Islamophobia in Norway

Islamophobia in Norway refers to the set of discourses, behaviours and structures which express feelings of anxiety, fear, hostility and rejection towards Islam and/or Muslims in Norway.[1][2] Islamophobia can manifest itself through discrimination in the workforce, negative coverage in the media, and violence against Muslims.

Discrimination

In October 2015, a Muslim convert named Malika Bayan was turned away from a hair salon in Bryne by a hairdresser named Merete Hodne who said the Bayan's headscarf was "a totalitarian symbol." Hodne also said that Islam was not a religion, but rather a political ideology. Hodne was subsequently charged 10,000 kroner for religious discrimination.[3] Former MP Peter N. Myhre sided with Hodne, arguing a hijab was similar to a Nazi uniform and denounced the court system for convicting her of discrimination.[4] It was revealed by Norwegian media prior to the court ruling that Merete Hodne was once a member of the anti-Islam group PEGIDA.[5]

In employment

A 2012 study by researchers at the Institutt for Samfunnsforskning found that job applicants with Pakistani-sounding or Muslim-sounding names received 25% less callbacks from employers than 'ethnic' Norwegian applicants given exact similar qualifications and work experience.[6] An older 2006 study concluded that Somali and Iraqi immigrants faced the most discrimination of any immigrant group in the labor market and housing.[7]

In education

Research by the Institutt for Samfunnsforskning in 2014 concluded that the coverage of Islam and Muslims in Norway in an academic setting further negative societal attitudes.[8]

In politics

In August 2014, Progress Party MP Ulf Leirstein was criticized for making reference to the Eurabia conspiracy theory in reference to immigration.[9] Leirstein also accused Muslim MP Hadia Tajik of supporting ISIS and practicing taqiyya.[10] Vice Chairman of the Progress Party, MP Per Sandberg, defended Leirstein's statements as "freedom of expression."[9]

Following a March 2017 ruling by the European Court of Human Rights, former leader of the Progress Party, Carl I. Hagen, expressed support for banning municipality employees in Oslo from wearing a hijab.[11]

In the media

The Convention Against All Forms of Racial Discrimination raised concerns in 2015 about an "increase in... [hate] speech and xenophobic discourse by politicians, in the media and in other public platforms" in Norway.[12]

In the justice system

The Norwegian government has been criticized by the European Council’s European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance, the United Nation’s Convention Against All Forms of Racial Discrimination Commission, and the Norwegian Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud for a lack of sustained efforts against hate speech.[13] The first ever sentence against a Norwegian citizen for hate speech targeting a Muslim was in October 2014.[14] Norwegian Muslims interviewed for a newspaper report about this issue in August 2015 asserted that "Muslims do not report hate crimes" since they had "no confidence in the police taking it seriously."[15]

Hate crimes

Some mosques in Norway have been victim of arson attacks.[16] In February 2015, three men were charged with racist-motivated violence against two Norwegian Kurds in downtown Oslo. The perpetrators allegedly yelled “Fucking Muslims, you don’t have anything to do here” and “Go back, fucking terrorists” while kicking and punching the victims in their heads and bodies. Two of the perpetrators had ties to neo-Nazi groups in Norway.[17]

2011 Norway attacks

The 2011 Norway attacks refer to two terrorist attacks in Norway committed by far-right extremist, Anders Behring Breivik. The first attack was a car bomb explosion in Oslo within Regjeringskvartalet, the executive government quarter of Norway, at 15:25:22 (CEST).[18] The explosion killed eight people and injured at least 209 people, twelve of them seriously.[19][20][21] The second attack occurred less than two hours later at a summer camp on the island of Utøya in Tyrifjorden, Buskerud. The camp was organized by the AUF, the youth division of the ruling Norwegian Labour Party (AP). Breivik, dressed in a homemade police uniform and showing false identification,[22][23] took a ferry to the island and opened fire at the participants, killing 68 of them outright,[24][25] and injuring at least 110 people, 55 of them seriously;[20][21] the 69th victim died in a hospital two days after the massacre.[26] Analysts described him as having Islamophobic views and a hatred of Islam,[27][28] and as someone who considered himself as a knight dedicated to stemming the tide of Muslim immigration into Europe.[29][30] In a manifesto, he describes opposition to what he saw as the Islamisation of Europe as his motive for carrying out the attacks.[31]

