If we persist in portraying Islamophobia as an irrational force of misperception—the bad citizen’s response to the bad Muslim—we will render ourselves oblivious to Islamophobia’s ultimate causes, which are not simply ignorance or xenophobia. Pastor Terry Jones is rightly criticized for both, but he has never invaded and occupied an independent (Muslim-majority) nation-state, authorized the torture of (Muslim) alien combatants held in secret prisons, killed hundreds of innocent (Muslim) people in unmanned drone attacks, propped up (Muslim) dictators against the will of their (Muslim) subjects, and given orders to detain, deport, and assassinate (Muslim) terror suspects without trial.

XREF: Connects to critiques linking institutional/state violence to prejudice, and to the broader discourse on Islamophobia as structural rather than individual. SEED: Could seed an essay on the asymmetry between individual prejudice and state-sanctioned violence against Muslims. Builds on: "US state repression fuels Islamophobia and targets Muslim political dissent."

Carl W. Ernst, Islamophobia in America_ Th…, loc. 706