Assignment: Islamophobia in Second Generation Europe

Islamophobia in Second Generation Europe
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Islamophobia
One of the most underestimated progress that the terrorist organizations have had across the world is causing segregation within the population. Using war, terrorist attacks such as suicide bombs and propaganda, they have managed to drive a wedge within the population. Through the years of war propaganda, they have managed to create a rift between the Muslim community and the rest of the society. As such even Muslims that do not have anything to do with propaganda, have now become a target. In Europe, there has been a growing concern with the element of segregation that brewing and first among the second generations. Due to the various propagandas and the targeted attacks that have been propagated by the ISIL and other terrorist groups, most of the second generations across Europe, have developed a phobia for the Islamic faith. This largely due in part to the notion that most of the Muslims are part of the wider terror network, and the elemental retaliation against the constant attacks and killings of the innocent civilians.[Jennifer A. Selby, Questioning French Secularism: Gender Politics And Is-Lam In A Parisian Suburb, ebook, 1st ed. (Bucknell University, 2012).] [Jennifer A. Selby, Questioning French Secularism: Gender Politics And Is-Lam In A Parisian Suburb, ebook, 1st ed. (Bucknell University, 2012).]
Islamophobia in Second Generation Europe
In the past, Europe has been a largely a cosmopolitan society that is associated with many social and racial diversities. However, in the wake of the 21st century that has since changed and most of the society is now segregated. Over the years, the society is slowly taking on a new premises where they no longer think about immigrants, but the concern is now on the Muslims within the society. One of the main concerns is that, this is not an element that is only in a specific society within Europe, rather it is has become one of the most common social shifts in the 21st century among several European societies. Strangers are now constantly being subjected to islamization and to anti-Muslim feelings. In the past this was a practice that used by the extreme right wing parties, however, it has since caught on the younger generation where they no longer fear the element subjecting segregation to the Muslim community. However, this has also been largely been contributed by the fact that, most of the terrorist sleeper cells, have managed to integrate within the society, where they carry out the clandestine investigations and research before attacking. As such, most of the people are constantly becoming weary of the Muslims in the society as it is quite hard for them to easily identify who among them is planning an attack or even aiding an attack on the innocent civilians. Multiculturalism is failing in Europe.[Ellen Wiles, "Headscarves, Human Rights, And Harmonious Multicultural Society: Implications Of The French Ban For Interpretations Of Equality", Law Soc Rev 41, no. 3 (2007): 699-736.]
In the past there has been other elements of xenophobia spread across Europe and the new twist to now related to the anti-Muslim attitudes. some of the research has sighted the fact that, there are three main elements that can be associated with the issue of Muslim skepticism, which include the idea that it is driving a wedge between the state and the church, it is a threat to security and that it is a threat to the position of women and their related rights (pg. 2). It is also important to note that there have been debates between whether the prejudice is largely anti-Muslim feelings and xenophobia. One of the most important discourse that is closely associated with the Islam skepticism is that of, Islam being incompatible with values of individual rights, enlightenment values and democracy (pg. 3). At the same time, there is a crucial aspect of Islam that has been regarded as incompatible with western values largely due to the fact that, most of the other elements mentioned earlier are enshrined in the western societies. Most of the right wing parties tend to have this attitude. This is mostly the case relative to the fact that most of the right wing parties’ views are directed at the notion that the Islamic faith encourages ideas that are against the western democracies. As such, most of the ISIL have also picked up on this propaganda and use the same front to spread ideas of anti-western democracies and liberties. There is a new element of liberalism that is coming up in the second generation within Europe. This one is associated with openly declaring that Muslims are an enemy of the society values that are held in most places in Europe. As a result, most of the second generation population across Europe tend to view the Muslim community with disdain and skepticism and as the opposition to the liberal values that they hold dear. There has been a common notion among most of the European leaders and therefore the European population that multiculturalism has failed, with specific regards to the integration of the Muslim community within the main cloth of the European community.[Mark Elchardus and Bram Spruyt, "Universalism And Anti-Muslim Sentiment", International Journal of Intercultural Relations 38 (2014): 75-85.] [Mark Elchardus and Bram Spruyt, "Universalism And Anti-Muslim Sentiment", International Journal of Intercultural Relations 38 (2014): 75-85.]
