Christian-based religions (notably Catholicism and Protestantism) still account for 73 percent of Americans’ religious identities. However, Islam has quickly grown to become the largest non-Christian religious identity in the United States and the third-largest religion, representing an estimated 1 percent of the population. In 2010, 2.6 million Americans identified as Muslim and that is projected to rise to 6.2 million (1.7 percent of the population) by 2030. The growing religious diversity has seeped onto college campuses and, while diversity initiatives often grab the attention of institutions, campus leaders are still unsure how to discuss or handle religious diversity.
Campus Islamophobia
Islamophobia continues to grow in America, where 45 percent of Americans hold negative perceptions toward Muslims combined with increasing visibility of Muslim Americans has unfortunately resulted in violence toward undeserving Muslim students. There is a long history of Islamophobia in America, but after the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, backlash toward Muslims escalated. Muslim students across the country became overtly aware of their identity and the perception of their faith by non-Muslim Americans.
Muslim students studying in Boston reported avoiding areas surrounding the bombing site because of hate slurs and threats directed at them, especially among women who wear the hijab. Nationally, Muslim students reported racist comments, microaggressions and discrimination on campus, while experienced being labeled a terrorist to being physically assaulted by peers. Physical assaults have intensified to killings. The murder of three college students near the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was a vibrant hate crime toward Muslim Americans highlighting the need for institutions to step forward and address the needs of Muslim students.
Addressing unique needs
Universities should help Muslim students during these troublesome times. Frequently, services directed toward Muslim students operate through student affairs offices, while in conjunction with other offices on campus such as student development, diversity/multicultural offices and international student offices. Nevertheless, there is no golden answer. Rather, solutions depend largely on campus context and resources. Generally, institutions approach the topic by building greater cultural awareness, initiating campuswide programs targeting Muslim students and train faculty/staff to appreciate Muslim students’ multiple identities.
Few institutions are blazing the way in supporting Muslim students and serve as examples for the rest to follow. Several schools are adopting the concept of religious pluralism to mend cultural and religious conflicts on campus. Collectively, student development offices, student affairs offices and student religious groups are uniting to construct equal representation of all religions by advocating coexistence.
