Tracing Anti-Islamic Discourse in the European Premodern Context by Reading Europe with Muslim Eyes (REME)

For the uninitiated and/or skeptic, the historicization of Islamophobia may produce several compelling and important quandaries. Primarily, why is tracing the premodern formulations of Anti-Islamic discourse valuable and in what ways does it enable one to contest and engage with its contemporary instantiations? Can it produce the adverse response of illustrating the problematic longevity of Islamophobia and in doing so, lead to a level of social paralysis and disillusionment?

The inaugural piece(s) explores the philosophical underpinnings on the value of ‘Reading Europe with Muslim Eyes’ (REME). In general, it affirms the fundamental role of history in tempering our understandings of our current moment. Put more succinctly, historizing current issues is never a futile enterprise (even for nonprofessional historians). Indeed, it constitutes the substantive foundation upon which knowledge (and action) is centered and built upon. As denizens of the current moment, we are beholden to a world in which the rapid movement of ideas, politics and epistemic channels can obfuscate underlying historical currents. In this way, the process of historicization allows its readership to expand individual and collective horizons of knowledge production and envision alternative futures.