University of Amsterdam
MSc in Conflict Resolution and
Governance
Coping With Islamophobia
An Analysis of Coping Strategies Practiced by Muslim Women in the Netherlands
Name: Abeer Abu-Rubieh
Student Identification Card Number: 11218886 In partial fulfillment of the requirements for MSc degree in:
Conflict Resolution & Governance Date of Submission: 30- 06- 2017
Supervisor: Dr. A. Van Heelsum Second reader: Dr. Vivienne Matthies-Boon
To my wonderful parents for their continual support and encouragement that led me here, and to my amazing siblings for always being there for me.
Acknowledgments
To all of the amazing, courageous Muslim women I’ve had the priviledge to meet, to remember It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters
-Epictetus
Dr. A. Van Heelsum, thank you for your patience and guidance that you’ve consistently provided me. Alongside these inspiring individuals, I would also like to thank my colleagues
for continuously motivating me and supporting me throughout it all: Barbara, Joanna, Vikki and Iris.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction………..………..….…..5
1.1 Research issue………..……….……5
1.2 Aim and Objective………..………..5
1.3 Relevance……….………....……….………5
1.4 Emergence of Islamophobia……….………….………6
1.4.1 Role of media……….………….………....7
1.4.2 Xenophobic political rhetoric……….………….……….……...……….8
2. Theoretical framework…………..………..…….…...9
2.1 Islamophobia……….………...…….……….…….9
2.1.1 Gendered dimensions of Islamophobia……….……….11
2.2 Coping models..……….……….……….11
2.3 Stress, appraisal and coping model……...…….……….………..…………...12
2.4 Responses to Stigmatization……..…….……….……….…..……….…13
2.5 Coping……….………..…….……..………..………..……….14
3. Methods……….…...17
3.1 Design and fieldwork………...………...…...17
3.2 Methodology………..………...……18
3.3 Respondents………..………...…….18
3.4 Ethics/limitations………..………...……...…....20
3.4.1 Ethics………..………...……...……..…...…...20
3.4.2 Limitations………..………...……..…..……...20
4. Experiences and reactions of Muslim women ………….………..……….….…22
4.1 Experiences of Islamophobia……….22
4.2 Passive coping strategies………..………..24
4.2.1 Defining passive coping ………..……....25
4.2.2 Extent of Passive coping.……..…………..…………..…………..………...27
4.3 Aggressive coping strategies……….………..32
4.3.1 Defining Aggressive coping ……….….…32
4.3.2 Extent of Aggressive coping …….………..…………..…………....32
4.4 Conflict solving coping strategies……….………..……….…....37
4.4.1 Defining Conflict solving coping.…….………..………..37
4.4.2 Extent of Conflict solving coping….…….………..………...37
5. Conclusion………..………..………..……….39
5.1 How do Muslim women in the Netherlands cope?……….……….………....39
5.1.1 Commitments………..…………..………..……..……40 5.1.2 Beliefs………..………..………..…..……..…….40 5.1.3 Self………..………..………..………....………..40 5.2 Corresponding literature………..………..……….43 5.3 Limitations………..………..………..……….41 5.4Discussion………..………..………..………..42 6.References………..………..………..…………...…44 4
1. Introduction
1.1 Research Issue
Islam, like many religions, has identifiable worshippers and unidentifiable worshipers. In many cases, women are more likely to be identifiable. Headdresses make Muslim women easily discernable, and consequently more prone to physical and verbal aggression. This study will focus on Muslim women, the Islamophobia they face, and their reactionary coping mechanisms. This study draws on previous literature on coping strategies within marginalized and stigmatized groups to guide the direction of the research. While the prominence of Islamophobia has garnered vast attention and research from academics, the study of how Muslims, especially women, cope with Islamophobia is extremely deficient. This study will target Islamophobia, its effects, and the resilience and vulnerabilities of women in dealing physical and verbal harassment.
1.2 Aim and Objective
This study’s scope while focused on, is not limited to, the coping mechanism of Muslim women. It shall also examine the attitudes and discriminatory experiences Muslim women are subjected to within the Netherlands. Not until the experiences of Muslim women in the Netherlands are framed and established can a sufficient examination of their reactions be conducted. Majority of recent studies exploring prejudice towards Muslims reports strong evidence that prejudice is indeed present in many western nations and that Muslims are targets of prejudiced attitudes and discriminatory practices. Many argue that these attitudes and unjust behavior towards Muslims classifies as what is known as, Islamophobia. With such a relevant and growing phenomenon, it is of utmost importance in examining how Muslim women are coping, in order to see what the government and civil society can do, to contribute in assisting in combating Islamophobia.
1.3 Relevance
While some social scientists argue whether or not Islamophobic prejudice is a real problem that should be investigated (Jaspal and Cinnirella, 2010), I assert Islamophobia, like anti-semitism and homophobia, have adverse consequences and must be treated as an harmful phenomenon. Islamophobia should be regarded as a growing and serious threat to the coexistence of Muslims and non-Muslims within the Netherlands. Since 2005, it has been noted the Dutch have a relatively low opinion of Muslims (Van der Valk, 2012). The Pew Research Center states that the proportion of the Dutch population with negative views on Muslims is around 50%, which has been relatively consistent since 2005 (Ibid.). With the recent wave of terror attacks occurring across Europe, it is anticipated that these views will propel into something more threatening. A total of 117 acts of violence against mosques were recorded between the years of 2005-2010 (Ibid.). OSCE, a hate crime data collection site, reported in 2015 , 1 2,215 of the 5,288 reported hate crimes recorded by the police in the Netherlands was, racist and xenophobic incidents (Hatecrime.osce.org, 2017).
Muslims experiencing Islamophobia manage additional stressors within their daily lives, whether it's the fear of being harassed in public or being treated differently because of their choice of clothing, they are conscious of their identity and its significance in how they are treated. It is not only the nature of the stressor that is difficult but the ability to cope effectively. Investigating how Muslim women cope with the Islamophobia they face in their daily lives can demonstrate the shortcomings of both the the Islamic and Dutch community. Primarily, by their lack of sufficient resources to assist Muslim women coping with Islamophobia. This highlights the significance of the central research question that this study addresses: How do Muslim women in the Netherlands cope with Islamophobia?
