The Bipartisan Comfort with Islamophobia is a Threat to Us All

The election of Zohran Mamdani as the first Muslim mayor of New York City should have been a pure celebration of American pluralism. Instead, his victory was preceded by a political campaign that laid bare a disturbing and pervasive truth: Islamophobia has become a casually deployed, bipartisan weapon in American politics. This normalization of bigotry, our research confirms, is not just a problem for the Muslim community—it is a cancer eating away at the foundations of our democracy, and it harms us all.

Mamdani’s road to City Hall was anything but smooth. After securing a historic win in the primary, he was met with a landslide of attacks that transcended political affiliation. The rhetoric from right-wing provocateurs, social media personalities, and even his three opponents was not merely critical of his policies; it was a direct assault on his identity, painting him as an inherent threat to the city he sought to lead.

The examples are as blatant as they are alarming. Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa claimed Mamdani supports “global jihad.” Independent candidate Andrew Cuomo nodded in agreement with a supporter who suggested the mayor-elect would celebrate “another 9/11.” Most tellingly, outgoing Democratic mayor Eric Adams suggested a Mamdani mayorship would turn New York into Europe, where “Islamic extremists … are destroying communities.” This was not a policy debate; it was a coordinated effort to otherize and demonize based on faith.

A Predictable and Rising Tide of Hate

As researchers of anti-Muslim bias and as Muslims who came of age in a post-9/11 America, we know these attacks are not random. Our work at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU) shows that Islamophobia does not simply spike after violent acts, but is most potent during election cycles and political events. It is wielded as a deliberate political tactic, a wedge issue designed to galvanize a base by stoking fear of a perceived “other.”

Worryingly, the attacks on Mamdani are a symptom of a much larger and accelerating disease. The latest edition of our American Muslim Poll, released this October, reveals a sharp and disheartening rise in Islamophobia across the United States. On our 100-point Islamophobia Index, the score among the general public has jumped from 25 in 2022 to 33 in 2025.

This increase is starkly visible across demographic lines:

• White Evangelicals saw their score skyrocket from 30 to 45.

• Catholics increased from 28 to 40.

• Protestants rose from 23 to 30.

While Jewish Americans and Muslims maintain the lowest scores (19), the trend is clear: prejudice against Muslims is becoming more mainstream. This weaponization of faith has devastating real-world consequences, from job discrimination and the inability to worship freely, to the bullying of Muslim children in schools and, in the most tragic cases, physical violence. Dangerous rhetoric paves the way for dangerous outcomes.

Debunking the Architecture of Bigotry

Our Islamophobia Index is built on five pernicious stereotypes about Muslims: that they condone violence, discriminate against women, are hostile to the U.S., are less civilized, and are complicit in violence committed by other Muslims. Our nationally representative survey of 2,486 Americans shows more people are embracing these falsehoods, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

• Myth of Violence: Contrary to popular media portrayals, American Muslims are more likely than the general public to reject violence against civilians, whether carried out by militaries or individuals.

• Myth of Misogyny: The idea that Muslim communities uniquely oppress women is a fallacy. Muslim women report facing far more religious and racial discrimination than gender-based discrimination from within their communities. An overwhelming 99% of hijab-wearing women say they do so out of personal devotion and choice, finding pride and happiness in their faith.

• Myth of Disloyalty: The belief that Muslims are hostile to America is disproven by their profound civic engagement. We find that Muslims with strong religious identities are more likely to hold a strong American identity. They are your neighbors who organize community clean-ups, the doctors who served on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the activists who rallied for clean water in Flint.

• Myth of “Uncivilized” Behavior: This trope is perhaps the most insidious, as it is a deliberate tool of dehumanization. To label a group “uncivilized” is to strip them of their humanity and place them in a false hierarchy. As organizations like Genocide Watch attest, this kind of dehumanization is a recognized precursor to mass violence and genocide.

A Clear and Present Danger to Democracy

We saw all five of these toxic tropes activated in the attacks on Zohran Mamdani. More disturbingly, we see this rhetoric having a corrosive effect on our democratic norms. Our research has directly linked belief in these anti-Muslim stereotypes to a greater tolerance for authoritarian and anti-democratic policies. Those who hold Islamophobic views are more likely to:

• Support suspending constitutional checks and balances during a national threat.

• Advocate for limiting freedom of the press.

• Condone military attacks on civilians—a war crime.

• Approve of discriminatory policies like Muslim bans, mosque surveillance, and even restricting the right to vote for Muslims.

As Mamdani himself astutely observed, “In an era of ever-diminishing bipartisanship, it seems that Islamophobia has emerged as one of the few areas of agreement.” This is a bipartisan failure with bipartisan consequences. When we allow a political strategy to be built on the dehumanization of a minority group, we erode the rights and freedoms that protect every citizen.

The election of Mamdani, in the face of such vitriol, is a powerful rebuke. His victory speech contained a promise that should become a national mandate: “No more will New York be a city where you can traffic in Islamophobia and win an election.” It is a call to conscience. Confronting and denouncing this hate is not an act of political correctness; it is the essential work of preserving our democracy and defending our collective human dignity. The comfort with Islamophobia must end, for the sake of our nation’s soul.

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