Call for Participants
Islamophobia in the UK has reached frightening levels, and there are serious risks to safety in Muslim communities across the country. Not only are rates of hate crime against individuals increasing, but there have been several attacks on mosques during and since the mass violence of summer 2024, which saw Muslims being targeted. Muslims fear for their safety, as highlighted by recent research conducted by Liverpool City Council. Furthermore, these individual acts of Islamophobic hate crime must be seen in the broader context of political and media discourses that vilify and demonise Muslims
Nonetheless, the UK government’s recent definition of ‘anti-Muslim hostility’ does not even mention the term ‘Islamophobia’, and there is no effective national strategy or apparatus in place to meet the current Islamophobia crisis. Further, the rise of Reform UK, as seen in the recent local elections, and its explicitly Islamophobic and anti-immigrant platform signals dangerous times ahead should the party make electoral gains at the next general election.
In response, we are launching a new emergency group for civil society and academic experts to foster collaborative organisation and action together against Islamophobia.
We will begin by meeting online to establish our specific objectives, and methods of working, over the coming year.
If you would like to join us, please complete this form, specifying your name, position, and organisation, by 17 June 2026 .
Naaz Rashid, Mobashra Tazamal, Kamran Khan, James Renton
*Photo taken by James Renton