1.4 Emergence of Islamophobia
Nearly two decades after the 9/11 terror attacks on the United States, an event that continues to impact the lives of those who lost loved ones but also the lives of Muslims who are victims of constant discrimination, harassment and suspicion for the actions of terrorists who falsely claim to represent them. The events of 9/11 served as a catalyst to the Islamophobic discourse that would eventually dominate most of the Western world. In the wake of the 9/11 attacks, the relationship between the Muslim minority in Western countries and the homogenous majority transformed into a dichotomy of us and them. This
1 The most recent hate crime data collection with no present annual reports following 2015 (Hatecrime.osce.org, 2017)
characterization only intensified discrimination and heightened the challenges for Muslims worldwide (Allen, 2010). In a YouGov poll conducted in the UK, 84 percent of British people reported feeling more suspicious about Muslims after 9/11, while 63 percent suggested that Muslims did little in helping to promote tolerance between themselves and others (Ibid., p.84). Subsequently, a moral panic ensued which led to a debate campaigned by many political parties suggesting stricter immigration and policing controls (Saeed, 2011). The focal point of their debate was primarily drawn on Muslims’ alleged incompatibility with the Western world (Ibid).
In the US, shortly after the attacks of 9/11, the NSEERS program (National Security Entry-Exit program) was initiated (Brown, 2017). The program was not meant to restrict Muslim migration from countries with known associative ties to terrorist organizations such as Iraq and Afghanistan. People from Muslim majority nations were required additional screenings such as interviews and fingerprinting (Ibid.). While programs like this were implemented, many politicians around the world began adopting various approaches to the lingering threat of Islamic Jihadists. One Dutch politician, Pim Fortuyn, was described as one of the trailblazers of Anti-Muslim immigration (Morgan & Poynting, 2012), accusing the Turkish and Moroccan communities of not adapting to Dutch values or traditions, warning the Dutch public of an inevitable ‘Islamisation” of their society (Ibid.). Nine days before the general election, in which he was a candidate, Pim Fortuyn was assassinated (Ibid.). He was shot by Volkert Van der Graaf, an environmental activist who stated he feared the threat Fortuyn posed to minority rights. Two years after the murder of Pim Fortuyn, controversial filmmaker Theo Van Gogh was shot eight times by Mohammed Bouyeri, a man with both Moroccan and Dutch nationality (Ibid.). Van Gogh was also stabbed and a letter pinned on him that addressed threats to Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Ali and Van Gogh had recently shot a short film titledSubmission which highlighted sexual and domestic abuse within a Muslim family, which was both deemed highly offensive and controversial (Ibid.). Following the murder of Van Gogh, more than 80 incidents against Muslims were recorded, of those reported cases, one Muslim school was burnt down, another one had a bomb placed near it, and a mosque was burned down by a neo-nazi group (Allen, 2010).
Over the course of several years, the international community began to witness some of the deadliest terrorist attacks on European soil. Several incidents included a bombing and mass shooting in Paris that left 130 people dead and many hundreds more injured; ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack. Several months later, in March, 34 people were killed
and almost 200 people were wounded in Brussels when three bombings occurred; two of which went off in an airport and the other set off in a subway station. ISIS again claimed responsibility. On Bastille day, a truck plowed in crowd of people, killing 84 and wounding hundreds more, the attacker had allegedly been radicalized by ISIS and its violent rhetoric. Consequently, the attacks triggered an immense sense of fear that traveled across Europe. ISIS was successful in inflicting fear in the masses. Consequently, these attacks along with several other factors legitimized the rise of a divisive society plagued by Islamophobia.
1.4.1 Role of the Media
Indisputably, the media contributes a great deal to the anti-Muslim discourse we see today. It plays a significant role in shaping the public’s perceptions. It has the ability to both educate the public on unfamiliar matters or it has the ability to reinforce fears and anxieties towards the unfamiliar. An extensive research conducted by Philo & Berry, examined the role framing had on the public’s understanding of the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict (Poole and Richardson, 2010). Philo & Berry highlight the connection between “processes, content and audiences, showing how news about events are constructed” (Ibid.). Philo & Berry’s findings show that audiences in the West understand conflict in relation to the way it had been framed (Idem). What many news media channels are doing, nowadays are just reinforcing the dominant viewpoints through framing. What that entails is demonizing certain others, providing the focal source of fear and anxiety of that other (Morgan and Poynting, 2012).This became incredibly visible after the attacks on Norway on July 22, 2011. Political 2 blogger/commentator Glenn Greenwald describes the reactionary bigotry, stating:
“When it became apparent that Muslims were not involved and that, in reality, it was a right-wing nationalist with extremely anti-Muslim, strident anti-Muslim bigotry as part of his worldview, the word 'terrorism' almost completely disappeared from establishment media discourse. Instead, he began to be referred to as a 'madman' or an 'extremist,'" says Greenwald. “It really underscores, for me, the fact that this word 'terrorism,' that plays such a central role in our political discourse and our law, really has no objective meaning. It’s come to mean nothing more than Muslims who engage in violence."
- Glenn Greenwald on Democracy Now!, 2011
2 On July 22, 2011,Anders Behring Breivik, a right wing Christian extremist with a deep hatred of Muslims
orchestrated a bombing, resulting in eight people dead in and 69 young people dead in a nearby island. (Library, 2017).
Along with media, politics serve as a consequential role in contributing to the anti-Islamic sentiment manifested all through the international community. These politicians present the actions of radical Islamists to justify collectively treating all Muslims with suspicion. These politicians utilize fear for their own benefit, branding multi-culturalism as a threat to their nationalistic identity. Consequently, the pressure added on Europe by the rational fear of yet another terror attack has contributed to the rise of nationalistic and right-wing rhetoric.
1.4.2 Role of Xenophobic Political Rhetoric
Political parties like the PVV has made its Islamophobic sentiments quite clear over3 the years (Van der Valk, 2012). In particular, politicians like Geert Wilders, who has built his identity around controversial and inflammatory remarks targeting the Muslim community. During a political rally in 2014, Wilders incited a crowd by asking “Do you want more or fewer Moroccans?” with the crowd chanting back “fewer, fewer, fewer” in which he responded “then I’ll arrange it” (Frayer, 2017). This later resulted in Geert Wilders being sued by more than 5,000 dutch citizens for discrimination. Wilders was convicted of inciting discrimination against Moroccans, but no punishment was levied against him (Ibid.). In their 2010 election manifesto, they proposed to halt the building and opening of new mosques and the closure of some that “preached” violence, and a cease of migrant flows from Muslim-majority countries (Van der Valk, 2012). Wilders’ warns of the “Islamization” of the Western world. He has stated “you walk down the street and you can see where it is going. You don’t feel as though you live in your own country any more. There is a battle going on and we have to defend ourselves. Soon there will be more mosques than churches!”. (Idem., p.48) Research shows that perceived threats can be instrumentalized to legitimize discrimination against immigrants and Muslim minorities (Verkuyten, 2011). When you have a political figure reinforcing stereotypes, discrimination and hate, there is an increased chance of marginalization and violence towards vulnerable minority groups (Foran, 2017). This persistent vilification of Islam has emboldened Islamophobes and increased the prevalence of hate crimes. In order to better understand how to reconcile the ugliness of islamophobia, we must analyze the coping strategies utilized by Muslims against stigmatization, discrimination and racism. This brings us to the next section; theoretical views on coping with Islamophobia.
