Islamophobia as Intersectional Phenomenon

The debate surrounding Muslim bodies and in particular Muslim women, continue to problematise dress typically associated with Islam, and in doing so question the agency of Muslim women. This chapter highlights how using an intersectional lens allows us to progress understanding of Muslim women. In particular, it is argued that beyond dress, wider aspects of racialised and gendered identities significantly determine experiences of Islamophobia. This chapter argues that the limiting and debilitating labels given to Muslim women, combined with a failure to recognise their agency results in them continuing to be crudely stereotyped in political and social discourses, as well as in sociological understanding. In challenging the oversimplification of Muslim women especially through dress, omits recognition that they have varied and complex identities, which involve different levels of association with their faith. In sum, the homogenisation of Muslim women does not depict the reality of their identities and experiences. This chapter argues that seeing Islamophobia as an intersectional phenomenon will result in a meaningful and more accurate understanding of the lives and identities of Muslim women.