Source: Qantara.de

At a recent conference in Germany looking at radical critics of Islam, there was consensus that it was about time that politicians and society looked more seriously at the growing defamation of Muslims. By Claudia Mende

For a long time, nobody took hate propaganda against Muslims very seriously as a serious threat to democracy. That has changed, following the massacre in Norway by Anders Behring Breivik and the series of murders by the Zwickau NSU terrorist cell in Germany.

Breivik’s shooting spree, which he justified on the basis of Islamophobic fantasies, and the far-right killings of immigrants in Germany both show the explosive potential of racism and anti-Islamic feeling in destroying social cohesion. Parties such as “Die Freiheit” (“Freedom”), the “Pro-” movement, or the citizens’ initiative “Pax Europa” work to paint a frightening picture of the alleged “Islamisation” of Europe: they refuse to see Islam as a religion and insist that it is a totalitarian and violent ideology.

Websites in Germany like “Politically Incorrect” or “Nürnberg 2.0” offer a home for unfiltered and generally anonymous defamation. Among the range of activities undertaken by those in the anti-Islamic movement is the deliberate disruption of events giving information about Islam, integration or the dialogue between religions.

Read more…