Organizations

Fedrelandet viktigst

Fedrelandet viktigst is a Facebook group for Norwegians opposed to immigration. The group was mocked after it posted a picture of empty bus seats, which it had mistaken for burka-clad women. Users in the group claimed it represented the "Islamification" of Norway. Rune Berglund Steen, the leader of the Norwegian Centre Against Racism, said the irrational response to six empty bus seats demonstrates that "people see what they want to see and what they want to see are dangerous Muslims."[32]

Norwegian Defence League

The Norwegian Defense League is an anti-Islamic[33][34][35] group closely associated with the English Defence League (EDL).[33][34] The NDL is an offshoot of the European Defence League and was formed around New Year 2010/2011, inspired by the EDL which had been formed in 2009. There were conflicts regarding the leadership of the group, and it was immersed in a struggle involving multiple competing factions in early 2011. The group was eventually led by Lena Andreassen for about a month until she was dismissed by EDL appointed liaison officer Steve Simmons following a failed demonstration that was held on 9 April 2011. The NDL has been headed by a board of administrators since then, and one of its leading figures has been Ronny Alte. Alte said that the group is not far-right or racist and that the NDL seeks to gather people of all races to fight for democracy and freedom of speech, which he said is threatened by "the ideology Islam." He also said that the group is not anti-Islam, but Islam-critical.[35] Alte resigned abruptly both as leader and member of the NDL on 19 April 2012 over a dispute with the rest of the organisation's leadership related to its connection with Anders Behring Breivik.[36]

Stop Islamisation of Norway

Stop Islamisation of Norway is a Norwegian organisation which was established in 2008, although its history goes back to a group started in 2000.[37] Its stated aim is to work against Islam, which it defines as a totalitarian political ideology that violates the Norwegian Constitution as well as democratic and human values.[38] The organisation is led by Arne Tumyr, and has several thousand members and supporters.[38] While the group claims to solely criticize religion, it has been accused of promoting stigmatization, exclusion, and discrimination towards Norwegian Muslims.[39]

