Luther professor and Islamophobia expert publishes second edition of "The Fear of Islam"

(Story by decorahnews.com's Ben Gardner):

Dr. Todd H. Green, a professor of religion at Luther College, is a leading expert on Islamophobia and a second edition of his book, "The Fear of Islam," will soon be released by Fortress Press. Green is concise and engaging in person, and in his books, articles, and lectures, his clarity when distilling information from wide-ranging disciplines is refreshing.

Green is a popular professor at Luther College. His classes fill quickly, students appreciate his clarity and candor, and faculty respect his intellectual rigor when engaging with provocative and topical issues related to discrimination of minority religious communities.

Clarity is imperative with the study of Islamophobia, in part because it's a relatively new cross-disciplinary academic field, attracting scholars in religious studies, sociology, critical race studies, and political scientists, among others.

So, what exactly is Islamophobia?

In an interview with decorahnews.com, Green defined Islamophobia as "the fear of and hostility toward Muslims and Islam that is rooted in racism and that manifests itself in individual and systemic acts of discrimination, exclusion, and violence that targets Muslims and those perceived as Muslim."

Green wrote "The Fear of Islam" for a general audience, as an introduction to the history of the persecution of Muslim communities worldwide. "The Fear of Islam" was first published in 2015; since then, Green has updated his book to include sections on the recent rise in white nationalism and hate crimes, the 2016 U.S. presidential election, the Muslim travel ban, face veil bans in Europe, to name a few. Islamophobia is a topical, provocative issue, Green asserts, "and people's lives are at stake."

In 2018, the first edition of "The Fear of Islam" was cited in a legal brief in the U.S. Supreme Court case Trump v. Hawaii, the case having to do with the "Muslim travel ban." The book was cited by a number of "civil rights organizations," Green said, "in an effort to convince the Supreme Court to block the Trump administration's Muslim travel ban on First Amendment grounds."

Dr. Sophia Rose Arjana, assistant professor of religious studies at Western Kentucky University, is a leading scholar in Islamophobia and considers Green's book one of the best on Islamophobia. She describes Green as "one of the foremost experts on Islamophobia in my field and I have no doubt his work has a reach that far exceeds those of other scholars. This is due to his ability to talk about complex problems in a clear and compelling manner."

In 2016, Green's clarity and charisma provided him the opportunity to serve for a year as an advisor on Islamophobia at the U.S. State Department. While serving in Washington, D.C., he spoke with the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI on issues related to Islamophobia.

Green is nervous about the upcoming Presidential election, saying in our interview: "During election years, Islamophobia and hate crimes ramp up. President Trump is aware of this, and profits from it. We'll soon see more use of proxies, more bigoted caricatures, anything with the potential of raising tension."

Because Green publishes prolifically about a sensitive topic, he receives hate mail and has received a death threat via Twitter. During our interview, he's calm in relating this information; the hate mail has become routine the last few years. Green divulged he's reluctant to offer his occupation when asked on planes what he does for a living. "Increasingly I try to be as generic as possible. I say: I'm a teacher." If they persist for details, he's even hesitant to mention his religious scholarship, lest he be stuck next to an antagonistic cabin mate.

Recently Green has become "interested in how stereotypes about Islam's propensity for violence distracts white Americans and white Christian Americans from their own violent past and their ongoing complicity in a violent world order." He sees the proliferation of white nationalist rhetoric and hate crimes as intimately connected to the prevalence of Islamophobia in America today.

Green co-teaches a study abroad course entitled Islam in Europe, where Luther students, touring European countries, engage in questions regarding Muslim minority communities. "I am particularly interested in the political functions of Islamophobia in Western nations and the ways Islamophobia in Europe influence Islamophobia in the United States, and vice-versa."

In writing "The Fear of Islam," Green said: "My students have been the most important conversation partners. Having the laboratory of a classroom to challenge my ideas and refine my writing style has been indispensable." He lauds Luther College for "being enormously supportive of my work; the college recognizes the moral dimension of countering Islamophobia."

With the 2020 presidential election around the corner, Green hopes his neighbors in the community will take advantage of the unique political hub Iowa becomes during caucus season. He sees the Iowa caucus, in part, as an opportunity to bring tough questions to the world stage. Green's daughter did just that in 2011, when, as a high school student, she attended a campaign rally for Governor Rick Perry and asked a thought-provoking question that went viral.

Near the end of our interview, Green references a quote from Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel: "The holocaust did not begin with killing, it began with words." For Green, his study of Islamophobia began after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He was serving as a Presbyterian minister in Waco, Texas, and, in the aftermath of 9/11, "members of my congregation, and many other people in Waco, had lots of questions about Islam, and they looked to their clergy to help with these questions." Despite his seminary education, Green was ill-equipped to answer their questions.

"It wasn't until 9/11 that I realized how ill-prepared I was to help Christians become more literate about other religions or to build bridges with our Muslim neighbors. From that time onward, I was resolved to learn more about Muslims and how they understood and practiced Islam."