A report on Islamophobia claims a network of groups in the US deliberately promoting Islamophobia, and over the past decade, they have spread fear and hatred of Muslims among Americans.
“The Roots of the Islamophobia Network in America” is a report released by the “Center for American Progress”, a non-profit educational and research institute.
The report claims that researches show that although there is no large-scale conspiracy by the right-wing in the United States to promote Islamophobia, instead a small, interconnected network of groups is active throughout the United States and is highly regarded.
They are purposefully and deliberately promoting Islamophobia, and over the past decade, they have spread fear and hatred of Muslims among Americans.
This network has various and interconnected components that are initiated by the individuals or institutions that finance the network.
The network includes sponsors, experts in producing misinformation about Islamophobia, right-wing religious organizations, right-wing media that facilitate anti-Islamic propaganda, and political players.
Explaining the actions and activities of each of these components, the report shows in five separate chapters their relationship and connection with each other well.
Chapter 1: Sponsors of the Islamophobia network
The report claims that a small group of conservative wealthy institutions and individuals are the “lifeblood” of the Islamophobia network in the United States.
They provide huge sums to right-wing think tanks and misinformation experts who promote hatred of Islam and Muslims in the United States through books, reports, websites, blogs, and politicians’ speeches, which are the propaganda feed of major organizations and some right-wing religious groups.
In the first chapter, the seven main financial sponsors of the Islamophobia network and the amount and destination of their financial contributions to the Islamophobia network are considered.
The seven non-governmental groups have donated a total of more than $ 42 million to the Islamophobic think tanks.
Chapter 2: The Islamophobia misinformation experts
The donations support a small group of experts responsible for producing and disseminating false information against Islam and Muslims in the United States. This small core of experts produces messages and topics that all the components of this interconnected network of money, leaders of major movements, media executives, and elected officials rely on and repeat over and over again.
This chapter deals with the activities and actions of five of these experts, each of whom produces and promotes false information about Islam and Muslims through their think tanks.
This small group of ideologues seeks to portray Sharia as a totalitarian ideology and a legal-political-military doctrine that seeks to destroy Western civilization. They present Islam as an inherently violent religion that has nothing to do with moderation.
The most famous experts in this field are:
- Frank Gaffney, the founder of the “Center for Security Policy”, which is known for his anti-Islamic views.
- David Yerushalmi, founder of the “Society of Americans for National Existence”, proposed a law in 2007 under which support of sharia would be considered a punishable crime by up to 20 years in prison.
- Daniel Pipes, founder of the “Middle East Forum”;
- Robert Spencer, co-founder of “Stop Islamization of America”; and director of the “Jihad Watch” website;
- Steven Emerson Founder and CEO of the “Investigative Project on Terrorism.”
Chapter 3: Main and right-wing religious organizations
This chapter investigates the main organizations that help spread anti-Islamic messages and identifies three types:
- First, groups whose sole purpose is to counter Islam, such as “ACT! For America.”
- Second, right-wing religious groups such as the “American Family Association” and the “Eagle Forum”, and anti-Islamic organizations such as “Stop the Islamization of America.”
- Third, state, local, and T-party affiliates.
Chapter 4: Right-wing media that reinforce Islamophobic propaganda
Experts from think tanks as well as main right-wing organizations mentioned in previous chapters have established a coexistence with a group of right-wing newspapers, magazines, radio stations, TV shows, and blogs to promote their anti-Islamic messages and myths.
These media give them the opportunity to reach a wider audience and spread their messages more widely.
The most important right-wing media outlets on the issue of Islamophobia include Fox News, the conservative and influential magazine, National Review and its affiliated website, the Washington Times website and newspaper, the Christian Broadcasting Network website and channel, and a group of right-wing radio channels.
The websites and online magazines of the David Horowitz Freedom Center include:
- FrontPage Magazine
- Jihad Watch
- Real News Blog
- Pamela Geller’s blog
Chapter 5: Political players
The success of the Islamophobia network is not possible without the mentioned individuals and organizations. But the network’s power to publicize its messages and promote misinformation about Islam and Muslims in the United States is greatly enhanced by elected officials at the state and national levels.
For example, Republican Congressman Peter King, in his speeches to the Permanent Congress, reiterated the false claim that 80 percent of American mosques are radical.
These officials use three methods to help the Islamophobia network operate:
- Through the enactment of laws, their legal speeches as well as electoral contests
- Holding campaigns to raise funds to oppose Islam
- Attending media and conferences related to individuals and media networks related to Islamophobia and repeating various myths told by them
Report Review
Since this report has been published by an American center that has nothing to do with Muslims and Islamic countries, it must be said that there is no bias in its preparation and it can be considered credible.
The report has a lot of accurate and detailed data and has closely monitored the links of the wide network threads. Also, the publication of such reports can in itself be a factor in discrediting the claims and activities of the Islamophobia network, and therefore the effectiveness of the report is important and useful.
On the other hand, by introducing the Islamophobia network and its dimensions and members in the United States, this report allows Islamic communities inside the country, as well as other Muslim governments, to plan appropriate programs and strategies to thwart the network’s activities.
However, the report does not pay much attention to the political and religious foundations of Islamophobia and does not reflect much on the philosophy of causing and expanding this problem. Another important point is that although a large part of Islamophobia in the United States and even in Europe is influenced by the efforts and investments of Jewish and Zionist lobbies, the report does not pay much attention to this issue and only focuses on right-wing groups in the United States. The arise of these issues would help the readers understand the reasons and goals of the Islamophobia project.
