Islamophobia: “The Last Bastion of Tolerable Hate.” Steve Williamson and guest host Mik Jordahl welcome Azza Abuseif, CAIR Arizona’s Executive Director. She came to the U.S. as a refugee in 1999 from Sudan via Egypt. Though CAIR’s focus is clearly on the Muslim community in the United States, she says, “We cooperate with any community fighting injustice and stand against any injustice that occurs regardless of religion.”
Abuseif notes, “The presence of Muslims in the United States pre-dates the Twentieth Century immigration wave. And it has deep historical roots tied to the African diaspora.” (Islam in the U.S. can be traced to the first arrival of African slaves in the 16th Century.)
In reference to the notion that Islamophobia began following 9/11, she says, “It’s not true. Islamophobia has been present way before that…but the history is just not taught.”