3PVV-Party for Freedom, a Dutch nationalist and right-wing populist political party in the Netherlands
2. Theoretical Framework
To examine the growing phenomenon of Islamophobia and the central theoretical concept of coping in greater detail I draw on multifarious literature, in which each concept is meticulously evaluated. Afterword, a theoretical model is brought forward as a lens to make sense of the coping strategies practiced in contact with Islamophobia. Lazarus & Folkman's Stress, Appraisal and Coping (1984) and Lamont and Mizrachi’s Responses to Stigmatization Project (2012) are assiduously examined and both models’ coping strategies are presented. Furthermore certain components attributed within each framework are deliberately adopted in pursuance of definitively characterizing each coping strategy conceptually.
2.1 Islamophobia
The literature developed on Islamophobia is dominated substantially by; empirical studies, media discourse analysis and socio-psychological approaches (Sayyid, 2014). Much of what has already been researched has been successful in illustrating the various kinds of expressions of Islamophobia but less successful in understanding the phenomena (Ibid.). The use of the term Islamophobia in the political and academic world emerged in the mid 90s when the British Think Tank The Runnymede Trust published a report on Islamophobia that offered two analytic frameworks (Holloway, 2017). The first report noted eight distinctions that clarified the difference between ‘open’ and ‘closed’ views of Islam (Holloway, 2017) (1)
monolithic vs. diverse; (2) separate vs. interacting; (3) Inferior vs. different; (4) enemy vs. partner; (5) manipulative vs. sincere; (6) Criticism of West rejected vs. considered; (7) discrimination defended vs. discrimination criticized and (8) Islamophobia seen as natural vs. problematic (Ibid.). The second framework identified four ways in which Islamophobia established itself within British society, and the negative implications it had on British Muslims (Ibid.) Listed was: (1)Exclusion; (2)Violence (physical assaults, vandalism, verbal abuse); (3) Prejudice (in the media, daily conversation), and (4) Discrimination. Furthermore, the report itself was recognized as the first evidence based report on Islamophobia (Ibid).
Islamophobia will be defined according to the definition put forth by Chakraborti & Zempi (2012) as "a fear or hatred of Islam that translates into ideological and material forms of cultural racism against obvious markers of Muslimness” (Ibid.,p.271). Through the lens of
the non-muslim individual, Islamophobia emerges as a new kind of racism which can lead to 'legitimized' violence towards 'visible' Muslims (Idem). In line with this definition, this thesis references five clusters of activities that one would describe as acts of Islamophobia (Sayyid, 2014); (1) Attacks on individuals perceived to be Muslim, attacks referring to: verbal abuse,
pushing, spitting, pulling hijabs, various kinds of beating. (2) Attacks on property associated to Muslims (Mosques, Muslim owned businesses) such as vandalism (graffiti, broken
windows), arson. (3) Acts of Intimidation, usually involving an organized group of individuals marching through Muslim communities, Quran burning and anti-Islamic demonstrations. (4) Within institutional settings, those perceived to be Muslim receive less favorable treatment than their colleagues, these include: harassment, bullying, jokes, distribution of tasks (Idem).
Although Sayyid’s definition of Islamophobia is distinguished, generally speaking, not all clusters will be applicable to the participants in this research. On that premise, it was decided that it would be best to continue drawing from Sayyid’s working definition but establish two major elements that are germane, in the lives of Muslim women. In this research, experiencing Islamophobia will be regarded as a) Negative stereotyping in the media b) Direct negative contact.
2.1.1 Gendered Dimensions
In contemporary surroundings amidst the Western world, the Islamic veil serves symbolically as a “threat” to its core identity and values. It signifies dissimilarity, lack of conformity and visibility as the other (Chakraborti and Zempi, 2012). As a consequence, Muslim women are considerably more likely to be victims of Islamophobia (Idem). The otherization of the Islamic veil, and the heightened sense of vulnerability Muslim women adhering to the Islamic dress code, indicates there are indeed gender dimensions to Islamophobia (Idem). Veiled Muslim women living in non-Muslim countries are notably greater at being recognized in the public as visible Muslims, therefore being more vulnerable targets of Islamophobic acts (Idem). The verbal and physical attacks on veiled Muslim women are more hurtful than ordinary crimes because the attack is primarily upon the victim's core identity (Idem). Regrettably, Islamophobic Victimization has many serious implications, leaving some victims psychologically scarred and significantly impacting their overall sense of safety, security and belonging (Idem). Chakraborti and Zempi (2012) state "stereotypes about Muslim women's passivity (particularly if wearing a veil) renders them
'ideal subjects' against whom to enact Islamophobic attacks"(Idem., 276). This widely held perception of veiled women as 'passive' and 'submissive' has ineluctably functioned in increasing the chances of both verbal and physical assaults on Muslim women (Idem).
2.2 Coping Models
Coping, simply refers to the ways people deal with stressors in their daily lives. Stigmatized, discriminated and/or marginalized groups deal with a higher level of stress, with several authors having recently determined stigma as a very powerful stressor (Crocker et al., 1998; Clark et al., 1999; Miller and Kaiser 2001; Major and O'Brien 2005)(Berjot & Gillet, 2011). Lazarus and Folkman (1984) define coping as the following: " constantly changing cognitive and behavioral efforts to manage specific external and internal demands that are appraised as taxing or exceeding the resources of the person”(Lazarus and Folkman, 1984, p.141). Whereas Lamont and Mizrachi (2012) focus more specifically on identifying responses to stigmatization as follows "the rhetorical and strategic tools deployed by individual members of stigmatized groups in reaction to perceived stigmatization, racism and discrimination" (Lamont and Mizrachi, 2012, p.366). There are some types of coping mechanisms which are unsuccessful as “non-coping”. A person who responds to a stressor using a coping mechanism but isn't able to positively ward off the stressor or solve the stressful situation hasn't coped with the stress at all. Although coping has been greatly researched and well described conceptually, there is not much recent literature that discusses Muslim women's coping strategies specifically.
