Abstract
The largest part of the existing literature with regard to Islamophobia in Greece focuses primarily on the policies, activities and discourse of politicians and political groups of the extreme right, Orthodox Church figures, state authorities, the media and the Internet. The purpose of this article is to cast light on an aspect which is frequently neglected in the study of Islamophobia, i.e., the role of public intellectuals, through a series of questions: Where do public intellectuals in Greece stand with regard to Islamophobia? What are the main themes in their public discourse with regard to Islam and Muslims? What is the role they play in the reproduction of Islamophobic views? Having in mind the debates over the concepts of Islamo-Fascism, Islamo-leftism, Islamophilia and Islamophobia, this article builds on the literature about the role of intellectuals in society with a special focus on their views about Islam. Analysing the discourse of three public intellectuals, the main argument is that Islamophobia in Greece is not an exclusive element of the extreme-right or the Orthodox Church. Self-proclaimed progressive or liberal intellectuals, through their public discourse, also contribute to the reproduction and entrenchment of the fear and moral panic about Islam.
Highlights
The term Islamophobia dates back more than two decades and continues to give rise to heated debates in politics, the media and academia, especially, not exclusively, in Western societies (Runnymed Trust 1997; Fekete 2009; Esposito and Kalin 2011; Morgan and Poynting 2012; Cesari 2013; Pratt and Woodlock 2016)
Where do public intellectuals in Greece stand with regard to Islamophobia in general and Islamophobia in Greece in particular? Which are the main themes in their public discourse with regard to Islam and Muslims? Do they reproduce
Bearing in mind the questions asked at the beginning, the first concluding remark is that all three intellectuals play a critical role in the Islamophobia field, reproducing Islamophobia through their opinion pieces, books and interviews
Summary
The term Islamophobia dates back more than two decades and continues to give rise to heated debates in politics, the media and academia, especially, not exclusively, in Western societies (Runnymed Trust 1997; Fekete 2009; Esposito and Kalin 2011; Morgan and Poynting 2012; Cesari 2013; Pratt and Woodlock 2016). Despite the above, paying closer attention to the dominant discourses about Islam and Muslims in the Greek public sphere, someone could observe that Islamophobia is not an exclusive characteristic found among the extreme right, some Orthodox Church figures and journalists or alleged specialists on Islam and Turkey on the Internet and beyond. It is important to thoroughly study public intellectuals’ discourse and to cast light on their views about Islam, Muslims and Islamophobia. These public intellectuals’ discourses should be considered as important as those reproduced by extreme right wingers or religious figures and academic attention should be paid in order to understand their content and place in the broader field. On the other hand, to examine any conceptual relations with the developments in other Western societies
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
