The Impact of Islamophobia on Muslims Living in France

Abstract

At the end of the 20^th century and the beginning of the 21^st century, the growing number of terrorist attacks in the world, the organizers of which were often Muslims, caused a negative attitude towards this religion. Stereotypes that Muslims are dangerous and aggressive spread in the West, which naturally led to an increase in Islamophobic attitudes. I would like to mention that nowadays, unfortunately, a similar attitude towards Muslims can be observed in many countries. In this case, I will analyze the example of one particular European country, France. What is important is how much Islamophobia affects French Muslims in this country. Accordingly, I will focus on the existing and possible laws in the country regarding the Muslims living there and their daily life. I will discuss French secularism, which is related to the laws adopted in the country. The discussion will focus on the following questions: whether the rights of Muslims are restricted, whether followers of this religion are victims of discrimination, whether acts of hatred against Muslims are frequent, and how widespread Islamophobia is in this European country.