[A list (updated regularly) of news reports about Islam and Muslims. There are over 1000 going back over a year. They show why there might be such a thing as “Islamophobia".]
According to the British Social Attitudes survey, the largest of its kind, at least a third (34%) of the British public are negative about Muslims, not much more are neutral, and barely a quarter have positive feelings.
This is in stark contrast to the low level of any negative feelings (6% - 15%) and much higher positive feelings towards other religious groups.
Why is this?
Some Muslims put this down to ignorance. All would be well if only the British knew more about Islam, if they had read the Koran (in the original Arabic, some say), had things explained to them in the right way.
There is another and better explanation. It is the effects that Islam and Muslims have on the world around us. The religion is judged by what comes out of it, not by what experts and clerics claim it is about (often contradicting one another).
The simple truth is that Muslims following their faith do and say many things from the trivial to the very important that annoy, puzzle or repulse non-Muslims.
Judge for yourself
The headline usually is enough to explain what the story is about and the issue involved. In some cases a brief extract is given to make it clearer. Clicking on the title takes you to a fuller extract and the original article at its source.
The selection deliberately EXCLUDES terrorism, the Israeli/Palestinian problem, violent conflicts such as that in Afghanistan, and some cultural issues such as forced marriages and honour killings.
Sources include: The Guardian, BBC, The Daily Telegraph, The Daily Mail, Reuters, AP, AFP, Reuters, Standpoint, New Statesman, RNW (Dutch Radio News), Spielgel Online, regional papers such as Manchester Evening News, swissinfo, The Australian, Wall Street Journal, Sydney Morning Herald, The Boston Globe, and many more, and many leading news and political blogs.