According to Michael Wintle, there are two main aspects of identity at the personal level or the collective level, which is ‘othering’. Europe for the longest time has had elements of ‘otherness’, where they share imagined heritages that are associated with enemies, alien forces, different people, and dangers. One of the most dominant ‘other’ in Europe and has been for quite some time now is Islam. Ironically, while this aspect can be traced to the current society among the second generation population, it is actually an aspect that has sufficed for the last thirteen (pg. 45).[MICHAEL WINTLE, "Islam As Europe’S ‘Other’ In The Long Term: Some Discontinuities", the journal of the historical association (n.d.).]
It is also important to note that most of the Muslim experience economic discrimination in the European society. This is relative to the fact that aspects such as religiosity, perceptions of discrimination, cultural values and migration backgrounds. The gap between the Muslims and the non-Muslims in terms of human capital is quite wide and keeps widening and gaining more significance at the individual level and collectively in the Muslim circles living in Europe (pg. 192). This is a common case even for migrants currently coming into Europe, as most of them struggle to find work in a society that is slowly developing phobia tendencies against them. While their countries lie in ruins, their place of refuge in the European countries is turning into a trap.[Phillip Connor and Matthias Koenig, "Explaining The Muslim Employment Gap In Western Europe: Individual-Level Effects And Ethno-Religious Penalties", Social Science Research 49 (2015): 191-201.]
Islamophobia in France
In France it has not been any different, much of the phobia directed towards Islam is growing over the years and likely to take on to even deeper roots in the society. One year down the line after the Charlie Hebdo attacks, there have been some very worrying trends in France. Recent development include the measures to widen the police powers, such that they now have the powers to conduct counter terror practices aimed at rooting out extremism(pg 32). As a result the police have been given the mandate to now detain terror suspects and some of the cases where they may have suspicion of terror activities, conduct raids. This is an aspects that has now been effected in a number of cities across Europe, especially where they feel that there is need to bring expose the terror network cells. There are also some plans underway by the Supreme Court, to make sure that these are state of emergency tools for the police to utilize in clamping down insurgency. There are also plans to make sure that there is some level of control on the Muslim faith by controlling the clerics. Ideally, the Imams that denounce any form and involvement in radicalization activities are going to be issued with certification documents. These have to be clerics that acknowledge the French values. These are not elements that spell out toleration in the second generation, but rather they bring out the elements of discrimination in the French society.[Elizabeth Winkler, Is It Time For France To Abandon Laïcité?, ebook, 1st ed., 2016.] [Mohammad Fadel, A Tale Of Two Massacres: Charlie Hebdo And Utoya Island, ebook, 1st ed., n.d.]
Increasing the police powers to now make raids and invade the rights of the Muslims against the wider premise of rooting out terrorism is only going to be cue for the Muslim community to disrespect the civil liberties that the country is trying to protect. Ideally, the Muslim community is likely to view this as a double standard applied on those of their faith and orient. This is going to be the same with using tools such as certificates to try and control the Islam religion in France. Ideally, none of these efforts are aligned with trying to help the already marginalized Muslim community feel as if they belong and supported.[Elizabeth Winkler, Is It Time For France To Abandon Laïcité?, ebook, 1st ed., 2016.]
This aspects of the French trying to separate the state from any form of religious sway can be traced back to the 20th century. At the time, France an already predominantly Christian community, made attempts and revolutionary changes to embed secular principles in the public affairs. During the French revolution, the element of the church playing a major role in the rule of the country through the monarch was quite prominent until the society decided otherwise. The element of separation of the state from any form of influence from organized religion thus gained root in the French society quite early. For the second generation society, the element of state and religion is turning thorny especially among the Muslims. This relative to the fact that, they as if the policies that largely reflect thi...