Islamophobic racism stems from fears of economic deprivation and imperial history.

Evidence

If there is an explanatory factor that rivals religion in the debate over what drives Islamophobia, it is racism. Islamophobia is not racially blind, nor is it simply a manifestation of older forms of racism rooted in biological inferiority. It is an example of what some scholars have labeled “cultural racism.”cultural racism: hatred and hostility of others based on religious beliefs, cultural traditions, and ethnicity. This form of racism incites hatred and hostility based on religious beliefs, cultural traditions, and ethnic backgrounds. Animosity toward Muslims is expressed in terms of cultural and religious inferiority, with Muslims and Islam labeled as barbaric, violent, uncivilized, and inferior to Western culture and civilization. The presumed insurmountable differences between “Muslim culture” and the West serve as the basis for exclusion and discrimination. The argument of cultural inferiority has gained significant traction in recent decades, in part because many politicians, journalists, and public figures do not see it as racist; they assume that racism must involve overt appeals to skin color or biological inferiority. — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 92 (#complicates, via linked claim)

The framework for understanding Islamophobia both structurally and ideologically is in the context of racism in general and not as distinct formation. Importantly, as the Fieldses and Robinson note, racism cannot be understood without accounting for the rise of capitalism. — Cyra Akila Choudhury, Racecraft and Identity in the Emergence…, 46 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Islamophobia is structural racism rooted in empire, not religious intolerance — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of…, 91; Islamophobia spans the political spectrum and is embedded in empire’s infrastructure; Liberal-reformist Islamophobia remains imperial racism cloaked in benevolence — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of…, 500 (+12 more)

Broader Connections

• Islamophobia operates as cultural racism rooted in religion, culture, and ethnicity rather than biology. #complicates (0.80) — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 92
• Islamophobia must be analyzed within general racism tied to capitalism #complicates (0.80) — Cyra Akila Choudhury, Racecraft and Identity in the Emergence…, 46
• Islamophobia now operates cross-racially through non-Western imperial conquests #complicates (0.78) — Khaled A. Beydoun, The New Crusades_ Islamophobia and the…, 1225
• Islamophobia operates as a form of cultural racism, not a distinct phenomenon. #complicates (0.75) — Irene Zempi and Imran Awan, Islamophobia, 22