EventOn May 21 2016, the grand opening for a new library at an Islamic center in Houston, Texas was scheduled (Da'wah Islamic Center). This was supposed to be an exciting addition to the center that would (display many different Islamic texts. However, the opening did not go as planned. Many protestors gathered outside and began protesting the new library. The name of the rally, “Stop Islamization of Texas,” goes to show the intentions behind the protest (Glenn, 2018). Many participants displayed anti-mosque and Islamophobic sentiments with brash banners. Two protestors even held up a banner proclaiming that #WhiteLivesMatter (Lister and Sebastian, 2017). The whole protest was initiated by a Facebook page called the "Heart of Texas, which had wrongly alleged that the Islamic library had received public funding" (Lister and Sebastian, 2017).
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BacklashThe reason that the library and the Islamic community faced so much scrutiny is that the people in the greater Houston area were worried that the spread of Islam would cause widespread issues in the region. One of the most common excuses employed by the protesters was that having a large Muslim population with large mosques and Islamic centers would have a significant and negative effect on property values (Glenn, 2018). Muslims in Houston, and throughout Texas, still fall victim to heinous and senseless acts such as this rhetoric and the aforementioned baseless protest (ACLU). Due to the significant backlash that the Da'wah Islamic Center experienced in this instance, it is likely that any future attempts at expansion (at least in the near future) will be met with a lot of pushback.
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ResponseIslamophobia is exacerbated by social media. In this case, a Facebook page called the "Heart of Texas", rallied together a multitude of people to show up and protest the grand opening of the new library (Lister and Sebastian, 2017). Having a platform like this and being able to spread discriminatory beliefs caused Facebook to turn over this as well as over 470 other accounts to Congress (Glenn, 2018). Many of these accounts violated the terms and services of Facebook as well as spread harsh and harmful Islamaophobic beliefs (Glenn, 2018). This action by Facebook helped to address the spread of misinformation about the new library (Glenn, 2018). By shutting down this form of propaganda, the Da'wah Islamic Center was able to take control of the narrative surrounding the new library and reduce community tensions.
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OutcomeThe outcome from this event was somewhat positive, but at the same time many of the same issues persist. One positive that occurred was that the Heart of Texas Facebook page was suspended and barred of their ability to continually post Islamophobic content. Another outcome is that this incident served as a way for Muslims and their allies in the Houston area to unite and fight back against religious discrimination in the Houston area.. These are steps in the right direction, but the Muslim community continues to have to fight for their basic right to practice their religion. This places an undue burden on Muslim Americans and their religious institutions as it means that anytime they publicly expand or grow, they must be prepared for the hate that will likely follow. This is both a mental and a financial barrier that no other religion faces in the same way.
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