Ironically, while social discrimination against religious minorities is politically activated when confidence in America's institutions is at a low ebb, religious minorities' assertion of their rights through a defense of constitutional liberties speaks to the vitality of America's democratic institutions and their transformative role in assimilating minorities.

XREF: Connects to discussions of how marginalized groups' assertion of rights paradoxically reinforces the constitutional order — a theme in civil rights and political theory literature.

Carl W. Ernst, Islamophobia in America_ Th…, loc. 285