2.3 The Stress, Appraisal and Coping Model (1984)
One of the main theoretical outlooks that is applied throughout this study is the, Stress, appraisal and Coping model (1984). It should be noted, elements from this theory are carefully selected based on its relevance towards the research study. For this reason, certain elements will be omitted during the application of theory in chapter 4.
The Transactional Model of Stress and Coping is a theoretical framework created with an emphasis on appraisal to evaluation of threat and challenges that would result in the process of coping with stressful events (Lazarus and Folkman, 1984). Through this process,
individuals interpret stressors as a potential challenge or threat primary appraisal. Secondly, sufficient or insufficient resources are evaluated to cope with the interpreted stressors
secondary appraisal (Idem). If the resources to cope with the potential challenge during
primary appraisalare insufficient, then individuals are more likely to develop stress, which is then divided into two forms of coping problem focused coping and emotion focused coping (Ibid.). Lazarus and Folkman (1984) point out that stigmatized individuals are not as passive when confronted with discrimination and that the process is determined based on interpretation and interaction of person and situation factors, which create appraisal of the situation and fundamentally determines which coping strategies an individual selects. This process is recognized and treated later on in chapter four.
Lazarus and Folkman (1984) state, “in a transactional model, separate person and environment elements join together to form new meanings via appraisal” (Ibid., p.326). Lazarus and Folkman (1984) describe these situation and person factors as variables that mediate the “stressful and damaging effects of environmental factors” (Idem., p.292). Several of these factors will be briefly presented in this section and applied later on in chapter 4. Lazarus and Folkman(1984) list the following as situational factors: novelty, predictability,
event uncertainty and ambiguity (Ibid.). A novel situation describes when an individual appraises a situation only if some element of it was previously affiliated with harm (Idem.).
Predictability suggests that there are foreseen “environmental characteristics” (Idem., p.85)
that can be recognized and learned (Idem) while Event uncertainty is the probability of an event’s occurrence and its influence on appraisal (Idem). In the context of this study, ambiguity is the only situational factor that is selected to be treated and applied in the research’s findings. In the meantime, the following personal factors are presented
Commitment, beliefs and the concept of self.
Although, Lazarus and Folkman (1984) view commitments and beliefs as interdependent (p.55) this study will treat these person characteristics separately. According to their definition, Commitments“is important to the person, what has meaning to him or her. They determine what is at stake in a specific stressful encounter. Any encounter that involves a strongly held commitment will be evaluated as meaningful to the extent that the outcome harms or threatens the commitment or facilitates its expression” (Idem., p.56). While, beliefs are defined as “faith in God, fate, or some natural order… which enables people to create meaning out of life” (Idem., p.77). Lastly, the self-concept is parallel to the idea of Epstein’s self theory (1976) where emotions are indicators of what a person thinks, wants and what
they find important (Lazarus and Folkman., 1984, p.79). While these factors are both significant and relevant in this study, it also benefits to define the two types of coping behaviors previously presented in this chapter. Emotion-focused forms of coping, according to Lazarus and Folkman (1984) are cognitive responses directed at decreasing emotional distress (Idem., p.152), while problem-focused forms of coping are usually aimed at identifying the problem, finding alternative solutions, evaluating their costs and benefits, picking one and acting (Idem). These coping behaviors will be treated in greater detail in chapter 4. For now, however, the significance of coping effectiveness is delineated, in the interest of concluding Lazarus and Folkman’s Stress, Appraisal and Coping theory.
Coping effectiveness in a specific encounter is based on both emotion and problem focused forms of coping ( Idem). He states that coping must constitute efforts to maintain stressful demands regardless of outcome (Idem). This means that no one strategy is considered better than any other. Lazarus and Folkman also state that if a person regulates his or her emotions successfully, but is incapable of dealing with the causes of the problem, they are not coping effectively. (Idem) There are also encounters that may or may not hold potential for being coped with effectively, these types of stressful encounters are not capable of change. If this occurs, it does not constitute the individual as ineffective at coping. On the other hand, for coping to be efficient, there has to be a satisfactory fit of coping efforts and factors like commitment and beliefs (Idem). This relationship will be examined later on in this chapter 4, in the meanwhile we will transition into the next theoretical model.
2.4 Responses to Stigmatization
In their cross national study exploring diverse minority groups’ responses to stigmatization, Michelle Lamont & Nissim Mizrachi (2012) conduct irrefutable research on responses to stigmatization among members of groups that are stigmatized on different bases and with different intensities. Lamont and Mizrachi (2012) note Goffman (1963) as describing individuals with discredited identities taking on personal responsibilities of managing their interactions to prevent discomfort in others, all while preserving their self worth (Lamont and Mizrachi, 2012, p.366). In their research, Lamont and Mizrachi (2012) concentrate more on how boundaries are accomplished through the disclosure of everyday exchanges and “the frames that ordinary people use, which interact with collective myths about the nation” (Castoriadis 1987; Bouchard 2009)(Lamont and Mizrachi, 2012). Their
study compares a culmination of responses to prejudice of stigmatized groups in Brazil, Israel and the USA, as well as of connected research projects conducted in Canada, France, South Africa and Sweden. They conducted interviews with samples of middle class working men and women in each of the 3 main groups Brazil, Israel and the USA, the other works were contributed by other researchers’ work. (Idem) The participants were selected based on criteria such as their occupation, level of education and where they lived (Idem). The empirical focus of each interview was “to view the rhetorical and strategic tools used by persons of stigmatized groups in their response to perceived stigmatization.” (Idem., p.366) Lamont and Mizrachi distinguishes, three ‘modalities’ of response to stigmatization.
1. Name the problem, challenge and openly discuss the situation 2. Conflict deflecting, ignore, accept, forgive, tolerate, walk away 3. Mixed strategy “pick my battles”
According to Lamont and Mizrachi., members of stigmatized groups were often observed coping with the tension between the emotive outcomes following from stigmatization, as follows (Idem., p.372) with anger, pain, feelings of worthlessness, humiliation and loss of dignity (Ibid.). By addressing these responses, Lamont and Mizrachi. research (2012) reaches an irrefutable conclusion that within distinct cultural contexts, there are several interpretations of recognizing stigma associated with their groups and their destigmatization strategies enabled by “distinct cultural repertoire” (Idem:5).
