Combatting Islamophobia

Learn about Islamophobia

There is no universally accepted definition of Islamophobia. It is an umbrella term that means a number of things. Some define it as anti-Muslim hatred, anti-Muslim sentiment and anti-Muslim prejudice. Increasingly, many academics, activists and community leaders define it as anti-Muslim racism.

Institutionalised and systemic Islamophobia involves policies, practices, and norms within organisations and systems that unfairly disadvantage Muslims, reinforce stereotypes, and perpetuate discrimination. It manifests through discriminatory policies, unequal access, biased media, underrepresentation, and marginalisation, and addressing it promotes a more equitable and inclusive society.

Addressing institutionalised Islamophobia is crucial because systemic biases can deeply influence laws, policies and everyday practices, creating barriers to equality and safety for Muslim communities. Tackling these issues promotes fairness, inclusion and social justice.

The Special Envoy’s advocacy work captures the multidimensional nature of Islamophobia – its impacts and consequences. It takes a whole-of-society approach, reflecting evidence that shows Islamophobia permeates all levels and corners of society. Combatting Islamophobia requires a multifaceted and multisector, whole-of-society approach involving political leadership, education and awareness-raising, community engagement, policy changes, legal responses and mechanisms, and support systems put into place to achieve lasting and impactful change.

Efforts to combat Islamophobia do not restrict people’s right to express criticism or engage in free debate. Freedom of speech is a fundamental right, and it includes the right to criticise ideas or beliefs. The goal of the Special Envoy is to prevent hate, discrimination and violence, not to silence disagreement, dislike and legitimate discussions or criticism.

The Special Envoy supports and encourages open, respectful dialogue and believes that criticism of ideas or beliefs is a fundamental right, as long as it does not promote hatred or violence. The Special Envoy’s focus is on preventing speech that incites hatred, discrimination or violence against Muslims wherever it occurs, including online.

Australian Organisations Combatting Islamophobia

A list of national organisations working to combat Islamophobia in Australia.

Academic Studies

A selection of academic studies that investigate the ideology of right-wing extremism and Islamophobia.

‘You can’t trust the mainstream media’: exploring shifts in racist, homophobic, transphobic, sexist, antisemitic and Islamophobic sentiment within Australian far-right alternative news media, Callum Jones, Verity Trott, Brady Robards and Steven Roberts. Media International Australia, 2024.
Dangerous Muslim Wombs and the Fear of Replacement: Experiences from Australia and Aotearoa/New Zealand, Shakira Hussein, Liz Allen and Scott Poynting. The Palgrave Handbook of Gendered Islamophobia, 2024.
Understanding right wing extremism in Australia: testing an integrated unfairness grievance and outgroup threat framework, Tiahna Mulholland, Kristina Murphy, Keiran Hardy and Louise Porter. Journal of Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism, 2023.
The New-Far-Right Movement in Australia: Terrorism and Political Violence: Vol 33 , No 7 - Get Access, Jade Hutchinson. Terrorism and Political Violence, 2021.

Books

A selection of books combatting Islamophobia.

A Global Racial Enemy: Muslims and 21st-Century Racism, Selod, Saher; Islam, Inaash; Garner, Steve
Coming of Age in the War on Terror, Abdel-Fattah, Randa
Contesting Islamophobia: Anti-Muslim Prejudice in Media, Culture and Politics (Library of Modern Religion), Morey, Peter; Yaqin, Amina; Forte, Alaya (Eds)
Islamophobia and Anti-Muslim Sentiment: Picturing the Enemy, Second Edition, Gottschalk, Peter
Islamophobia and Everyday Multiculturalism in Australia, Abdel-Fattah, Randa
Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire: 20 Years After 9/11, Kumar, Deepa
Islamophobia in Cyberspace: Hate Crimes Go Viral, Awan, Imran
Islamophobia/Islamophilia: Beyond the Politics of Enemy and Friend, Shryock, Andrew
Islamophobia: The Challenge of Pluralism in the 21st Century, Esposito, John L.; Kalin, Ibrahim
Muslim Perspectives on Islamophobia: From Misconceptions to Reason, Gabsi, Zouhir
Problematising Muslims, Normalising Islamophobia: A Decade of Commentary 2010–20, Allen, Chris
Reconfiguring Islamophobia: A Radical Rethinking of a Contested Concept, Allen, Chris
Tangled in Terror: Uprooting Islamophobia, Manzoor-Khan, Suhaiymah
Towards a New Definition of Islamophobia, Allen, Chris
The Fear of Islam: An Introduction to Islamophobia in the West, Second Edition,Green, Todd H.
The Muslim Problem: From the British Empire to Islamophobia, Patel, Ismail Adam
The Muslims are Coming: Islamophobia, Extremism, and the Domestic War on Terror, Kundnani, Arun
The Palgrave Handbook of Gendered Islamophobia, Easat-Daas, Amina; Zempi, Irene
The Rise of Global Islamophobia in the War on Terror: Coloniality, Race, and Islam, Bakali, Naved; Hafez, Farid
The Routledge International Handbook of Islamophobia (Routledge International Handbooks), Zempi, Irene; Awan, Imran
What is Islamophobia?: Racism, Social Movements and the State, Massoumi, Narzanin; Mills, Tom; Miller, David

Action for communities and institutions

Organisations and institutions can address their own role by conducting audits of policies and practices, providing anti-discrimination training, fostering diverse leadership and implementing inclusive policies that respect religious and cultural diversity.

Individuals can educate themselves, challenge stereotypes, support inclusive policies, amplify Muslim voices and advocate for systemic change within their workplaces, communities and governments. The resources on this website aim to support this action.

Other ways to report a hate crime

By reporting incidents, you become part of a larger movement to remove hate, racism and prejudice from our society. Reporting also allows authorities to understand patterns of behaviour in local areas to maintain your safety. In addition to the above-mentioned community registers, many other reporting options are available to you:

Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) - To lodge a complaint with the AHRC, call the AHRC’s National Information Service on 1300 656 419 or 02 9284 9888 or visit Complaints
State and territory anti-discrimination commissions - What is unlawful can vary depending on where you live. You can also report incidents to your state or territory-based anti-discrimination commission.
Local Councils - You should check if your local council can resolve or address your complaint – for example, graffiti removal or street cleaning.
Office of the eSafety Commissioner - If the incident happens online, you may be able to report it to the Office of the eSafety Commissioner.

If you are a bystander or witness to hate, racism or prejudice

If you witness an assault or an act of violence, contact the police:

In an emergency or life-threatening situation, call Triple Zero (000) and ask for police.
If there is no immediate danger, call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or the Police Assistance Line (131 444).

When people who witness hate, racism or prejudice speak out against it, this act makes the person being targeted feel supported. It can make the person being hateful reconsider their behaviour. Don’t put yourself at risk. But if it is safe to do so, speak up and stand with the victim. Even a simple gesture can be powerful.

The AHRC has tips for bystanders.

You can also submit a written report to Crime Stoppers. Crime Stoppers is an independent non-for-profit that collects information on crimes and shares accordingly with law enforcement agencies. Learn more about Crime Stoppers.