Islamophobia class at Michigan university addresses bias

​Rasa – Islamophobia class at Michigan State University addresses bias.

News ID: 422277

Date: 30 April 2016 - 17:20

RNA – More than a decade after the attacks of 9/11, most Americans’ knowledge of Islam and Muslims doesn’t extend much beyond national media coverage of Islamic extremism, according to MSU professor Mohammad Hassan Khalil.

That limited exposure is the biggest contributor to the fear of the religion and its followers.

“I think people’s knowledge about Islam and Muslims is limited to the headlines they read,” Khalil said. “If you are not comfortable with Muslims, there’s a good chance you’ll develop negative associations.”

The head of MSU’s Muslim Studies program is tackling bias head-on with a new 1-credit class at MSU this spring: Islam, Radicalism and Islamophobia.

Khalil’s Islamophobia class exposed students previously unfamiliar with the religion to its tenets. It helped them to differentiate the actions of the overwhelming majority of Muslims from the likes of ISIS. The class also addressed how Muslim scholars have responded to the rise of radicalism.

Recent terrorist attacks in Paris and Brussels have put Islam back in the headlines, Khalil said, even though the perpetrators represent a very small minority within the religion.

“There are 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide,” Khalil pointed out. “If even 1% were violent, we’d be in much worse trouble than we are today.”

That’s not to discount violent extremists, he said, adding “If anyone has a reason to despise radicals, its Muslims.”

Despite the best efforts of that community, images of Islamic terrorists bent on destroying America persist. Several local Muslims told Khalil recently they feel public distrust resembles feelings that arose following 9/11, he said.

This negativity often goes behind bigoted comments.

Crimes against Muslims tripled in the wake of terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif., according to California State University’s centre for the Study of Hate and Extremism. Muslims were the most targeted religious group in Michigan for hate or bias crimes in 2014 with 18 victims, according to the Michigan State Police.

Negativity towards Muslims locally varies from comments about ISIS to an incident in 2014 in which a Muslim woman was berated after having her eye veil and abaya ripped off, Khalil said. Two counts, one for ethnic intimidation and another for assault and battery against one of the alleged attacks, were later dismissed.

Those incidents aren’t the norm in the Lansing area, said Imam Sohail Chaudhry of the Islamic centre of East Lansing.

If anything, Chaudhry said messages of love and support have poured into the centre after high-profile terrorist attacks.

Students in Khalil’s class visited the mosque earlier this spring, a first for several students, he said. Much of their time was spent talking with Chaudhry and getting questions about Islam answered. The centre has also formed strong relationships with nearby churches and participates in a number of events alongside other religious groups.

Lansing’s historic resettlement of refugees from the Muslim world means most people are tolerant and accepting of their Muslim neighbors, Chaudhry said.

Thousands of refugees have resettled in Lansing. Hundreds more, including those fleeing the Syrian crisis, are expected to resettle in the area this year through St. Vincent Catholic Charities. Exact numbers aren’t set yet, said spokesman John Karasinski.

Holly Chapin said she didn’t know much about Islam before arriving at MSU this fall. She graduated from Rockford High School, where the student population was predominantly Christian.

“It’s not that I had a bias against Muslims,” the MSU freshman said. “I was ignorant of their beliefs and never really got to put a face to the group.”

She took Khalil’s class to get better informed about the religion. She interviewed close to a dozen Muslim MSU students for the final project, asking them about hijabs and other religious coverings.

“I’ve definitely encountered people that don’t really know Muslims and say things like all Muslims support ISIS,” Chapin said. “But to hear from professor Khalil and other Muslim students about how they feel when people think that’s who they are when their religion doesn’t condone what terrorists do was eye-opening.”

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