Opposition

The Norwegian Centre Against Racism and the Organisation Against Public Discrimination work to counter what they view as discriminatory attitudes and ideas. The Lutheran State Church in Norway encourages interfaith dialogue and relations with Norwegian Muslims. The Church also has contacts with the Islamic Council Norway.[40]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Richardson, Robin (2012), Islamophobia or anti-Muslim racism – or what? – concepts and terms revisited (PDF), p. 7, retrieved 10 December 2016
  2. ↑ Hogan, Linda; Lehrke, Dylan (2009). Religion and politics of Peace and Conflict. Wipf and Stock Publishers. p. 205. ISBN 9781556350672.
  3. ↑ "Norway hairdresser fined for turning away client in hijab". The Local. 12 September 2016. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  4. ↑ "Strong reactions in Norway to hijab discrimination verdict". The Local. 13 September 2016. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  5. ↑ "Norway hairdresser fined for turning away client in hijab". The Local. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  6. ↑ Midtbøen, Arnfinn; Rogstad, Jon (2012). "Diskrimineringens omfang og årsaker: Etniske minoriteters tilgang til norsk arbeidsliv" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Institutt For Samfunnsforskning. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  7. ↑ Tronstad, Kristian R. (2008). "Levekår blant innvandrere i Norge 2005/06". Statistisk Sentralbyrå. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  8. ↑ Midtbøen, Arnfinn H.; Orupabo, Julia; Røthing, Åse (2014). "Etniske og religiøse minoriteter i læremidler". Institutt for Samfunnsforskning.
  9. 1 2 Bangstad, Sindre (2016). "Recoding Nationalism: Islam, Muslims and Islamophobia in Norway". Islamophobia Studies Yearbook: 44. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  10. ↑ Blindheim, Anne Marte (23 August 2014). "Uheldig muslimdominans å ha Hadeda Taquia som leder i justiskomitéen". Dagbladet. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  11. ↑ "Norwegian politician wants to ban hijab in workplaces". The Local. 17 March 2017. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  12. ↑ Bangstad 2016, p. 417.
  13. ↑ Bangstad 2016, p. 409.
  14. ↑ Bangstad 2016, p. 410-411.
  15. ↑ Stokke, Olga; Torset, Nina Selbo; Slettholm, Andreas (4 August 2015). "Muslimer anmelder ikke hatkriminalitet. De har null tillit til at politiet tar det alvorlig.". Aftenposten. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  16. ↑ "Woman attempted to set fire to Oslo mosque". The Local. 20 May 2016. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  17. ↑ Thjømøe, Silje Løvstad (22 April 2015). "Tiltalt for rasistisk motivert vold: «Fucking muslims, you don't have anything to do here»". VG-lista.
  18. ↑ "Eksplosjonen i Oslo sentrum 22. juli 2011" [The explosion in Oslo 22 July 2011] (in Norwegian). 23 July 2011. Archived from the original on 17 April 2012. Retrieved 1 August 2011.
  19. ↑ "Dette er Breivik tiltalt for" [Breivik's indictment] (in Norwegian). NRK. 7 March 2012.
  20. 1 2 "Oslo government district bombing and Utøya island shooting July 22, 2011: The immediate prehospital emergency medical service response". Scandinavian Journal of Trauma, Resuscitation and Emergency Medicine. 26 January 2012.
  21. 1 2 "Læring for bedre beredskap; Helseinnsatsen etter terrorhendelsene 22. juli 2011" (in Norwegian). 9 March 2012. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013.
  22. ↑ "Slik skaffet han politiuniformen" [How he obtained the uniform]. NRK (in Norwegian). 24 July 2011.
  23. ↑ "Slik var Behring Breivik kledd for å drepe" [How Behring Breivik was dressed to kill]. Dagbladet (in Norwegian). 20 November 2011.
  24. ↑ "Terrorofrene på Utøya og i Oslo". Verdens Gang (in Norwegian). Schibsted ASA. Archived from the original on 9 September 2011. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
  25. ↑ "Navn på alle terrorofre offentliggjort". Verdens Gang (in Norwegian). Schibsted ASA. 29 July 2011. Archived from the original on 23 November 2011. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
  26. ↑ "En av de sårede døde på sykehuset" [One of the wounded died in hospital]. Østlendingen (in Norwegian). 24 July 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
  27. ↑ Sindre Bangstad. "After Anders Breivik's conviction, Norway must confront Islamophobia". The Guardian. Retrieved 2016-07-24.
  28. ↑ "AFP: Norway remembers 77 victims a month after massacre". Google. 21 August 2011. Archived from the original on 7 January 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2012.
  29. ↑ Starla Muhammad (19 August 2011). "Tragedy in Norway Borne Out of Seeds of Racism and Intolerance in UK, EU". New America Media. Retrieved 21 January 2012.
  30. ↑ Godfrey, Hannah (19 August 2011). "Utøya island shooting victims return to scene of Breivik's killing spree". The Guardian. London.
  31. ↑ Birnbaum, Elisa; Goodman, David J. (22 July 2011). "At Least 80 Are Dead in Norway Shooting". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
  32. ↑ "Norwegian anti-immigrant Facebook groups confuses empty bus seats with 'terrorists'". The Local. 31 July 2017. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  33. 1 2 Tollefsen, Katrine Berg (July 27, 2011). "Var medlem av Norsk forsvarsallianse" [Was a member of Norwegian Defence Alliance] (in Norwegian). Lillehammer, Norway: P4. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
  34. 1 2 "Norwegian Defence League" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Defence League. Archived from the original on March 2, 2012. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  35. 1 2 Beyer-Olsen, Audun (August 6, 2011). "Leder den islamfiendlige organisasjonen NDL" [Leads the Islam-hostile organization NDL]. Tønsbergs Blad (in Norwegian). Tønsberg, Norway. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
  36. ↑ Svardal, Yngve Garen; Skjærstad, Bent (April 19, 2012). "Leiaren for Norwegian Defence League har trekt seg" [The leader of Norwegian Defence League has resigned] (in Norwegian). TV 2. Retrieved April 21, 2012.
  37. ↑ Tumyr, Arne (5 November 2010). "Spørsmål om SIAN og islam". Stopp islamiseringen av Norge (in Norwegian). Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  38. 1 2 Andersen, Atle (9 July 2011). "Advarer mot islamister". Stavanger Aftenblad (in Norwegian). Retrieved 9 July 2011.
  39. ↑ Bangstad 2016, p. 415.
  40. ↑ Bangstad 2016, p. 418.

Sources

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