What is Islamophobia and How to Combat Hate Crime?

How to Combat Hate Crime
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The Oxford Dictionary defines Islamophobia as the fear, hatred of, or prejudice against, the Islamic religion or Muslims generally; it mostly springs from viewing Muslims as a source of terrorism or a geopolitical force. Islamophobia is the leading cause of hate crime against Muslims. Hate crime on the other hand are crimes that are motivated by prejudice on the basis of the religion, race, sexual orientation, political affiliation or disability of the victims. The murder of Suzanne Barakat’s brother, his wife and the wife’s sister that took place in Chapel Hill, North Carolina on 10 February 2015 is an example of an Islamophobic hate crime. In the Ted Talk titled “Islamophobia killed my Brother. Let’s end the hate” Suzanne talks about how the victims, typical American college students, were murdered in their home and how the murderer later turned himself in to the police, claiming that he had murdered the three students over a parking space dispute. She talks about the role politics play in aggravating Islamophobia, about the harm of silence whenever people witness such crimes. In the video, she also hails people who are using their platforms and resources to express their support and stand in solidarity with the targets of hate crimes.
It will take change in the political and education systems, the media sector, individuals and the society as a whole to combat hate crimes such as Islamophobia....