Mapping perceptions of Islamophobia in the San Francisco Bay Area, California

Abstract

ABSTRACT Recent debates in social and cultural geography on the inclusionary/exclusionary nature of space have brought our attention to the ‘everywhere different’ nature of racism across cities. Among these debates have been calls to interrogate the socio-spatial dimensions of new forms of racism, like Islamophobia as they evolve. This paper draws on the findings of an online survey conducted from September 2016 to April 2017 with young Muslim American residents of the Bay Area, California. It provides empirical material on the way young Muslims map ‘the geography of Islamophobia’ across this region to uncover how the racialization of Muslims has translated into perceptions of racism across city spaces. The findings indicate that Islamophobia occurs in various public spheres, particularly on public transport and in airports. There is a spatial concentration of Islamophobic spaces in the Bay Area, focussed in the North and Outer-East Bay regions – relatively rural parts of the region with a less significant Muslim population. Conversely, areas with larger Muslim populations were associated with lower levels of perceived Islamophobia. This paper highlights the need for more localised, socio-spatial engagements in racism that capture the evolving nature of the American racisms, and how they are spatialised across cities.