The government is abandoning the term ”Islamophobia” and wants the EU and UN to do the same. The announcement is seen as a clear statement against a term that has long been criticized for being used to label, suspect and silence critics of Islam, Islamism or Islamization.
In Parliament, the Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard stuck under a interpellation debate On Friday, the government announced a change in language to ”anti-Muslim racism”. According to the government, the word ”Islamophobia” has been problematic because it confuses hatred of people with criticism of a religion, opening the door for legitimate social criticism to be dismissed as suspect.
- The concept of Islamophobia is problematic.
Criticism of a word used to silence
Criticism of the word has long been that it has been used not only to describe discrimination, but also as a tool to silence debate. Those who have questioned Islamism, the influence of mosques or religious demands in the public sphere have often been dismissed with the label ”Islamophobe”, instead of being confronted with the facts.
– By labeling people as Islamophobes, Islamists try to silence legitimate criticism of Islam, said the SD leader Richard Jomshof, which has been a driving force in the debate.
It is precisely this use of the term that is now under pressure. Critics argue that in practice the word has served as a way of shifting the focus from the content of the criticism to suspecting the critic.
Sweden wants to put pressure on EU and UN
The government now also wants to get rid of the concept in the EU and the UN.
- We are pushing for the term Islamophobia to be replaced by what is known in English as anti-Muslim racism or anti-Muslim hatred.
Reactions after the announcement
Reactions were swift. Many are delighted that the term, which has been widely used to silence debate and label critics, is finally being scrapped.
”The government is FINALLY scrapping the made-up term ”Islamophobia” and pushing for the EU and UN to do the same”, writes the Swedish Democrat MEP Charlie Weimers on X.
”Islamophobia is a made-up term to discredit those who oppose Islamization”, writes the Swedish Democrat member of parliament Tobias Andersson on X.
Both pointed to the same thing: that according to critics, the word not only described a problem, but was also used to shut down criticism and limit open discussion.
Three consequences of the decision
First, the government is abandoning a word described by critics as a tool to silence opposition.
Secondly, Sweden is now trying to get the EU and the UN to move away from the same concept.
Third, it reinforces a line of thinking that more clearly distinguishes criticism of religion and ideologies from real discrimination against people.
Then of course they will be consistent and scrap anti-Semitism too?
Right.