orientalism, Edward Said, houris, ḥūr al-`ayn, interfaith dialogue, religiology, religiological analysis, emotional intelligence, Emotion-Focused Therapy, Christian-Muslim relations ISLAMOPHOBIA IN THE POST-9/11 UNITED STATES: CAUSES, MANIFESTATIONS, AND SOLUTIONS by ANDREA ELIZABETH CLUCK BA, Truman State University, 2008 A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree MASTER OF ARTS ATHENS, GEORGIA 2012 © 2012 Andrea Elizabeth Cluck All Rights Reserved ISLAMOPHOBIA IN THE POST-9/11 UNITED STATES: CAUSES, MANIFESTATIONS, AND SOLUTIONS by ANDREA ELIZABETH CLUCK Major Professor: Alan Godlas Committee: Alan Godlas Kenneth Honerkamp Carolyn Jones-Medine Electronic Version Approved: Maureen Grasso Dean of the Graduate School The University of Georgia August 2012 iv DEDICATION ﺑﺴﻢ اﷲ اﻟﺮﺣﻤﻦ اﻟﺮﺣﻴﻢ O mankind! Indeed, We created you from a male and female, and We made you into nations and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of God is the most righteous of you. Indeed, God is All-Knowing, All-Aware. (Qur'an 49:13) v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the family, friends, and colleagues who have supported me throughout my education. I am particularly grateful to my advisory committee members and fellow students at the University of Georgia for generously sharing their time, expertise, and empathy. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…………………………………………………………….………....v LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………………………………………...viii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………………...1 2 LITERATURE REVIEW: OPEN AND CLOSED-VIEW PERSPECTIVES ON ISLAMOPHOBIA………………………………………………………………….…………5 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………..5 Open-View Perspectives…………………………………………………………………..7 Closed-View Perspectives….…………………………………………………………….26 Conclusion: Points of Consensus and Controversy………….………………...…….…..30 3 UNDERSTANDING CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN ISLAMOPHOBIA: CAUSES AND MANIFESTATIONS……………………………………………...…….…….……….32 Introduction……………………………………………………...…………….…………32 Historical Factors………………………………………………………………………...36 The Psychology of Contemporary Islamophobia………………………….….………....57 Contemporary Societal Factors: Power……...…………………….……...……………..60 The Contemporary Islamophobic Mindset……….…………………………...…………63 Contemporary Manifestations of American Islamophobia………………...…………….66 Dangers of Islamophobia……………….………………………….………………….....69 Conclusion………………………………………………………….…………….……...70 4 VIOLENT DISCOURSE: THEMES IN ISLAMOPHOBIC POLEMICS……….…...……73 Introduction…………………………………………………...…………………….……73 Theme One: Muslims Are Violent……………………………………………………….73 vii Theme Two: Muslims Hate Jews and Christians……………………………………...…78 Theme Three: Muslims Are Anti-Democracy……………………………………….…...81 Theme Four: Muslims Are Anti-Modernity…………………………………………..….84 Theme Five: Muslims Are Misogynistic…………………………………………….…...90 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………….....97 5 COUNTERING ISLAMOPHOBIA: A MULTI-FACETED APPROACH TO INTERFAITH DIALOGUE……………………………………………………………...99 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………99 Part One: The Behavioral Dimension…………………………………………………..101 Part Two: The Cognitive Dimension…………………………………………………...129 Part Three: The Affective Dimension…………………………………………………..147 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………...163 6 CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY..…………………166 REFERENCES……………………………………………………………………………….…170 APPENDICES...……………………………………………………………………...…………177 A SAMPLE CHRISTIANITY RELIGIOLOGY CHART……….…….………………….177 B SAMPLE ISLAM RELIGIOLOGY CHART……………………….……….……...….180 viii LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1: The Greek Slave…………………………………………………………………………..72 Figure 2: "Harem"……………………………………………………………..………………….98 Figure 3: "Husband-Wife Imagined Role Reversal"……………………………………………...98 1 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Although fear and hatred of Muslims is as old as Islam itself, the term “Islamophobia” is a relatively recent neologism that is used to “draw attention to a normalized prejudice and unjustified discrimination against Muslims."1 The term has been popularized because of the resurgence in the post-Cold War and post-9/11 United States of the phenomenon it describes.2 According to the 1997 report by the Runnymede Trust’s Commission on British Muslims and Islamophobia, hereafter referred to as the Runnymede Trust report, Islamophobia includes discrimination against Muslims in employment practices, the provision of health care and education; exclusion of Muslims from government, politics, and employment (including management and positions of responsibility); violence toward Muslims including physical assaults, verbal abuse and vandalizing of property; and prejudice against Muslims in the media and in “everyday conversation."3 Although the term “Islamophobia” has gained a considerable 1 Peter Gottschalk and Gabriel Greenberg, Islamophobia: Making Muslims the Enemy (Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2008), 11; some disagreement exists among scholars as to when the term actually originated. Although popularized by the 1997 Runnymede Trust Report, the term has been in existence at least since 1922, when it appeared in an article by French Orientalist Étienne Dinet. However, Dinet uses it to refer to Muslims fearing Islam. The Oxford English Dictionary (online version, June 2012) traces the term back as far as a 1976 issue of the International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies. It also catalogues another early use in 1985 by Edward Said in a Cultural Critique article. See Jocelyne Cesari, “Islamophobia in the West: A Comparison between Europe and the United States,” in Islamophobia: The Challenge of Pluralism in the 21st Century, ed. John L. Esposito and Ibrahim Kalin (New York: Oxford University Press, 2010), 21; Étienne Dinet, “L’Orient vu de l’Occident,” Journal of the Royal African Society 21, no. 84 (July 1922), 347-48. 2 The Runnymede Trust Commission on British Muslims and Islamophobia, Islamophobia: A Challenge For Us All (Great Britain: 1997), 11. Note: the report is now out of print but can be downloaded from the Runnymede Trust website: http://www.runnymedetrust.org/publications/ currentPublications.html#islamophobia (accessed July 21, 2012). 3 Ibid. Islamophobes are often indiscriminate in including all Arabs and often South Asians within their stereotype of the “Muslim other," regardless of the targeted individuals’ religious affiliations. However, the present work will focus, for the most part, on Muslims themselves. 2 degree of acceptance, the notion that an unjustified fear of Muslims exists is not without controversy, as will be seen in the subsequent discussion of closed-views of Islam. Regardless of one’s feelings toward Islam, Muslims, and the term Islamophobia itself, anti-Muslim sentiment is an important issue for Americans to address, for reasons outlined by professor of religion Peter Gottschalk and his former student Gabriel Greenberg in Islamophobia: Making Muslims the New Enemy. First, the American Muslim population often is increasingly "the target of hate crimes and discrimination;" this violation of the civil rights of American citizens must be addressed. Second, the lack of differentiation between moderate and extremist Muslims is symptomatic of a broader danger not only to Muslims, but also to American society in general. Painting Muslims in broad strokes leaves Americans less equipped to identify and counter the actual threats which do exist. Third, foreign Muslim populations feel increasingly threatened by American foreign policy and expanding global interests. Although the vast majority of these Muslims would not retaliate against civilians via violent means, a small number would justify doing so. Thus, a fourth reason why Americans need to address anti-Muslim sentiment is that Americans must develop a more nuanced understanding of Islam. Accurately understanding Islam and the Muslim world will enable Americans to identify and react to to real threats appropriately and not waste time and energy on scapegoating. Lastly, Islamophobia is a self- fulfilling