2.5
Coping
Life experiences require coping as a method of both survival and the creation of meaning in our lives (Snyder, 1999). It’s a response aimed at reducing “the physical, emotional and psychological burden that is linked to stressful events” (Idem., p.5). Coping strategies are implemented based on the perception of the presented stressor. An effective coping strategy is one that is able to reduce immediate distress as well as contributing to more long term outcomes of well being (Idem). Both Lazarus and Folkman (1984) and Lamont and Mizrachi (2012) establish coping strategies within their models. This research works primarily within Lazarus and Folkman’s theoretical framework and elements from Lamont
and Mizrachi’s responses to the stigmatization model. The following section draws from both models the definitive characteristics that make up the coping strategies exerted in this study.
Table 1
Lazarus & Folkman’s Problem & Emotion Focused Coping strategies (1984)
Problem Focused Coping Emotion Focused Coping
❏ Confronting Coping
❏ Planful prob. solving
❏ Distancing ❏ Self Controlling ❏ Accepting responsibility ❏ Positive reappraisal ❏ Escape-Avoidance ❏ denial
Table 1 presents the types of strategies practiced when utilizing problem focused or emotion focused forms of coping. Of the coping strategies presented by Lazarus & Folkman, it is best to utilize the escape-avoidance coping as a common passive coping strategy. Along with escape avoidance, Distancing as well will be another significant coping strategy visible within this research. In table 2, formulating assertive coping strategies, this study regards it as physical or verbal “aggressiveness” by the victims. These strategies are problematic, in responding this way, participants reinforce the stigma attached.
Table 2
Lamont & Mizrachi’s Responses to Stigmatization (2012)
Variety of forms Exit strategies
❏ Confronting
❏ Evading or deflating conflict ❏ Claiming inclusion
❏ Educating/ reforming the ignorant ❏ Attempting to conform to majority
culture or affirming distinctiveness ❏ Wanting to “pass” or denounce
stereotypes
❏ Engaging in boundary work toward undesirable “others” ❏ Limiting contacts ❏ Absorbing it ❏ Managing the self ❏ Ignoring it
Table 2 represents the various forms of responses and exit strategies used to cope with stigmatization, within Lamont and Mizrachi.’s research. In this research,
Educating/reforming the ignorant and claiming inclusion are identified as characteristics of conflict solving coping. It is conjectured within this study, that these two strategies are
successful in facilitating durable solutions. A comprehensive application of these two models will assist in answering the following sub questions:
1.) In which ways do Muslim women experience Islamophobia?
2.) To what extent do we observe passive coping strategies among the women and what is its significance?
3.) To what extent do we observe assertive coping strategies among the women and what is its significance?
4.) To what extent, do we observe a Conflict solving coping strategies among the women and what is its significance?
3. Methods
3.1 Design and Fieldwork
To collect data, I implemented a qualitative approach. This study utilized three focus groups as a source of primary accounts detailing Islamophobia and coping. Facilitated by myself and a Dutch translator when necessary, I conducted group interviews with the study’s participants. I favored this approach because it gave the women an opportunity to describe both the experiences and coping strategies of they’ve utilized to combat Islamophobia in the Netherlands. This study explores 1) Experiences of Islamophobia and 2) How Muslim women in the Netherlands cope with these instances. Primarily utilized by the social sciences, focus groups allow for deeper understanding of pertinent issues among participants. (Morgan, D.L., 1997) Typically informal, focus groups allow for a more natural discourse without limiting the information participants wish to share (Idem).
I chose to conduct focus group interviews with participants in Amsterdam West, Beverwijk and Rotterdam. I am based in the West and also have contacts where I live that will connect me with interested Muslim female participants. I was informed that this is a subject many would like to contribute to hence confidence in gathering participants. In order to limit the amount of time I need for a translator, I traveled to Rotterdam at Middenweg, an Islamic organization to meet with a contact that ensured I will reach more english speaking women there. Along with de Middenweg, I also contacted the Islamitische
Studentenvereniging Amsterdam - ISA at the VU and the SV Anatolia, a turkish student
organization also at the VU. Although I presented my study to the ISA, I was unable to get enough students to join because many of them felt they would not have time to be apart of the focus groups. Regarding the SV Anatolia, I contacted them via facebook but I did not receive any response, so both organizations were unable or unwilling to be a part of the study. Due to this setback, I decided to utilize the most accessible, comfortable and familiar mediums, social media and informal word of mouth.
I used social media platforms such as facebook to reach one group of participants. I posted on the University of Amsterdam facebook page requesting for Muslim females between the age of 18-30 to share their experiences with Islamophobia. The response rate was less than expected, with many respondents failing to the inform me of their schedules and their availability. Due to this poor result, I researched platforms that would allow me more
access to Muslim female participants. I contacted SPIOR , a Muslim organization within the 4 Netherlands, because of its size, I didn’t expect a response, let alone an immediate response. Remarkably, I was almost immediately contacted by an employee from their communications team who referred me to a Muslim woman who could assist me in recruiting other Muslim women to join the research study. I informed her of the study’s intentions and it’s primary focus. She questioned whether the participants had to be directly affected by Islamophobia in which I explained that they did not have to directly but it was preferred. She also questioned whether or not the discussion would be held in Dutch or English, in which I had informed her that I would prefer English speakers but if there are women that prefer to participate in Dutch, I would arrange for an English-Dutch translator. This contact then informed me of the Islamic organization in Rotterdam called Middenweg. She mentioned that there were many converts to Islam within the organization and that it would be unlikely that I would need to seek out additional participants once I was in contact with them. She then noted that she would contact the chairman of the organization, inform her of my research and contact me if interest was shown. Fortunately, the chairwoman was interested and requested we keep in contact via email. She disclosed the time and location of their meetings in which I would be able to meet participants that fit the study’s requirements. I traveled to De Mittenweg in Rotterdam, I presented the focus, aims and objectives of my study and reached a group of interested women. Fortunately, through a snowball sample technique, I recruited the two other focus groups based on my social network.
3.2 Methodology
A focus group approach was implemented for its ability to provide qualitative information to develop both facts and narratives on Islamophobia and coping. Through interaction, participants may feel compelled to expand upon topics that resonate with their experiences. Based on their perspectives and experiences, data gathered in focus groups tend to go into more detail and provide greater insight into the issues that impact personal identities, enabling me, through my research, to examine the patterns that shape participants’ ways of coping. As the facilitator I have to be well versed in the topics I will discuss with the group, but must also be aware of the backgrounds of participants in the study. In order to
4SPIOR is the acronym for the Platform for Islamic Organisations in Rijnmond. It is an Islamic organisation in Rotterdam and neighbouring towns, in the Netherlands (Stichting Platform Islamitische Organisaties Rijnmond, 2017).
collect descriptive information from the different identities on which my research focuses, I will construct the group based on common identifiers such as social class, age and education. By grouping participants in this way, responses should elicit more in depth information on shared experiences (Morgan, D.L., 1997). In order to operationalize the three coping strategies, we’ve drawn from two theoretical models and created definitions that we will seek to identify from the extraction of responses conducted within the focus groups.
