The Troubling Consequences of Seeing Muslims as a Racial Group [TIME Magazine]

Sahar Aziz spoke with TIME Magazine about the historical roots of Islamophobia in the U.S., the effects of viewing Muslims as a “suspect race” and the significance of the hateful comments recently made by Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colorado) about Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota). TIME: There’s an interesting dichotomy you repeatedly describe in the book—that the same people defending religious freedoms for Christians also support violating the civil rights of Muslims through policies that discriminate against them, like intrusive surveillance measures and the ‘Muslim ban.’ You also write about how the… Continue reading “The Troubling Consequences of Seeing Muslims as a Racial Group [TIME Magazine]”

The Racial Muslim: When Racism Quashes Religious Freedom [Fordham University School of Law]

On Nov. 30, 2021 Rutgers University Law School Professor Sahar Aziz gave a virtual talk on her recently published book, The Racial Muslim: When Racism Quashes Religious Freedom, which demonstrates how race and religion intersect to create what she calls the “Racial Muslim.” The program was moderated by Tanya Katerí Hernández, Archibald R. Murray Professor of Law at Fordham and presented by Fordham Law’s Center on Race, Law and Justice. In conversation with Aziz at the event was John Tehranian, Paul W. Wildman Chair and Professor of Law at… Continue reading “The Racial Muslim: When Racism Quashes Religious Freedom [Fordham University School of Law]”

Ripples From 9/11 [Princeton University]

Professor Sahar Aziz joined scholars of political science and sociology at Princeton University to examine the how America has changed in the twenty years since the September 11th terrorist attacks. In the panel “Ripples From 9/11: 20 Years Later” hosted by the School of Public and International Affairs, Professor Aziz expounded on the expansion of executive authority and heightened judicial deference has eroded civil liberties for all Americans, and most acutely for Muslim communities.… Continue reading “Ripples From 9/11 [Princeton University]”

20 Years Later: Lasting Impacts of 9/11 on Law and Policy [Boston University]

In commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks, Boston University School of Law hosted a panel to discuss the lasting impacts on civil rights, immigration law, and national security policy. Professor Sahar Aziz offered her insights on the harms suffered by Muslim communities by selective enforcement of national security laws that effectively religious profile them as presumptively suspect.… Continue reading “20 Years Later: Lasting Impacts of 9/11 on Law and Policy [Boston University]”

‘The Longest Shadow’: 9/11 Leads to the Militarization of US Police Departments [ABCNews]

In the immediate aftermath of 9/11, a wariness of Muslims swept the country. Hate crimes against Muslims skyrocketed. Mosques became inundated with threats. “Anything that showed that you were an Arab or a Muslim caused everyone to be suspicious of you,” said Sahar Aziz, director of the Center for Security, Race and Rights at Rutgers University Law School. In response to the terror attacks, police departments in some major cities compiled vast databases of alleged potential terrorists and undertook ambitious surveillance missions targeting Muslim communities. “You had massive surveillance programs… Continue reading “‘The Longest Shadow’: 9/11 Leads to the Militarization of US Police Departments [ABCNews]”

9/11 and the Racial Limitations of Religious Freedom [Al Jazeera]

Each anniversary of the 9/11 attacks generates debates on how to balance security with liberty in the United States. What is often lost in the conversation is the role that race plays in constraining civil liberties for religious minorities. Today, the targets are Muslims. A century ago, it was Jews and Catholics. The racialisation script is the same. First, the religious minority is vilified in the media and among public officials as a disloyal fifth column. Then, the religion’s followers are racialised as a threat to the (Anglo-Saxon Protestant) American way of… Continue reading “9/11 and the Racial Limitations of Religious Freedom [Al Jazeera]”

Security, Race, and Rights [The Maydan]

As the 20th anniversary of September 11 reminds us of personal tragedy as well as structural violence of the state, The Maydan Podcast editor-in-chief Ahmet Tekelioglu hosts Sahar Aziz, a legal scholar, an expert on critical race theory, and the founding director of the Center for Security, Race, and Rights at  Rutgers University Law School. She is the author of The Racial Muslim: When Racism Quashes Religious Freedom published with the University of California Press in November 2021. Tekelioglu and Aziz also speak about the impact of 9/11 on legal… Continue reading “Security, Race, and Rights [The Maydan]”

How 9/11 Changed American Muslims’ Relationship with Religious Freedom [Deseret News]

The terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, changed the course of Sahar Aziz’s career. Before the planes crashed and the buildings collapsed, she’d planned to finish law school and move to the Middle East to do pro-democracy work. After, she still wanted to be a lawyer, but she set her sights on civil rights work much closer to home. For Aziz and many other Muslims, 9/11 was a wake-up call about not just the fragility of life, but also the fragility of America’s constitutional protections. In the months and years… Continue reading “How 9/11 Changed American Muslims’ Relationship with Religious Freedom [Deseret News]”