Locating the threat, rebordering the nation: Gender and Islamophobia in the Swiss Parliament, 2001–2015

Abstract

Since 2001, the ‘Islamic threat’ has become increasingly prominent in debates on migration policy, religious affairs and security at the federal level in Switzerland. Supported by the far right-wing parties, the paradigm of the Islamic threat reveals how Islamophobia is gendered and affects Muslim women and men differently. By analysing debates between the Federal Council and Swiss Parliament, this article shows how the Islamic threat shaped the border politics of the Swiss Nation between 2001 and 2015. It reveals how the ruling elite justified the socio-spatial exclusion of Muslims living in a Muslim-minority context. As consequence of the success of the far right-wing Swiss People's Party (SVP), legal measures have increased with regard to security, protection of Swiss culture and women's rights, and exclusion of Muslims from the boundaries of the Swiss nation.

‘We’re Islam in Their Eyes’: Using an Interpellation Framework to Understand Why Being a Woman Matters When Countering Islamophobia

“…Dunn et al (2021) report that one third of Victorians, the second most-populous state in Australia, believe that Muslim women should not be allowed to wear the hijab. The experience of Australian Muslim women with gendered Islamophobia is similar to those of Muslim women in the United States, Western Europe, and the United Kingdom, although each region has its unique manifestations and challenges due to its specific political and cultural climates and histories (for example, US : Baboolal 2023;Kwan 2008;Selod 2015;Ghumman and Jackson 2009;Jamal 2017;UK: Allen 2014;Zempi 2020;Western Europe: Panighel 2022;Welten and Abbas 2021;Direnberger et al 2022;Easat-Daas 2019). The fact that Muslim women in Australia and in other Western countries are the more likely recipients of Islamophobia leads to the following questions: In what ways do Muslim women engaged in countering Islamophobia education initiatives feel their experience is gendered?…”

A Discourse-Historical Analysis of the 2014 Vote ‘Against Mass Immigration’ in Switzerland

“…The authors highlight the campaigns in the November 2009 minaret-ban referendum to demonstrate the relationship between Islamophobia and political actors in Switzerland (Direnberger, Banfi, & Eskandari, 2022). It was also during this time that the SVP developed a discourse around the incompatibility of Islam with Swiss values (Direnberger, Banfi, & Eskandari, 2022). This discourse continued during the debate around the vote 'against mass immigration' where the SVP succeeded in making the 'Islamic threat' a federal issue.…”

“…In their work titled "Locating the threat, rebordering the nation: Gender and Islamophobia in the Swiss Parliament, 2001", Direnberger, Banfi and Eskandari (2022 discuss how the idea of an 'Islamic threat' became a prominent debate among the ruling elite in Switzerland and is used to justify the socio-spatial exclusion of Muslims. The authors highlight the campaigns in the November 2009 minaret-ban referendum to demonstrate the relationship between Islamophobia and political actors in Switzerland (Direnberger, Banfi, & Eskandari, 2022). It was also during this time that the SVP developed a discourse around the incompatibility of Islam with Swiss values (Direnberger, Banfi, & Eskandari, 2022).…”