Yesterday the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the Center for Race and Gender at UC Berkeley
released a report titled
Confronting Fear: Islamophobia and its Impact in the U.S. 2013-2015. The report suggests four priority areas in creating a national strategy to further American understanding of Islam:
1. ... [E]nhancing Muslim involvement in the issues of other domestic communities which face challenges to full and equal protection and participation in society.
2. Establishing in the public conscience that Islamophobia is identical to other forms of prejudice and undermines American ideals.
3. Empowering a diverse range of legitimate voices to persuasively contribute, particularly in the news media, to the views of Islam and American Muslims within public dialogue.
4. Enhancing community ability to impact U.S. political and policy life through public service, voting, and meaningful political contributions.
Examining the impact of Islamophobia in the United States, the report finds:
The U.S.-based Islamophobia network’s inner core is currently comprised of at least thirty-three groups whose primary purpose is to promote prejudice against, or hatred of, Islam and Muslims.... Between 2008 and 2013, inner-core organizations had access to at least $205,838,077 in total revenue.
