On 16 January, police were called to Edinburgh Central Mosque to investigate graffiti sprayed on the side of the mosque, reading “Get out of Scotland” and “Leave Scot”. This has occurred in a broader context of rising Islamophobia in Europe and the UK. MEND, a UK advocacy organisation emphasised that although devastating, these incidents are unsurprising, and this is one of many attacks in recent months. Just a few months ago, a teenager was given a ten-year sentence after planning a mass-murder at a mosque in Greenock. A public inquiry into Islamophobia in Scotland in 2021 found that 75 per cent of Muslims say Islamophobia is an everyday issue in Scottish society.
Islamophobia is not a new issue. However, with the increasing levels of right-wing extremism, the past few years have seen a sharp increase in Islamophobia. It has become blatant and even normalised in the UK. In the summer of 2024, the racist riots were a clear outcome of this intensification. This violence broke out as a result of misinformation that Axel Rudakubana, the murderer of three children in Southport, was an asylum seeker, a narrative which was pushed by the far right to justify racist acts of violence.
Analysis of Islamophobia in the UK reflects that to much of the population, Islam is perceived as being ‘outside’ of Britishness. This distinction creates a climate where Islamophobia is normalised and not considered racism. The British far-right media puts in a relentless effort to conflate Muslimness and Islam with violence, particularly against women and girls. We can see this in the misinformation on grooming gangs, which prevails despite undeniable evidence by the Home Office. A two-year study by the Home Office found no evidence that “Muslim or Pakistani-heritage men are disproportionately engaged” in crimes of sexual violence and exploitation. Abuse and mistreatment of women happens everywhere, and it is a gross disservice to the victims of abuse to conflate their mistreatment with racist efforts of Islamophobia.
This is not only “hate graffiti” – it is a hate crime. I raise this despite knowing that reporters often have good intentions and report in good faith to raise awareness on acts of violence. Semantic technicalities here are important. The language of ‘graffiti’ or ‘vandalism’ instead of ‘hate crime’ or ‘Islamophobia’ or ‘racism’ contribute to a broader problem whereby Islamophobia becomes normalised and is treated as a justifiable or permissible kind of racism.
According to the University of Edinburgh’s Report + Support statement, Islamophobia is rooted in “racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It includes the objectifying and generalising of Muslims as “outside of, distinct from, or incompatible with British society and identity.” As an institution the university, alongside the Scottish government, has a responsibility to reject any distinctions of Muslimness/Islam from ‘Britishness’. As an international university that prides itself on its diversity, I hope that it offers a public condemnation to this deplorable act of Islamophobia.
Image by Spencer Siles for The Student.
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Edinburgh Central Mosque Graffitied: Reflections on Rising Islamophobia in the UK
On 16 January, police were called to Edinburgh Central Mosque to investigate graffiti sprayed on the side of the mosque, reading “Get out of Scotland” and “Leave Scot”. This has occurred in a broader context of rising Islamophobia in Europe and the UK. MEND, a UK advocacy organisation emphasised that although devastating, these incidents are unsurprising, and this is one of many attacks in recent months. Just a few months ago, a teenager was given a ten-year sentence after planning a mass-murder at a mosque in Greenock. A public inquiry into Islamophobia in Scotland in 2021 found that 75 per cent of Muslims say Islamophobia is an everyday issue in Scottish society.
Islamophobia is not a new issue. However, with the increasing levels of right-wing extremism, the past few years have seen a sharp increase in Islamophobia. It has become blatant and even normalised in the UK. In the summer of 2024, the racist riots were a clear outcome of this intensification. This violence broke out as a result of misinformation that Axel Rudakubana, the murderer of three children in Southport, was an asylum seeker, a narrative which was pushed by the far right to justify racist acts of violence.
Analysis of Islamophobia in the UK reflects that to much of the population, Islam is perceived as being ‘outside’ of Britishness. This distinction creates a climate where Islamophobia is normalised and not considered racism. The British far-right media puts in a relentless effort to conflate Muslimness and Islam with violence, particularly against women and girls. We can see this in the misinformation on grooming gangs, which prevails despite undeniable evidence by the Home Office. A two-year study by the Home Office found no evidence that “Muslim or Pakistani-heritage men are disproportionately engaged” in crimes of sexual violence and exploitation. Abuse and mistreatment of women happens everywhere, and it is a gross disservice to the victims of abuse to conflate their mistreatment with racist efforts of Islamophobia.
This is not only “hate graffiti” – it is a hate crime. I raise this despite knowing that reporters often have good intentions and report in good faith to raise awareness on acts of violence. Semantic technicalities here are important. The language of ‘graffiti’ or ‘vandalism’ instead of ‘hate crime’ or ‘Islamophobia’ or ‘racism’ contribute to a broader problem whereby Islamophobia becomes normalised and is treated as a justifiable or permissible kind of racism.
According to the University of Edinburgh’s Report + Support statement, Islamophobia is rooted in “racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It includes the objectifying and generalising of Muslims as “outside of, distinct from, or incompatible with British society and identity.” As an institution the university, alongside the Scottish government, has a responsibility to reject any distinctions of Muslimness/Islam from ‘Britishness’. As an international university that prides itself on its diversity, I hope that it offers a public condemnation to this deplorable act of Islamophobia.
Image by Spencer Siles for The Student.
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