Expected but not accepted: Victimisation, gender, and Islamophobia in Australia
| Author | Derya Iner,Gail Mason,Nicole L Asquith |
| Published date | 01 September 2022 |
| Date | 01 September 2022 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/02697580221084115 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
https://doi.org/10.1177/02697580221084115
International Review of Victimology
2022, Vol. 28(3) 286 –304
© The Author(s) 2022
Article reuse guidelines:
sagepub.com/journals-permissions
DOI: 10.1177/02697580221084115
journals.sagepub.com/home/irv
Expected but not accepted:
Victimisation, gender, and
Islamophobia in Australia
Derya Iner
Charles Sturt University, Australia
Gail Mason
The University of Sydney, Australia
Nicole L Asquith
University of Tasmania, Australia
Abstract
Muslim’s women’s visibility and perceived vulnerability make them primary targets of routine
Islamophobia in public spaces. This article builds on existing research on intersectionality
between Islamophobia, gender, and victimisation. It offers fresh data on Islamophobia against
women by analysing complaints of interpersonal hostility (N = 73) made to the Islamophobia
Register Australia between 2016 and 2017. This quantitative analysis confirms that there is much
consistency between Western nations in the nature of Islamophobia directed to women. At the
same time, the article brings new perspectives to our understanding of Islamophobic hostility.
Drawing on an in-depth analysis of eight case studies, the article illuminates the restrictive impact
that routine Islamophobia has on Muslim women’s daily lives, generating a sense of responsibility
for their own safety in the absence of bystander intervention. Yet, with comparatively high levels
of social capital, participants in our study did not simply acquiesce to stereotypes that deny them
the status of ‘ideal’ victim. Instead, they sought to reduce the destructive impact of victimisation
through active attempts to raise public awareness and reassert agency. Our study shows that
Muslim women’s responses to Islamophobia are not homogeneous. This variation originates in
heterogeneity between Muslim women in Western countries.
Keywords
Islamophobia, women, ideal victim, visibility, agency
Corresponding author:
Derya Iner, Centre for Islamic Studies and Civilisation, Faculty of Arts and Education, Charles Sturt University, 128-132
South Parade, Auburn, NSW 2144, Australia.
Email: diner@csu.edu.au
1084115IRV0010.1177/02697580221084115International Review of VictimologyIner et al.
research-article2022
Article
Iner et al. 287
Introduction
The experiences of Muslim women are a defining feature of Islamophobia in the Western world.
Muslim’s women’s visibility and perceived vulnerability intersect to make them the primary tar-
gets of Islamophobic hostility in public space (Hussein, 2013; Perry, 2014; Zempi, 2018). The vast
majority of these incidents are linked to the daily lives or routine activities of Muslim women.
Research from the United Kingdom shows that Muslim women often make an active choice to
respond to this hostility by ignoring it (Zempi, 2020). Victims generally do not report to the police
or other authorities because they have little reason to trust that their complaint will be taken seri-
ously and treated with sensitivity (Allen et al., 2013). Instead, women who are the targets of
Islamophobic hostility commonly turn to informal networks for support (Zempi, 2020).
This article builds on existing research on intersectionality between Islamophobia, gender, and
victimisation. It offers fresh data on offline Islamophobia against women in Australia by analysing
complaints of interpersonal hostility made to the Islamophobia Register Australia (IRA) between
2016 and 2017 (Iner et al., 2019). This quantitative analysis demonstrates consistency in women’s
experiences of Islamophobia across international borders. At the same time, the article brings new
perspectives to our knowledge of Islamophobic hostility towards women. Drawing on an in-depth
analysis of eight case studies reported to the IRA, the article presents the experiences of a group of
Muslim women who differ from samples in previous research (Zempi, 2020), in terms of ethnicity,
social capital, and the nature of their visibility as Muslim (e.g. wearing a hijab rather than a niqab).
The article focuses on the impact or consequences of interpersonal Islamophobic hostility on a
group of comparatively privileged Muslim women. We explore this impact through two intercon-
nected themes emerging from the case study data: ‘normalised but not normal’; ‘expected but not
accepted’. Together, these themes illuminate the immediate and sustained impact that routine
(Cohen and Felson, 1979) Islamophobic hostility has on Muslim women’s daily lives, engendering
acts of hypervigilance that limit their access to public space and create a sense of responsibility for
their own safety (Zempi and Chakraborti, 2015). Although the Muslim women in our study fully
expect to be the targets of Islamophobia, they are resigned neither to this victimisation nor to the
lack of bystander support they receive from others. Perhaps due to their comparative privilege
when compared to participants in other similar studies (such as Zempi, 2018, 2020; Zempi and
Chakraborti, 2015), participants in our study responded to Islamophobia through active attempts to
have their story ‘heard’ within formal and informal channels. Muslim women are well aware that
they are not perceived to be ‘ideal’ victims in the eyes of others (Christie, 1986), yet, as will be
discussed in this paper, their capacity and willingness to speak out were central to reasserting a
sense of agency in the face of the individual and social indifference of bystanders.
Islamophobia, gender, and routine victimisation
Islamophobia is commonly described as anti-Muslim racism (Runnymede Trust, 2017). It has
emotional (Bleich, 2011), cognitive, and evaluative elements (Stolz, 2005), which may lead to acts
of violence, hostility, discrimination, and subordination (Sayyid, 2014). Hiding behind criticism of
Islam to target Muslims can also be a form of Islamophobia (Muslim Council of Britain, 2021).
Surveys show that Muslim Australians are the subject of a substantial and growing degree of
Islamophobia (Kamp et al., 2017). The interpersonal manifestations of this negativity are well
documented in both offline and online worlds, ranging from verbal hostility, through to
To continue reading
Request your trial