Analysis: Various reports and studies have found a sharp increase in racial discrimination towards Muslim people, especially Muslim women
Last year, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights published its Being Muslim in the EU: Experiences of Muslims report. This provided insights on experiences of racial discrimination and harassment, shedding light on how these manifest and reporting rates of same. The report noted a sharp increase in racial discrimination towards Muslim people in the period since the previous report published in 2016.
Employment and housing were among the sectors with the highest levels of reported discrimination. Experiences of racial harassment and violence directed towards Muslim people are also captured, with identifiably Muslim women are particularly targeted for such incidents.
Beyond their racist underpinnings, these experiences of discrimination, harassment and violence are united by the low level of reports made to relevant bodies by those targeted. The majority of those targetted feel that there is no point, that ‘nothing will happen’ or ‘change’ if they did report; resonating with previous research conducted in the Irish context.
Women are almost twice as likely to experience anti-Muslim racism when compared to men
This was the first time that Ireland was included in this survey. While the data used from Ireland are insufficient for statistical claims to be made with confidence, it is interesting to note that those who had experienced racial discrimination in the Irish context reported lower levels of trust in the police than those who had not.
Previous studies on the topic of anti-Muslim racism specific to Ireland have provided insights on this phenomenon. The first such study demonstrated that almost one-in-three Muslim men and women who reported experiencing hostility or discrimination believed this was on the basis of being identified as Muslim, with women almost twice as likely to experience anti-Muslim racism when compared to men. Participants reported experiencing anti-Muslim hostility in the form of physical assaults, verbal abuse, and damage to property. Employment, accessing accommodation and a range of goods/services were identified as key locations of discriminatory acts.
Research conducted on behalf of the Immigrant Council of Ireland published in 2016, further underscored experiences of anti-Muslim racism in Ireland. Focusing on Dublin, participants recalled experiences of hostility and discrimination on the basis of their Muslim identity. Importantly, the impacts of hostility and discrimination were also captured with participants reporting experiences of fear, shock, anger, frustration and depression; underscoring the longer term impacts of racist acts.
'Dublin riots'
A range of other reports have also captured the realities of anti-Muslim racism in Ireland. This includes highlighting similar experiences of hostility and discrimination but also the increased presence of online abuse and the worrying growth of far-right actors utilising racist, anti-Muslim and anti-migrant rhetoric for political ends.
Perhaps the most high-profile example of such hostility in Ireland, replete with anti-migrant and anti-Muslim tropes, emerged in the context of the so-called 'Dublin Riots' in November 2023. The level of violence during the riot was described in the aftermath by Gardaí as "unprecedented" for contemporary Dublin.
The riot occurred following a knife attack earlier in the day on three young children and their carers outside a school in Dublin’s North inner city. In the wake of the attack, anti-migrant and far-right agitators spread misinformation across Irish social media, portraying the attack as an act of Islamist terrorism and urging followers to take to the streets. In the ensuing havoc, vehicles were set alight, buildings looted and so-called protestors clashed with Gardaí.
Recommendations from projects and reports like these point to pathways forward in the fight against racism
Research has highlighted the increasing role of far-right actors in the Irish context in disseminating misinformation and disinformation about minority communities. But it is important to recognise that racism directed towards any group cannot simply be reduced to those on the political fringe or, disturbing as they are, incidents of interpersonal hostility and discrimination.
Anti-Muslim racism is no exception as demonstrated by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance. This makes challenging racism in all its forms all the more complex and underscores the need for meaningful, sustainable action.
The Sustainable Alliances Against Anti-Muslim Hatred project is endeavouring to make some impact in this regard in Ireland. Since March 2022, the SALAAM project has set out to develop evidence-based, grass-roots focused initiatives to raise awareness of anti-Muslim racism in Ireland and resources to challenge this phenomenon. Engaging with almost 200 Muslim men and women across four Irish cities, participants shared their experiences of anti-Muslim racism but also insights on how to address this phenomenon.
In addition to working with Muslim communities, the SALAAM project also engaged with almost 70 staff in seven local authorities to identify possibilities for collaboration in the fight against anti-Muslim racism and broader forms of racist exclusion. Drawing on these partnerships, a range of initiatives have been developed, including those focusing on training, public awareness campaigns, community engagement platforms as well as practical resources to encourage reporting and provide psycho-social supports to those who have experienced racism.
Recommendations from projects and reports like these point to pathways forward in the fight against racism. We must move beyond understandings of racism as ‘just’ interpersonal acts of hostility and discrimination to those where we critically engage with and dismantle racist ideas and call out their use as a tool to divide and exclude people in our societies. If we are to meaningfully challenge racism in all its forms in Irish society and across the EU, it is crucial that that any such initiatives are supported by political will, nationally and locally.
International Day to Combat Islamophobia takes place on March 15th
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The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
