Embodied and emotional Islamophobia

Islamophobia is indeed expressed in everyday encounters, but it is first felt and experienced in people’s bodies and minds. Islamophobia affects the everyday life of Muslims, and especially that of women in hijab due to their great visibility. But all Muslim bodies (bearded bodies, full-covered bodies, veiled bodies, unveiled bodies, etc.) are concerned with embodied and emotional Islamophobia. Through a qualitative people-based approach and literature on the geographies of embodiment, emotions, intimacy and Islamophobia, this chapter shows that the Islamophobic oppressions experienced by the Parisian and London victims led them to adopt new behaviours, especially strategies of invisibility and normalcy. They constantly hide or adjust their religious identity in order to reduce potential anti-Muslim hostilities. Due to public Islamophobia, they develop significant internal fears and anxieties that strongly impact their sense of space and security, even pushing some of them to more private space, such as their homes. The intimate space of home, therefore, becomes for them an affective space in which they feel safer. Yet the home space can also be a place where Islamophobia manifests itself. Family members who have differing religions or interpretations of Islam may develop Islamophobic attitudes towards visible Muslim relatives who very often try to resist in a non-confrontational way. Through a qualitative people-based approach and literature on the geographies of embodiment, emotions, intimacy and Islamophobia, this chapter shows that the Islamophobic oppressions experienced by the Parisian and London victims led them to adopt new behaviours, especially strategies of invisibility and normalcy. Family members who have differing religions or interpretations of Islam may develop Islamophobic attitudes towards visible Muslim relatives who very often try to resist in a non-confrontational way. Muslim bodies and minds develop significant internal fears and anxieties that impact their sense of space. Muslim bodies can pursue strategies of invisibility when negotiating their Muslimness. After deploying strategies of invisibility or normalcy, Muslim bodies can also fall into a further strategy of intimacy by spending most of their time in the home space. Spatialized Islamophobia affects Muslim bodies and minds, while being connected to larger events of greater significance than mere personal practice or family quarrels.