Islamophobia in America The Anatomy of Intolerance

Islamophobia is the name given to the virulent anti-Islamic prejudice that has been hyped by the news media and seized upon by cynical politicians. Five essays by six specialists on Islam in America provide important insights into Islamophobia as a conflict over American identity during a time of crisis. The authors clarify the way that differences of religion, race, and gender have been used to portray Muslims as threatening "out-groups," just as other minorities (Catholics, Jews, blacks) have been attacked in the past. The result is a valuable and thought-provoking analysis of the tactics for denying full citizenship to a minority religious group.

Carl W. Ernst is William R. Kenan, Jr., Distinguished Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA.

Introduction: The Problem of Islamophobia; Carl W. Ernst
1. Common Heritage, Uncommon Fear: Islamophobia in the United States and British India, 1687-1947; Peter Gottschalk and Gabriel Greenberg
2. Islamophobia and American History: Religious Stereotyping and Out-grouping of Muslims in the United States; Kambiz GhaneaBassiri
3. The Black Muslim Scare of the Twentieth Century: The History of State Islamophobia and Its Post-9/11 Variations; Edward E. Curtis
4. Center Stage: Gendered Islamophobia and Muslim Women; Juliane Hammer
5. Attack of the Islamophobes: Religious War (and Peace) in Arab/Muslim Detroit; Andrew J. Shryock