Defining Islamophobia requires abandoning checklists of identifying criteria.
Evidence
Having concluded upon the existence of a ‘certain identifiable phenomenon’ and that at this present juncture, ‘Islamophobia’ is the best, if not only, terminology with which such a phenomenon can be reasonably identified, it is necessary therefore, in an attempt to lessen the problems associated with it being a contested concept, to put forward a new definition and conceptualisation. To do so however will not be to repeat the mistakes of the past, and so it will be worthless merely constructing a new set of criteria through which it might be purported that any given discourse, act or event be identified as Islamophobic or otherwise. To do so would simply continue to obscure the asymmetric multi-dimensions, specificities, complexities and embeddedness of the phenomenon. — Chris Allen, Islamophobia, 898
Categorization
- XREF: Allen rejects the checklist approach that characterized the original Runnymede ‘open vs closed views of Islam’ criteria model — this is his definitional move against the field’s founding text. — connects to: Measuring Islamophobia requires reliable indicators rather than anecdotal evidence. — Erik Bleich, What Is Islamophobia and How Much Is…, 59; A valid Islamophobia concept must avoid essentialising Muslims or Islam. — Chris Allen, Islamophobia, 719; Criteria-based checklists for identifying Islamophobia obscure its complexity rather than clarify it — Chris Allen, Islamophobia, 898 (+2 more)
Related
- Criteria-based checklists for identifying Islamophobia obscure its complexity rather than clarify it (similarity 0.94)
- Efforts to define Islam are what define understanding of Islamophobia (similarity 0.87)
- A valid Islamophobia concept must avoid essentialising Muslims or Islam. (similarity 0.87)
- Conceptualizing Islamophobia must separate its forms from the phenomenon itself (similarity 0.87)
- Islamophobia must be defined at the level of the signified phenomenon, not its signs (similarity 0.86)
- Islamophobia requires an acknowledged Muslim or Islamic element to be identified. (similarity 0.86)
- An acknowledged Muslim or Islamic element is the defining criterion of Islamophobia (similarity 0.86)
- Islamophobia centers on recognition of Muslim-ness and its ideological meaning (similarity 0.86)
- Existing instruments for detecting Islamophobia fail to match its theory (similarity 0.85)
- Poor evidence plus subjective definitions make Islamophobia easy to dismiss (similarity 0.85)
- Precise definitions of Islamophobia enable systematic cross-time and cross-group comparisons. (similarity 0.85)
- Established definitions of Islamophobia resist replacement despite their inadequacy (similarity 0.85)
- Islamophobia’s contestation stems from a failure to define or conceptualise it. (similarity 0.85)
- Islamophobia should be analyzed as power-relations rather than as error about Islam. (similarity 0.85)
- The term Islamophobia demands a better-grounded, contestable definition (similarity 0.84)
Broader Connections
- Criteria-based checklists for identifying Islamophobia obscure its complexity rather than clarify it
#corroborates(0.90) — Chris Allen, Islamophobia, 898 - Islamophobia must be defined at the level of the signified phenomenon, not its signs
#expands(0.80) — Chris Allen, Islamophobia, 757 - Conceptualizing Islamophobia must separate its forms from the phenomenon itself
#expands(0.75) — Chris Allen, Islamophobia, 653