3.3 Respondents
I conducted three focus groups with a total of twelve participants. Focus groups ranged in size from 3 to 5 participants. In order to shape common findings, groups were carefully selected based on their shared similar characteristics such as country of origin and/or age. The first focus group was comprised of participants living in Beverwijk; first generation Muslim women between the ages of 32-52, the majority of whom wore the headscarf. The second focus group was located in Rotterdam; participants were Islamic university educated and second generation, ranging in age from 22-27, all of them wore the headscarf with one of them being a Dutch convert to Islam of 3 years. The third focus group was made up of Muslim women from outside of the Netherlands, many of whom were Egyptian or Turkish, attending university. Their ages ranged from 19-20 and none of the participants in the third focus group wore the headscarf. Fortunately, each group shares common features, which allows for a more free-flowing discussion among the participants within each of these groups (Morgan, D.L.,1997). The composition of the group should ensure that participants feel comfortable enough to speak candidly among each other (Ibid.). The following section outlines the questions asked in the focus groups.
3.4 Operationalization
In the fieldwork conducted in this study, there were six leading questions that guided the focus groups’ discussions. This serves to operationalize the theoretical frame in place, the questions are as follows:
1. Are you able to remember an experience when you felt mistreated because of your religion and/or ethnic background? How did that make you feel? How did you respond to the experience?
[Directed towards non-veiled participants]
2. Do you feel people view/treat you different when they find out you are Muslim? a. If they were to, how would you respond? Would you confront them?
3. What do you think of the media’s portrayal of Muslims in the news?
a. Do you worry of the implications that may arise from the public’s consumption of the media’s depiction of Islam?
4. What do YOU do to deal with it? How do you counteract the image that is being put out of Muslims to Non-Muslims?
5. Do you feel the media is to blame for the misconception that Islam may be a violent religion? Or that women are not “free” as women in the West?
a. How do you deal with it?
6. Do you feel obligated to have to educate those around you on Islam?
7. More recently there has been a rise in online anti-Muslim abuse? Have you ever been subjected to it?
a. How do you handle it? (For example, if you see comments on a facebook post insulting Islam, the prophet etc.)
b. How do you react? Respond assertively? Respond with knowledge? Ignore? 8. Have you ever been pushed or yelled at it in public? If it were to happen to you, how
would you respond?
a. Would you fight back? b. Would you ignore them?
Along with these questions, participants are presented the following hypothetical situation:
You are waiting for the train, when a young man approaches you. He spits towards the ground near you and begins cursing at you. Telling you to go back to your country and how Muslims are all terrorists. At this point he moves towards you aggressively, attempting to assault you.
Participants are subsequently asked how would they cope if they were subjected to a situation like the hypothetical one presented above.
3.5 Ethics/ Limitations:
3.5.1. Ethics
To ensure the focus group is efficient in its delivery of information, it is important to develop skills as a facilitator, but to also make sure the participants are able and willing to share information amongst each other. My role as the focus group moderator is to provide a comfortable environment where people feel free to express themselves. Of course, with such a sensitive subject as Islamophobia, some participants may share traumatic events, in which
it is vital, as the moderator, to be sensitive and let them know I understand and to know their limits. Understanding that the participants’ perception of cost and benefits to themselves, their communities and to academia are all important ethical issues I must recognize and address in my study. To protect my participants, I have provided multiple levels of confidentiality to allow for their experiences and stories to be shared while maintaining their privacy. Encumbering my efforts to protect the identities of my participants is the ability of the participants to share information about one another, which I will address in my interactions among them and request they commit to uphold the same ethical safeguards I maintain throughout the study.
3.5.2. Limitations
Conducting focus groups are successful in the exploration of perceptions and feelings in a thorough and descriptive way (Morgan, D.L, 1997), however, it also has its limitations. Results can sometimes be overgeneralized, and groups can fluctuate significantly and be difficult to assemble (Villard, 2003). Complicating my interpersonal research is the existing language barrier between myself and much of the population that speaks Dutch, but lacks fluency in English. While a translator will help to convey the narratives and accounts the participants share, translation does not fully bridge the communicative divide. The translation now plays a part in the research and the translator plays a very active role in collecting research, while also adding complications to it. By interpreting the two languages, the translator can skew the information given and the information received, which is important to note in the analysis of my research. Despite, being fortunate enough to have an interpreter who speaks English, Arabic and Dutch for the first focus group of first generation Muslim women, it still poses multiple challenges.
As an Arabic speaker, I observed many times when participants would answer a question in great detail consequently forcing the interpreter to simplify their answer in the interest of interpreting other participants’ responses in a timely manner. Along with this challenge, environment, in one case, played a conflicting role in the research.
I was invited to one of the participants’ homes, where the first focus group of women would all be. I understood that this would have an effect on the research because I lacked the control of the environment. There were times throughout the focus group where participants would gradually lose focus of the topics being discussed and because I had no control in this environment, I felt unable to position them back to the focal point of the discussion. Fortunately, there were other participants who took that challenge on and reminded them. It is
important to note that all research has its limitations, because of these challenges I am able to know how to overcome them in future research. Due to the fact, this is a qualitative study, I make no claim that the findings presented in the following section present a representative picture of the Muslim female population. The purpose is not meant to generalize but to highlight the experiences and coping choices of these unique participants.
4. Experiences and reactions of Muslim women
This chapter will present the Muslim female’s experience of Islamophobia, as observed in this study. Additionally, the extent of each coping strategy exercised in response to these experiences will be categorically substantiated. Conclusively, I investigated the situation factors that have potentially played a role in influencing the choices made by these women, in particular how these factors relate to the elements selected from Lazarus and Folkman (1984) Stress, Appraisal and coping model and Lamont and Mizrachi (2012) Responses to stigmatization (2012). In these findings, I will be able to provide, with confidence, answers to the sub-questions presented below.
1. In which ways do Muslim women experience Islamophobia?
2. To what extent do we see the practice of Passive coping strategies and what is its significance?
3. To what extent do we see the practice of Aggressive coping strategie what is its significance?
4. To what extent do we see the practice of Conflict solving coping strategies what is its significance??
Although their experiences differ, majority of all participants within the three focus groups reported being subjected to one, if not both elements of the Islamophobia examined in this study. To clarify, this study does not aim to generalize particular groups’ experiences nor does it attempt to generalize the practice of coping strategies of the participants in this research.It is merely to examine the attitudes and discriminatory experiences among chosen groups of Muslim women and the way they cope with it.
