Orientalists reframed Islam as a political system rather than a religion.

Evidence

Chapter 5 shows that the parties of political Islam are not the natural outgrowths of Muslim-majority societies, as some have argued. As in Christian-majority societies, the (misnamed) “Muslim world” has also seen a separation of religion and politics. Understanding this history allows us to see that political Islam is a contemporary phenomenon. Chapter 6 shows that Islamism, often called Islamic fundamentalism, is the product of particular historic conditions in the late twentieth century that also spurred on the growth of Christian, Hindu, and Jewish fundamentalisms. — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 30 (#exemplifies, via linked claim)

However, this time the enemy was viewed in secular terms and seen as a political rather than a religious threat (even though the term “Turk” became synonymous with Muslim). — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 76 (#exemplifies, via linked claim)

Categorization

• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim
• XREF: connects to: Halliday argues modern hostility targets Muslims as a people, not Islam as a faith. — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 87; Academic study of Islam only began with Orientalism’s language training; The state attacked the Nation of Islam as race rather than religion — Khaled A. Beydoun, American Islamophobia_ Understanding…, 439 (+11 more)

Related

• Political Islam is a contemporary construct, not a natural outgrowth of Muslim societies. (similarity 0.89)
• Political Islam’s rise stems from modern politics, not seventh-century Islam (similarity 0.88)
• Political Islam parallels other modern fundamentalisms rather than stemming from Islam’s essence (similarity 0.87)
• Western hostility to Islam shifted from theological to political rationales across the centuries (similarity 0.86)
• Postwar Muslim-majority nations embraced secular nationalism, contra Orientalist claims (similarity 0.85)
• Late twentieth-century Islamophobia shifted from Orientalist exoticism toward politicised and militarised framing (similarity 0.85)
• Western attitudes to Islam have shifted across history rather than forming a constant clash. (similarity 0.85)
• Ottomans were seen as a political threat rather than a religious one (similarity 0.84)
• Contemporary Islamophobia extends Orientalist blame onto all Muslims, not just Arabs (similarity 0.84)
• Islamophobia is increasingly theorized as a form of racism rather than mere religious prejudice (similarity 0.84)
• Orientalism imagined Muslims as a monolithic Arab or Middle Eastern racial bloc. (similarity 0.84)
• Orientalist ideology preceded material anti-Muslim oppression until post-WWII empire enabled it. (similarity 0.83)
• Orientalism supplied the pre-existing tropes that the War on Terror redeployed against Muslims (similarity 0.83)
• Islamophobia descends directly from Orientalism’s civilizational divide between Islam and the West (similarity 0.83)
• Islam has practiced de facto separation of religion and politics since the eighth century (similarity 0.83)

Broader Connections

• Political Islam is a contemporary construct, not a natural outgrowth of Muslim societies. #exemplifies (0.70) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 30
• Ottomans were seen as a political threat rather than a religious one #exemplifies (0.65) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 76
• Orientalism supplied the pre-existing tropes that the War on Terror redeployed against Muslims #expands (0.60)
• Political Islam’s rise stems from modern politics, not seventh-century Islam #corroborates (0.50) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 313