5th ISA Forum of Sociology (6-11 July 2025)

While other international events have somewhat overtaken the ‘War on Terror’ response to attacks on New York’s Twin Towers (2001) and the Bali bombings (2002), the effects of the securitization measures continue to make Muslim communities in the West an object of suspicion and fear. This panel considers the effects of legislation that increased powers of surveillance, and attendant Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) measures and discourse that positions Muslims as a ‘fifth column’ irrespective of their religiosity, country of birth, length of residence and citizenship (Abdel-Fattah, 2019; Grossman, 2014). A small, but growing, body of literature has found that the present securitised environment is having negative effects on wellbeing and belonging. Muslim community leaders report feeling both scared and powerless to change the situation (Faris & Parry, 2011), and there is reluctance amongst leaders to be involved in state-led community engagement due to growing mistrust (Cherney & Hartley, 2017). Indeed, Muslims have begun to self-censor for fear of unwanted attention from the authorities (Cherney & Murphy, 2016), and fracturing of intergenerational trust. Some Muslim youth have formed their own ethno-religious groups online, as ‘safe spaces’ in which to discuss CVE and international issues (e.g. Palestine, Syria, Iraq, etc.), and avoid ‘microaggressions’ (Sue, 2010) from majority populations. Over twenty years on from 9/11 this panel considers the ongoing effects among Muslim communities of this surveillance lens.