4.1 Experiences of Islamophobia
Despite the Netherlands being notably tolerant, there has been a significant shift in attitude towards the Muslim community. Arguably the veiled Muslim woman is prone to targets of abuse, both verbally or physically (Chakraborti and Zempi, 2012). A summary report published by the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia, suggested shortly after 9/11 there was an increase of physical and verbal threats, specifically to individuals who were identifiable as Muslims, especially women who wore the hijab (Meer and Madood, 2009).
Throughout this research, both veiled and unveiled women’s experiences were recorded. Regardless of generational differences and countries of origin, most women shared similar experiences, both with direct negative contact as well as the exposure to the media’s negative portrayal of Muslims. It is important to record Muslim women’s experiences with Islamophobia, as those highlight their vulnerability as both being Muslim and being women. In the interest of answering the first question: In which ways do Muslim women experience Islamophobia? The following section is dedicated to discussing several experiences that best reflect Muslim women in their encounters with Islamophobia.
This study observed many participants as possessing a certain degree of self consciousness. Being aware that one’s religious identity would influence how they’re treated was a realization many participants acknowledged during the conducted focus groups. For example, one participant shared her experience,
I know that when I meet someone who does not know me, at the uni I go to, I know the first thing going in their head is that I am Muslim. It’s not like they’re really mean it’s just they don’t think of me just being a teenager, listening to the same music, watching the same movies...they assume I’m this super religious girl who doesn’t talk. They always ask me what and what I’m not allowed to do. I don’t answer sometimes because I’m afraid what they’ll think of me afterwards.
(Amani, 22) Her reluctance in sharing her religious beliefs for fear of judgement from her classmates is a prime example of how some Muslim women become self conscious in their actions and behavior. In order to fit in, she felt compelled not to disclose her way of living for fear of backlash and judgement, validating the assumption that religious identity does undeniably play a role in how others may perceive Muslims. One commonly noted experience amongst all three focus groups was the impression of feeling unwelcomed. For example, one participant observed the contrast in how the Netherlands was when she first migrated and how she feels it is now,
When I came to the Netherlands in 1994, I felt welcomed. Everybody I met was so welcoming and now it’s not anymore. My children’s father was in the army and because of Saddam Hussein, we had to find a safer place to live. When we left Iraq, we really were lucky that so many people were welcoming. Nowadays you have many Syrians and Iraqis coming to the Netherlands and they’re trying to block them from coming in. There are people on the television saying these people, fleeing war, are not welcome here. They’re not trying to help anymore. It’s not getting yelled at or people hitting me, nothing really physical that affects you as much as feeling unwelcomed.
(Fatima, 48)
There is no doubt that these feelings have adverse implications on both the Dutch and Islamic community. Unfortunately, what occasionally develops from situations like these, is a withdrawal into one’s own ethnic community along with mutual animosity and tension between both communities. One participant passionately opposed this notion of retreating into one’s own community, arguing it would only backfire on their community:
Muslims are becoming so scared and unwelcomed that they’re remaining within their communities..they don’t want to be apart of the Dutch community. I don’t think that’s good at all, you have the Muslims who would rather attend Islamic schools, which is okay but I don’t think that’s beneficial at all to the Islamic community nor the Dutch. If we are distancing ourselves, we’re only making it worse. You have these parents raising their children only speaking arabic so when they go out, they are speaking broken Dutch and then the Dutch say see they don’t even know our language etc. It only makes matters worse.
(Khadijah, 52) While some Muslims find comfort in staying within their own community, others believe there is no benefit. The Islamophobia they are being subjected to is resulting in an internal conflict that can result in many Muslims either choosing to integrate as much as they can without exposing their religious identity or withdrawing into one’s own ethnic group where they can practice their religion freely. There are those who choose to balance the two, although that does not always prove favorable. For example, one participant who decided to begin wearing the headscarf disclosed witnessing a shift in her coworkers’ attitudes towards her,
The day I showed up wearing the hijab, they were all very shocked..which I understand because just one day ago I was not wearing it and the next, I am. It was a little bit weird. I mean I was shocked, I didn’t expect them to give me that kind of response. And they were treating me differently, now I was wearing hijab....before I was they were always laughing with me and saying come here, come talk to me...it
was just fun, no problems. But now, they were treating me less of their friend and more of a co-worker.
(Myriam, 27) This deviation led her to believe that her choice of visually proclaiming her religious identity altered the once, easygoing, dynamic between herself and her coworkers. This experience can lead many Muslim women to distance themselves from embracing their religious identity. Which touches upon what will be discussed in the following section; Passive coping strategies.
4.2 Passive Coping Strategies
4.2.1 Defining Passive Coping
To answer the second question: To what extent do we see the practice of Passive coping strategies and what is its significance? This section is dedicated to defining passive coping strategies and the extent of its practice. Drawing primarily on both Lazarus and Folkman (1984) & Lamont and Mizrachi (2012), passive coping strategies will be comprehensively defined. Afterword, the types of passive reactions practiced throughout all three focus groups in response to the direct negative contact are presented and the media’s negative portrayal of Muslims.
To determine what qualifies as a passive coping strategy, this study extracts several characteristics from Lazarus and Folkman (1984) and Lamont and Mizrachi (2012) framework, which were presented earlier in chapter 2. Both frameworks, present several characteristics in which can be recognized as passive coping strategies. Lazarus and Folkman presents coping strategies such as avoidance, minimization, distancing while Lamont similarly mentions strategies such as conflict deflecting, ignoring, absorbing, accepting, forgiving, tolerating (Lamont and Mizrachi, 2012). Several of these characteristics are
merged in order to produce a simple and compelling definition of what can be recognized as passive coping strategies. This section will go on to refer to passive coping strategies as follows; practice of the utilization of strategies such as avoidance, withdrawal, absorbing and
distancing in order to cope with the selected elements of Islamophobia (direct negative contact and/or the media’s negative portrayal). With an established definition in place, the extent of passive coping strategies practiced among all three focus groups is discussed in the next section.
4.2.2 Extent of Passive Coping
It is no secret first generation migrants face unique challenges when living in a new country, especially originating from a culture and religion that is publicly becoming increasingly more affiliated with violence and oppression. Often they engage in assimilating to their new environment but it is the incessant stares that continually remind them that they are not “home.” The feeling of being unwelcomed seemed to upset the participants the most.
