RELS 244 Islamophobia

This class explores the Islamophobic ramifications of racialized Islam and Muslim identities. We will consider “blackness,” “brownness,” and “whiteness” as experienced through Muslim life, as well as how minoritized race and religion combine in ways that lead to fear, opposition, and violence.  We will study Islamophobia through a number of American and Global cases, including the issue of iconoclasm (such as the Danish cartoon controversy), the racial and religious coding of various groups (such as Sikhs or Iranians in North America), perceptions of different sects of Islam (including Nation of Islam or the Ahmadiyya), and the political ramifications of these identities (such as recent US elections and the 2020 census). In addition to traditional readings, course materials will include a variety of media, such as longform journalism, memoirs, ethnography, music, and film.