I will begin with a simple claim: current forms of Islamophobia are not based primarily on a fear of Islam or hatred of Muslims. Hostility toward Muslims has a very long history in Western societies, as do admiration for the accomplishments of Islamic civilization and strategic alliances between Muslim and Christian polities. 2 The variants of Islamophobia explored in this volume borrow heavily from this old complex of ideas, but they are more directly related to the ambiguities of nationalism, a modern ideology that blends fellow feeling and cultural difference in complex, often unconvincing ways.

DEFINE: Reframes Islamophobia, distinguishing older hostilities from a nationalism-driven modern variant. QUESTION: What specific ambiguities of nationalism feed Islamophobia, and how does it reconcile with long-standing religious prejudice?

Carl W. Ernst, Islamophobia in America_ Th…, loc. 656