Several of the first generation respondents expressed sadness when discussing the shift of the public’s attitude towards Muslims in contrast to when they first migrated to the Netherlands. For example, a participant recalls her experience,
Well when I came to the Netherlands, in 1985 there wasn’t any harm or anything. The past three or four years, I don’t feel safe anymore because I know, after what happened in Paris and Belgium, I know that people are on edge and judging more than they usually have. They don’t treat me anymore like I’m Dutch, they treat me like a foreigner. They don’t see us, they see Moroccan, they see Iraqi, they see Syrian, they see Muslim. You know because of this, we feel more comfortable with our own groups...people of the same language and religion. You don’t have to try and fit in, you can be comfortable saying what you’d like. With other people, you can feel the racism..you can feel it, no matter what you do.
(Fatima, 48) The direct negative contact this participant experienced was a feeling of being unwelcomed and seen as a foreigner. She expressed, that witnessing this kind of shift was “probably the most hurtful she’s felt as a Muslim woman.” From having to witness living in a tolerant and welcoming society to a more tense and uneasy environment had triggered her to utilize the passive coping strategy of withdrawal to one’s own community. This response, according to Lazarus and Folkman (1984) suggests that self-deception may be a feature in this type of coping response. Arguably, the participant choosing to withdraw and associate with “people of the same language and religion” is her utilizing emotion-focused coping that Lazarus and Folkman (1984) note as a way of maintaining hope and optimism while denying both fact and implication (Idem., p.151).
While some participants believe remaining within their own communities is beneficial to both their cultural identity and comfort, other participants such as Khadija view it quite differently and yet still suffer:
I tried being active in the Dutch community. I volunteered with some community work, I felt like some people were very racist towards me. I did everything good, they never acknowledged it. I worked at two places, I worked with older people in a nursing home and I worked at a clothing bank where I helped give clothes to those who couldn’t afford it. I’ve had nice colleagues but there were some who were difficult to be around. I feel like sometimes my colleagues get more help than I do, or get recognized for their work but I never said anything
(Khadija, 52) Khadija’s choice to continue working within an environment where she felt she was being treated unequal to her colleagues could be viewed also as another passive strategy that Lamont and Mizrachi (2012) present as absorbing it. Although Lazarus and Folkman (1984),
state that“no strategy should be labeled as inherently good or bad” (Idem., p.138), the reality
of practicing strategies such as avoidance and absorbing does not necessarily help change the meaning of the encounter making it neither good or bad. While, utilizing passive coping strategies is certainly not ineffective, it’s just not changing the situation but merely employing self deception or reality distortion (Idem., p.151). Many other participants in the focus group agreed, it was easier to deal with their own community then having to constantly prove themselves to the Dutch community. Along with the comfort of being around people of similar cultural/religious background, many of the participants also felt that it was better for them to keep their presence in the Netherlands as reticent as possible. One participant shared,
When you’re in a new land, you fear attracting attention...you want to make the least amount of sound. I know, that we get scared of being kicked out, so if we can avoid trouble we’d rather do that.
(Leila, 32) One participant pointed out how during an interaction where she was being subjected to Islamophobia (direct negative contact) she simply ignored it. Yet, another example of a participant executing a passive coping strategy to cope with Islamophobia. She recalls her experience,
I had a situation with one of my neighbors who lives in my building. We were sitting on the balcony and she started asking me about the Syrian president Bashar Assad. She told me the US was going to take him down and that you can go back to your own country...It wasn’t in a friendly way. I just pretended I didn’t understand her intention.
(Khadija,48) Like several other participants, Khadija chose to ignore an physical encounter that she interpreted as aggression caused by her religion. While Islamophobic incidents occur, it is also sometimes difficult to interpret when the situation itself can be seen as ambiguous. The concept of ambiguity will be treated in greater detail later on, in this chapter. Another participant shared a distressing experience where she felt she was targeted for being Muslim. What had prevented her from responding assertively was the thought of her own children,
She was tall, definitely Dutch… walking towards me, her eyes directed to my eyes. She came past me and just shoved me while walking...there was no one around so I know it was intentional. It wasn’t a busy area, there was space...she chose to push into me. I felt it in my chest, the push… but because my mind was on my children, I said sorry. She didn’t even look at me; nothing. Like as if she was blind… she wasn’t.
(Naima, 35)
Naima’s response is implicit within Lazarus’ description of emotion-focused forms of coping, he points out “in general, emotion-focused forms of coping are more likely to occur
when there has been an appraisal that nothing can be done to modify harmful, threatening, or challenging environmental conditions” (Idem., p.150).
By the time she could process it, the undeniable act of direct negative contact had already occurred and regardless, her reasoning behind her absorbing it strategy was mainly
the thought of her children. Lazarus and Folkman describes this interpretation as a situation characteristic known as commitments. They describe it as “what is important to the person, what has meaning for him or her...determine what is at stake in a specific stressful encounter. Any encounter that involves a strongly held commitment will be evaluated as meaningful to the extent that the outcome harms or threatens the commitment” (Idem., p.56).Commitments can also determine the choices made by individuals in order to maintain valued ideals or goals. (Ibid) Let the reader know, this is not a passive coping strategy but simply an example of how commitments can determine appraisal. A more detailed and comprehensive application of appraisal will be discussed later on in this section, for now we will focus on passive coping strategies exercised in order to cope with the second element of Islamophobia this study is concentrating on; the media.
4.2.2 Extent of Passive Coping
Along with negative direct contact, Muslim women within the Netherlands are also exposed to the indiscriminate and sometimes discriminatory depiction of Muslims. The unfavorable categorization of Muslims is causing both individuals and groups to be portrayed as an indisputable threat to the western world, frequently associated with oppression and terrorism (Hopkins, 2011; Kundnani, 2007; Poole, 2002; Richardson, 2004; Saeed, 2007; Shadid, 2005( Ashur, Kassaye & Van Heelsum, 2016). The majority of the participants within the first focus group (first generation Muslim women) shared their frustration with the media’s consistent negative portrayal of Muslims,
On the TV you see ISIS and people start to think ISIS is Islam. These young men killing people, blowing themselves up...this is what you are shown to be Muslims. They see this and saythese are Muslims. Look at me, look at her and her and her..we are Muslim, we are friends with Dutch people, my closest friend here is Christian, we are not what is shown in the media. It’s unfair, those who know us know we do no harm..but if they are told (by the media) we are bad people, they will never get a chance to know us.
(Khadija, 52) One can interpret this as helplessness, which occurs quite frequently according to several of the participants in this focus group. One participant noted, “it’s just Muslims have
