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Islamophobia
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At a glance
Source-by-source
“Prejudice, negative sentiments, and hostility toward Islam and Muslims. Islamophobia may be based on ideas about Islam as a religion and on ideas about Muslims as a cultural and ethnic group. Islamophobic ideas portray Islam and Muslims as a threat to non-Muslims. …”
APA is the source that endorses "Islamophobia" without RET's structural reservation — plain "use," anchored in a specific scholarly citation (Berntzen & Rambøl). Its definition also names the mechanism the others leave out: Islamophobic ideas construct Islam and Muslims as a threat to non-Muslims, and the prejudice attaches both to the religion and to Muslims as a cultural and ethnic group, which is why it shades into racism rather than staying purely religious.
“Note that although Islamophobia is in common usage, the -phobia suffix tends to suggest individual bigotry to the exclusion of systemic and structural forces. The form anti-Muslim is generally preferred.”
Racial Equity Tools, drawing on Political Research Associates, defines Islamophobia as religious bigotry with strong racial components that scapegoats Muslims and those perceived to be Muslim. It adds the key caveat that the -phobia suffix can imply individual bigotry rather than systemic forces, so the form "anti-Muslim" is generally preferred.
“Fear and prejudice against Muslims based on the idea that Islam is inferior and barbaric and cannot adapt to new realities. … Islamophobia existed before Sept. 11, 2001, although attacks on Muslims have grown since then.”
The Diversity Style Guide defines Islamophobia as fear and prejudice against Muslims rooted in the idea that Islam is inferior and unable to adapt, noting it predates September 11, 2001, even as attacks on Muslims grew afterward. It treats the term as usable vocabulary.
Synthesis
“Islamophobia” is usable vocabulary, but one source prefers “anti-Muslim.” APA and the Diversity Style Guide both define Islamophobia as prejudice, fear, and hostility toward Islam and Muslims, with DSG noting it predates September 11, 2001, even as attacks grew afterward. Racial Equity Tools, drawing on Political Research Associates, adds the caveat: because the “-phobia” suffix “tends to suggest individual bigotry to the exclusion of systemic and structural forces,” the form “anti-Muslim is generally preferred” when the point is the structure rather than a personal fear.
That is the practical takeaway. “Islamophobia” is in common usage and well understood; “anti-Muslim” is the more precise choice when naming policy, institutions, or systemic bias rather than individual prejudice. The two are not in conflict, just calibrated to different points. Islamophobia parallels antisemitism — Racial Equity Tools treats them as entangled prejudices rooted in the same systems — and it is the prejudice that targets the identity covered on the Muslim page.
Audience notes
- Journalists and editors. “Islamophobia” is fine for general use. Reach for “anti-Muslim” when you mean systemic or institutional bias — policy, surveillance, hiring — rather than an individual’s fear or hatred.
- Advocates and internal comms. The “-phobia” framing can read as a personal pathology; “anti-Muslim bias” or “anti-Muslim racism” keeps the focus on structures and choices.
Related terms