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Jonathan Singer of the Social Work Podcast wrote the foreword to this book, and he said, "Danna pays attention to life’s details with a psychotherapist’s insight and writes about them with the passion of a slam poet. She speaks to the soul of social work and inspires us to think about more than just social work."

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   I have been including the topic of Islamophobia in my social work teaching since I first started teaching diversity and social justice in 2005. This topic is as urgent today as it was in 2005 and, as is true with every social justice issue we encounter in our personal and professional lives, it takes a social work village to address it. I have had the pleasure of collaborating with social work alumni and students at the undergraduate and graduate levels in building this village through supporting efforts to organize and implement university-wide events; co-presenting in class, workshops, and academic conferences; creating and managing a Facebook fan page on the topic; and by inviting alumni to make short videos included in a classroom lecture.

 

    On a personal note, I was living in New York City on September 11th (2001) relatively close to the Twin Towers. Immediately following the attack, people perceived to be Muslim started being targeted. This included young children, veiled women, people of all ages, and close family members. This hostility was bolstered by a misplaced sense of patriotism. As an anti-racism educator, I was concerned about the ways in which Islamophobia went unquestioned after 9/11 within social work and feminist conversations by people who are authentically concerned with issues of racism, discrimination, human rights, and social justice. I included curricular content on Islamophobia in the undergraduate social justice and diversity course through a Pakistani film, Khuda Ke Liye (In the Name of God), and in a community practice course through a documentary, Point of Attack, which addresses the impact of the Patriot Act and the policy of special registration right after 9/11 on the Pakistani community in Brooklyn. This documentary chronicles the ways in which the community organizes to question these policies and the role of non-Muslim allies in supporting the community.

 

 

   The term Islamophobia refers to a set of beliefs that characterizes Islam as: (1) monolithic and static, (2) separate and other rather than having common aims or values in common with other cultures, (3) inferior to the West—barbaric, irrational, primitive, and sexist, (4) an enemy—violent, supportive of terrorism, engaged in the “clash of civilizations,” (5) manipulative—a political ideology used for military or political advantage, and (6) criticism of the West rejected without consideration. Hostility toward Islam is used to justify discriminatory practices and exclusions of Muslims from mainstream society. Anti-Muslim hostility is accepted as natural and normal (Runnymede Trust, 1997).

 

 

   My perspective on racism and all forms of oppression is that we are all part of the problem and that we can all be part of the solution. This means that it is too easy to say that the problem is “them”—the ones who are actively perpetrating hate. When we focus on “them,” we avoid examining our privilege and roles in passively supporting and enabling oppression. Beverly Tatum (1997) describes racism as a system of advantage based on race and uses the metaphor of a moving sidewalk that all folks identified racially as White are standing on. Active racists are running forward on the moving sidewalk; others, many of whom reject racist views and actions, are standing quietly while still benefitting from white privilege. To interrupt this system is to make a choice to walk in the opposite direction of the moving sidewalk; this is a choice to engage in anti-racism work. This is how privilege can be used to interrupt systems of injustice.

 

    Islamophobia is a form of racism because it is embedded in systems, policies, laws, and stereotypes, and it is racialized. Those who are perceived to be Muslim are the targets, and this perception is shaped by racialized stereotypes. In the current political environment, non-Muslim allies are crucially needed to stand up and have conversations with their non-Muslim friends and community members, to educate them or support them in the work they are doing to stand against Islamophobia. There are places and settings that are not safe for Muslims to speak out in. As an ally and a social work educator, I work to create spaces where Muslim students feel empowered to share their experiences and spaces where allies can find their voice.

Submission Deadline: January 16, 2018

 

 

The New Social Worker® magazine, in collaboration with Loyola University Chicago School of Social Work, is having a poetry contest! We are seeking submissions from social work practitioners and students for Social Work Month 2018. The contest is being co-coordinated by Linda May Grobman, MSW, ACSW, LSW, and Brian L. Kelly, PhD, MSW, CADC.

 

Submissions are to be in the form of a reverse poem. This is a poem that has one meaning when read from top to bottom and another meaning when read from bottom to top.

 

We chose this form of poetry for the contest, because it requires creativity and critical thinking, and it lends itself to themes of social justice.  Use your imagination!