Is "Islamophobia" the same as antisemitism?

[Mudhammam]

Someone tried to convince me of that today. I have a lot to say about this but first I'd like your take on "Islamophobia." Is it basically antisemitism for Muslims or "cultural" Muslims? (this person also told me Muslim included race, as "Jew" has historically referred to one's nationality OR religion...I don't think so).

Thoughts?

[Fidel_Castronaut]

Generally speaking, I find Islam to be a reprehensible, backwards, intolerant, murderous, xenophobic, racist, misogynistic and anti-intellectual as a religion. I can't say the same for many Muslims I've met and indeed am friends with, despite their often wacky views. They're still just people. I am 'islamophobic' in that I really, really am scared of the religion and it's teachings, but I'm certainly not going to dismiss all Muslims negatively based on their religious beliefs.

I look at the wide range of countries and states, that have Islam as their main religion and the cultural notion falls apart. You'd be very, very hard pressed to find any similarities between Muslims in, say, Sierra Leone to Muslims in Pakistan. Indeed, the varying sects seems to have such a unique social culture as well as a unique hatred for one another that I think conflating Islam as a cultural movement above and beyond the religion would be a mistake.

Muslim is certainly not a race, at any rate. So try as they might to make that claim, they will constantly fail.

As to what the word islamophobia actually means? I make the claim that it is a nonsense term used to prevent people from critiquing the religion of Islam. Often 'racist" will get banded in With that critique which automatically stifles the debate, which in turn leads to wider community tensions and ultimately a few guys strapping a bomb to their chest and blowing up a bus in a city. All because a topic has been made taboo and nobody can have an honest and open discussion about it without being threatened.

[FatAndFaithless]

I think Islamophobia is a word that is mostly made up and useless (in the sense that people often use it to mean anti-Muslim). Sure, there are people that have irrational fear and contempt of Muslims, as in the people, and those people are rather obvious about it (some of the more firebrand preachers in the US for example). But Islam is not a race, any more than Christianity is. Judaism is a wee bit different because it really is much more cultural and familial, even to the point where being "Jewish" is dependent upon the bloodline, especially through one's mother. Additionally, being anti-Semitic is being anti Semite, which again is a people, not just a set of ideas, which really is dangerous (i.e. this entire group of people is bad based on their nature/race/religion). Being against a set of ideas (not even a 'phobia', just disagreeing earnestly with it) is totally different. If I loudly criticize a belief set or say that it can encourage very bad decisions, it's not a 'phobia', it's an honest opinion. I cross the line when I say that any person that follows that belief set is somehow inferior or evil or deserving of contempt (as anti-Semitism does).

People try to conflate the concept of a belief system with the concept of a person, which is dangerously negligent. Criticizing ideas is not criticizing people, and being vocal about your disagreements is not a 'phobia'.

[IAmTheeWallrus]

I don't accept that being unwilling to accept someone's beliefs equates to fear.
It may or may not. My lack of acceptance of beliefs that involve human sacrifice may be a bit of a mix of both disgust and fear but generally in the area of religion it's pure disgust.
Certainly the Islamic concept of martyrdom and it's resultant insanity muddies the waters but I wouldn't categorize my feelings about Islam as being predominant driven by fear. Nor would I accept that most negative views of Islam are driven by fear.

[Mudhammam]

There was an incident, I forget where (I think the UK), where a man and a woman threw bacon at the door of a mosque, and people are claiming that it was racist. Racist? Bigoted, sure, but racist?

[vorlon13]

Is it really a phobia if the concern(s) are focussed on the subset of Islam that is actively trying to kill you ?

Or, rather, perhaps the term needs to be tightened up to 'Islamofascistphobia' and I note those thus described might want to kill, torture, kidnap, or behead those using the term . . .

[RobbyPants]

There are some similarities and some differences.

When I picture the word "islamophobia", I picture an irrational fear of Islam and all Muslims, based primarily on fear mongering, propaganda, and misinformation. When I picture "antisemitism", I picture a systemic fear and hatred of Jews, also based largely on fear mongering, propaganda, and misinformation.

So, in the method that they're both spread, they're quite similar. Some differences I see are:

• Antisemitism often seems to be practiced against a minority population living in the area. While Islamophobia seems to take this form, too, it also is seen as a fear or larger groups outside of the country.
  
• There are organized groups of Muslims making active threats against the west. We don't have organized groups of Jews doing the same thing.
  

So, in the end, I see Islamophobia as taking a somewhat rational fear of some aspects of Islam and misapplying it to all of Islam, and antisemitism as taking a more irrational fear of Jews and applying it to all of them. The former starts with more of a basis of truth and runs with it.

[vorlon13]

I might note that the majority of Muslims (for instance the millions that turn out for the demonstrations) even if not actively committing violence against 'infidels' appear to support those who do, either with tacit approval, stony silence, or actively funding it. Fearing all of them might not be that irrational.

I'd also posit there would be a strong current of whatever 'phobia' we are describing here to a large number of Muslims themselves. The knowledge that even a minor infraction or inadvertently saying the wrong thing, or even a betraying expression might result in a disturbing and abrupt end to their lives.

[Muslim Atheism]

I'm not Islamophobic , but Muslimophobic. .

[Jenny A]

Islam is a religion, not a race or ethnicity. Anyone can become Muslim. Anyone can cease to be Muslim (unless of course they live in a country where the penalty for non-belief is death). I am anti-Islam. It is a religion of violence. I do not hate everyone who believes in Islam.

I'm also anti Evangelical Christianity. It is a religion of willful ignorance and sexual repression. Does that make me Evangelicaphobic?

Antisemitism as I understand it is not just anti-Jewish religious practice, but anti-persons of Jewish ethnicity whether they are atheists or have converted to another religion. Should I start to hate all people who have a Muslim background regardless of whether they are a practicing or believing Muslim, that would be antiislamic in the sense that people mean antisemetic.