Racism
Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...
within the
Muslim world
The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is practiced. I ...
is a source of concern, particularly for
Black Muslims and other Muslims of color. Black Muslims throughout the world report that they face racism from other Muslims who are of
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
,
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
,
white
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, or other non-Black background. In countries where white people form the demographic majority, white Muslims may enjoy
certain privileges over their
non-white counterparts, including preferential treatment within the Muslim community. In
Arab countries, racism against Black Muslims and Asian Muslims, especially
South Asian Muslims
Islam is the second-largest religion in South Asia, with more than 600 million Muslims living there, forming about one-third of the region's population. History of Islam in South Asia started along the coastal regions of the Indian subcontinent a ...
, is often ubiquitous. Racist attitudes and oppression perpetrated in the Arab world against Black Muslims is deeply connected to the long legacy of the
Trans-Saharan slave trade
During the Trans-Saharan slave trade, slaves were transported across the Sahara desert. Most were moved from Sub-Saharan Africa to North Africa to be sold to Mediterranean and Middle eastern civilizations; a small percentage went the other ...
, the
Red Sea slave trade, and the
Indian Ocean slave trade.
Issues
In
Western societies
The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania. , both white Muslims and Black Muslims may be used in a
tokenistic way in institutional settings to emphasize the supposed diversity of a Muslim organization. White Muslims may be strategically placed "on the front stage for advertisement purposes". Black Muslims in France report that they are tokenized for diversity purposes in predominantly non-Black Muslim spaces that do not truly value or include Black Muslim voices.
Slavery
By country
Australia
White
converts to Islam may enjoy white privileges that Muslims of color do not enjoy in Australia. White Muslims may be perceived as non-white if they are visibly Muslim, such as by wearing a
hijab
In modern usage, hijab ( ar, حجاب, translit=ḥijāb, ) generally refers to headcoverings worn by Muslim women. Many Muslims believe it is obligatory for every female Muslim who has reached the age of puberty to wear a head covering. While ...
, but many white privileges would return if the white Muslim were to dress in a less visibly
Islamic fashion
Islamic fashion as a phenomenon stemmed from the combination of a set of Islamic practices (in which the need to cover a specific set of body parts is present) and of the rising need and desire to include these specific clothing items in a broade ...
. A white hijabi may receive less white privilege than a white non-hijabi due to the fact that Muslim identity is often racialized within Australian society.
Non-Black and white Muslims in Australia may use the N-word or other racial slurs, believing that because Australian Muslims are mostly brown and because Islam is a racialized religion, that the words are not offensive coming from Muslims.
According to Australian Muslim journalist Zahra Al-Hilaly, Black Muslims face racism that non-Black Muslims do not experience. She has written that she has racial privilege as a non-Black Arab Muslim and that "White Muslims are often praised and feted, but black Muslims do not receive the same reception, leadership roles or attention in the Muslim community."
Canada
Muslim Link, an online hub for
Canadian Muslims, has posted the Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative's "Anti-Racism Guide for White Muslims". The Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative is a US-based racial justice education organization with members in the US and Canada. While white Muslims experience
Islamophobia
Islamophobia is the fear of, hatred of, or prejudice against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general, especially when seen as a geopolitical force or a source of terrorism.
The scope and precise definition of the term ''Islamophobia'' ...
in Canada, they may also benefit from white privilege in ways that Canadian Muslims of color do not experience. Some white Muslims may believe that because they are Muslim they are therefore incapable of being racist. According to Muslim Link's anti-racism guide, white Muslims "have been socialized as white people, with messages from our families, teachers, media and society about whiteness under an umbrella of
white supremacy
White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White su ...
, both subtle and overt. We grew up without the lived experience of racism that People of Color have. This has both shaped and limited our understanding of racism."
United Arab Emirates
Black Muslim bloggers have criticized the exclusion of Black Muslims from the Dubai-based Modest Fashion Week.
United Kingdom
According to Dr. Amena Amer, a British Muslim lecturer, white British Muslims enjoy white privilege not afforded to non-white Muslims. White Muslims' "whiteness offers them an opportunity to distance themselves from extremism, a tactic unavailable to non-white Muslims." White Muslims suspected of involvement in terrorism are sometimes afforded more leniency or understanding than Muslims of South Asian or Middle Eastern heritage.
United States
Black Muslims in the United States experience the same anti-Black racism that other Black Americans face, as well as the same
Islamophobia
Islamophobia is the fear of, hatred of, or prejudice against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general, especially when seen as a geopolitical force or a source of terrorism.
The scope and precise definition of the term ''Islamophobia'' ...
that other Muslim Americans face. Black Muslims also experience racism within predominantly non-Black Muslim communities. Because Muslims are often racialized as Arab or South Asian in American society, Black Muslims are often erased and made invisible. Black Muslims may experience racial discrimination in predominantly non-Black Arab-American and South Asian-American mosques.
St. Louis, Missouri, has a legacy of anti-Black racism within white Muslim communities. While Bosnian Muslims experience a complicated relationship to whiteness, they are considered white by the US Census and may enjoy white privileges that Black residents of St. Louis may not enjoy. In 2014, a Bosniak-American named Zamir Begic was beaten to death with hammers. The murder caused shock in the
Bosnian community of St. Louis and protests were held against violent crime. Because Begic was white and his suspected assailants were Black and Latino, some claimed that the murder of Begic was an example of "black-on-white" crime while others claimed it was a "a targeted attack on Bosnians". While the belief that Begic was targeted due to his ethnicity or race contributed to racial tensions between the Black community and white Muslims of Bosnian descent, St. Louis police did not believe the attack had any ethnic or racial basis.
See also
*
Antisemitism in Islam
*
History of the Jews under Muslim rule
Jewish communities have existed across the Middle East and North Africa since Antiquity. By the time of the Muslim conquests of the 7th century, these ancient communities had been ruled by various empires and included the Babylonian, Persian, C ...
*
History of slavery in the Muslim world
*
Islamic views on slavery
*
Racism in Jewish communities
Racism in Jewish communities is a source of concern for people of color, particularly for Jews of color. Black Jews, Indigenous Jews, and other Jews of color report that they experience racism from white Jews in many countries, including the Unite ...
*
Slavery and religion
Historically, slavery has been regulated, supported, or opposed on religious grounds.
In Judaism, slaves were given a range of treatments and protections. They were to be treated as an extended family with certain protections, and they could be ...
*
Slavery in Africa
Slavery has historically been widespread in Africa. Systems of servitude and slavery were common in parts of Africa in ancient times, as they were in much of the rest of the ancient world. When the trans-Saharan slave trade, Indian Ocean sl ...
*
Slavery in Asia
*
Xenophobia and racism in the Middle East
The article describes the state of race relations and racism in the Middle East. Racism is widely condemned throughout the world, with 174 states parties to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination by ...
References
Sources
*
External links
Conversion Isn’t a Ticket Out of White Supremacy Religion & Politics
I’m Muslim and I Support BLM: Undoing Anti-Black Racism in Our Communities Advocates for YouthMuslim Anti-Racism Collaborative MuslimARC
Racism in Our Ranks Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research
Yes, Muslims are Racists too Muslim Mirror
{{Racism topics
Intersectionality
Islamic culture
Muslim communities in
Religion and race