Transcript Tackling Islamophobia – a toolkit for educators

Tackling Islamophobia –
a toolkit for educators
Aims
To address delegates concerns about educating against
Islamophobia
To provide ideas and activities which break down stereotypes
and combat misinformation about Muslims and those
perceived to be Muslim.
Definition:
"lslamophobia - Irrational hostility, fear and hatred
of Islam, Islamic Culture, Muslims and those
perceived to be Muslim, and active discrimination
towards this group as individuals or collectively”
The OSI report on ’Muslims in Europe – A report on 11 EU Cities:
Concerns
A Very Real Issue…
• 47% of Britons see Muslims as a threat.
• Only 28% of Britons believe Muslims want to integrate into British society.
• 52% of Britons believe that Muslims create problems.
• 45% of Britons admit that they think there are too many Muslims in Britain.
• 58% of Britons associate Islam with extremism .
(University of Essex, 2012)
In Feb 2010 Bus drivers in Merseyside were cautioned for refusing to stop to pick up
Muslim students wearing headscarves on their bus routes. Following an
investigation by police, officers were charged with boarding buses to protect
students from racist abuse while they travelled on public transport
11th January 2012 – a Surrey teenager was kicked, pushed to the floor and had her
face drawn on by a group of older girls because she was wearing a hijab.
Pray
Asian
Foreign
Scary
Person
Muslim
Koran
Bomber
Religious
Turban
Terrorist
Headscarf
FILM
CRACK
THE
FACT
Muslims have
contributed
significantly to
UK society
All Immigrants are
illegal
The majority of new
jobs in the UK go to
immigrants
In 2010 Immigrants accounted for
15% of people who were hired.
This means that 85% of “new
jobs” went to British workers.
Most terrorist attacks
in Europe are
committed by
Muslim extremists
In 2011 there were 174 terrorist attacks in EU
member states. NONE of these were carried
out by Al-Qaeda affiliated or inspired groups
In 2009 and 2010, there were 543 terrorist
attacks in Europe, of which only 4 were
committed by Muslims. This means that only
0.7% of terrorist attacks– less than 1%– were
committed by Muslims.
Over 1000 people have
been arrested whilst
marching with the English
Defence League
Islamophobia in the Media
A GLA study of 352 articles in a week during 2007 found that
91% of articles about Muslims were "negative".
A Channel 4-commissioned survey of 974 articles from 2000 to
2008 found that Two thirds portrayed British Muslims as a
"threat" and a "problem“
References to "radical Muslims" outnumbering references to
"moderates" by 17 to one.
74% of British public claim they know ‘nothing or next to nothing
about Islam’ & 64% only learn about Islam from the media
Activity: The influence of
the Media
The Facts Behind the Headlines
MUSLIMS TELL BRITISH: GO TO HELL!
The headline refers to three Muslim members of
the public who turned up at court because
they agreed with the extremist views of the man
being sentenced. They protested about the sentencing
outside the court before leaving peacefully.
There is no evidence that these people actually told the
‘British’ to ‘go to hell’ or that they had any signs with this
written on.
MUSLIM SICKOS MADDIE KIDNAP SHOCK
The Daily Star reported that there were two
people having a conversation in an internet
chat room. They were talking about the
disappearance of Madeline McCann and one
person asked the other if they thought Maddie’s parents
might have played a part in her disappearance. The other
person said yes.
There is no mention of how the Daily Star knew that these
two people were Muslim or how they were in any way
connected to Maddie’s disappearance other than talking
about it over the internet.
Daily Star reporter quits in protest
at tabloid's 'anti-Muslim' coverage
In March 2011 Richard Peppiatt admitted to making up
stories about Muslims and accused the paper creating racial tension
In his resignation letter to the owner of the newspaper, Richard Desmond,
Peppiatt said that ‘the lies of a newspaper in London can get a bloke's
head caved-in down an alley in Bradford.’
He also said that another reporter working at the paper objected to writing
anti-Muslim articles, and was consequently bullied out of her job: "She
was given every anti-Muslim story to write for about two weeks, so as a
result of that she quit. I'm deeply ashamed to this day that I didn't walk
out with her."
What can we do about the
influence of the media?
• Remember you can’t generalise about groups of people:
people are individuals.
• Know your facts – don’t believe everything you read or
hear. Search for evidence to prove that the information
you have is true.
• Be prepared to challenge the stories you read or hear
• Challenge the media – write to your paper
• Find an different news source
Pray
Asian
Foreign
Scary
Person
Muslim
Koran
Bomber
Religious
Turban
Terrorist
Headscarf
Concerns