What is in the Scandinavian Nexus of ‘Islamophobia, Multiculturalism, and Muslim-Western Relations’?

Authors

  • Peter Hervik Aalborg University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17356/ieejsp.v1i1.29
Abstract Views: 1052 PDF Downloads: 1331

Abstract

Studies of European political party programmes, social movements, news media coverage, scores of books, and social media networks have embraced a negative dialogue towards migrants, whose identities are increasingly seen as incompatible with ‘Western’ values and presenting a major challenge to democracy. Sponsors of these public discourses support anti-immigration and oppositional stances to ‘migrant sympathizers’, who are often represented as traitors or cowards. They also fuel a process where xenophobia, Islamophobia and zero-tolerance have become naturalized and morally accepted ways to respond to the non-Western migrants. The objective of this article is to explore how this position embeds a number of other negativities, such as multiculturalists, feminists, and ‘liberals’ (left-wingers). The article approaches this coexistence of negativities as a ‘nexus of exclusionary beliefs’ with its blurred relations and taken for granted assumptions in the Muhammad Cartoon Affair in Denmark, the media coverage of the terrorist attack in Norway 2011; a blog entry about Radical Islam, feminism and left-wingers; and discussion about immigrant youth and drinking on a website connected to one of Denmark’s most popular radio programmes targeting younger listeners.

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Published

2015-03-19

How to Cite

[1]
Hervik, P. 2015. What is in the Scandinavian Nexus of ‘Islamophobia, Multiculturalism, and Muslim-Western Relations’?. Intersections. East European Journal of Society and Politics. 1, 1 (Mar. 2015). DOI:https://doi.org/10.17356/ieejsp.v1i1.29.