Five Questions On Europe Quran Burnings

In Episode 8 of “Unpacking Islamophobia,” our guest is Professor Farid Hafez, an Austrian academic who currently serves as a distinguished visiting Professor of International Studies at Williams College in Massachusetts and co-editor of the annual European Islamophobia Report, a collaborative work with 40 scholars covering more than 30 European countries. Professor Hafez provides historical context on the recent trends of Quran burnings across Europe, especially Scandinavian countries like Sweden and Denmark. Professor Hafez begins by noting the rise of “not-so-popular far-right activists” on the fringe who are trying to provoke social unrest with Quran burning publicity stunts. He noted that Danish-Swedish far-right politician Rasmus Paludan was the first prominent Scandinavian to conduct a series of “public Quran burnings” across Sweden in 2019 and most recently in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm, Sweden which made global headlines.