This work looks at the experiences of hate and discrimination Muslims face in Austria. Through the use of surveys, the work explores how anti-Muslim hate is a day-to-day part of an Austrian Muslim's life. It also examines Austria's history with its Muslim inhabitants, and the role institutions and politicians play in fomenting and amplifying anti-Muslim discourse amongst the populace.
The work also provides suggestions and recommendations for civil society and Muslim communities on how to try and address the issues faced by Muslims, in order to create a fairer and more just society.
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This book could not be timelier given the rise of fascism in Europe. Austria is at the forefront of this rise. The extreme right Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) is a powerful factor in Austrian politics with support from one third of the electorate. This report details the influence of Islamophobia on the individual life of Muslims and on the institutional level in the public domain. It starts with a description of the history of Muslim communities in Austria since 1529. It explains how Islamophobia got institutionalized through the FPO campaign to stop "foreign infiltration" in 1999. The campaign got the FPO into a government coalition with the conservative Christian Democrats that year.
The book contains a wealth of qualitative and quantitative data on how Islamophobia penetrated every aspect of public life in Austria and the disastrous impact on the daily lives of Muslims. This book is a must read for everybody following the rise of the extreme right in Europe.
- Sandew Hira is secretary of the Decolonial International Network.
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Saied R. Ameli is Professor of Communications at the University of Tehran. He is currently a member of Department of Communications and the director of the UNESCO Chair on Cyberspace and Culture,and Cyberspace Policy Research Center, Faculty of World Studies at the University of Tehran.
Ebrahim Mohseni Ahoeei is a Senior Researcher at the Cyberspace Research Policy Center, University of Tehran and PhD Student, Communication and New Media Studies, University of Vienna
