Perception of Muslims and Islam in Australian Schools: A National Survey

Abstract

In Australia, attitudes towards Islam cannot be separated from the history of migration, the social and ethnic composition of Muslim communities, and the politics of global confl ict. In this context, racism, particularly in the form of cultural racism, joins and is voiced as disapproval of morality. Such negative views are widespread in media, academic, and government texts (Goodall and Jakubowicz 1994; Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission 2004). Internationally, negative stereotyping of Islam and Muslims has been linked to the fi rst Gulf War, the war in Iraq, September 11, and other terrorist attacks. Poynting notes the increase in assaults on people of “Middle Eastern appearance,” women wearing the hijab and men wearing “Islamic garb” after the outbreak of the fi rst Gulf War (Poynting 2002). Women and girls emerged as the most frequent targets. At the same time there was an increase in arson, vandalism and threats of assault directed towards the newly discovered “enemy within.” Poynting points to the role of tabloid media, in particular talk-back radio, in whipping up racist sentiments at this time, and in a similar way after September 11 (with a similar increase in racist incidents). A discourse joining Arab-Muslim-Terrorist worked to join the terms Gang-Rapist-Arab-Muslim by the same means, particularly in Sydney, following a series of sexual assaults in Bankstown (Poynting 2002, 44). Concern about Middle Eastern asylum seekers, particularly in the course of the 2001 Federal election campaign contributed to distrust, fear, and the emergence of racist discourses. In these instances politicians joined with powerful talkback personalities and columnists to create a sense of moral panic. This process highlights the fact that the media is primary source of information on Islam (not the Koran or direct contact) and what it stands for (Brasted 2001). The economic, historical and religious diversity of some sixty Muslim countries are rarely represented in media accounts. © H je lm , T itu s, M ay 1 1, 2 01 1, R el ig io n an d So ci al P ro bl em s