Responding to Islamophobia in Germany

• An independent expert panel has found Islamophobia is a significant issue in Germany
• As Muslims, we must return to the guidance of the Quran and Sunnah in responding to such problems

The Independent Expert Panel on Hostility against Muslims (UEM) in Germany spent three years compiling a 400-page report after analysing police statistics and other documented anti-Muslim incidents. 

The UEM was commissioned in 2020 by former Interior Minister, Horst Seehofer, after a far-right, anti-Muslim attack in Germany that left 10 dead and 5 injured in the city of Hanau.

The report reveals that hostility and discrimination against Muslims are commonplace in Germany, and in some cases, occur on a daily basis. Approximately one third of Muslims in the country have experienced religious hostility, but, as the report notes, this is likely to be much higher due to the tendency of Muslims not to report such incidents. In fact, the report estimates that only 10% of Muslims report hate crimes and hostility due to religion.

Saba-Nur Cheema, one of the experts on the panel, told Al Jazeera that almost half of Germans felt that Islam did not belong in Germany.

But how  should Muslims respond to such news?

The answer is likely multi-faceted. Islamophobia in non-Muslim societies is often born of a complex mixture of factors such as racism, xenophobia, ignorance, cultural perception, historical grievances, political occurrences, personal experience and ideological disagreements. We know that Allah told us:

وَلَن تَرۡضَىٰ عَنكَ ٱلۡیَهُودُ وَلَا ٱلنَّصَـٰرَىٰ حَتَّىٰ تَتَّبِعَ مِلَّتَهُمۡۗ

“The Jews and the Christians will never approve of you until you follow their religion.” [Al-Baqarah:120]

Al-Baqarah:120

This is a fact of life and an insight into our true place in the world – to think that disbelievers will love and accept Islam truly in their hearts, while remaining non-Muslim, is a fantasy and an exercise in delusion. To be a believer is to be, at some level, always a stranger to those not on the same path as you. While we should exercise wisdom and seek to improve relations between ourselves and those of other faiths, it is important to understand that true acceptance will not be achieved – and to compromise our principles in the hope of achieving this is ultimately futile.

However, a lack of approval or acceptance does not preclude peaceful co-existence and even social cohesion.

Allah says:

“Allah does not forbid you from those who do not fight you because of religion and do not expel you from your homes – from being righteous toward them and acting justly toward them. Indeed, Allah loves those who act justly.”

[All-Mumtahana:8]

As Muslims, our default position is that we behave with kindness and justice towards others…

And that we do not harm others, regardless of their religion. We believe that Allah has perfected our religion for us, and that He has created in it a perfect system by which all humans can live. Therefore, it is time to shed the chains of post-9/11 insecurity – of trying to seek the approval of others – rather, Muslims need to internalise the belief that we have something to offer the rest of the world.

Actualisation of this belief is perhaps one of the greatest tools of dawah for Muslims in non-Muslim society, and could work wonders in attacking the roots of Islamophobia. In a culture which is increasingly Godless, shameless and lawless, a group of people who behave with justice, who speak with honesty and integrity, who preserve their families, who believe in a higher purpose, are going to stand out. Undoubtedly, it is this phenomenon which has led to a number of high-profile conversions to Islam recently.

Chasing the approval of non-Muslims is unlikely to end Islamophobia – but taking pride in our faith and actualising it to better ourselves and society may just achieve something far greater.