20 December 2025

The East London Mosque welcomes all genuine efforts by the Government to address anti-Muslim racism and to confront the very real harm Islamophobia continues to cause to individuals, families and communities across the UK.

We recognise that the Government is considering a non-statutory definition framed around “anti-Muslim hostility”, intended to provide guidance to public bodies on understanding and addressing prejudice and hate crime.

The effectiveness of any such framework will not rest solely on terminology, but on whether it meaningfully reflects the realities faced by Muslims in their daily lives.

Debates about definitions are often framed through concerns about freedom of expression. Open, good-faith discussion and criticism of religion, including Islam, are a normal and protected part of a democratic society, and should remain so. However, it is important to be clear about the reality facing Muslim communities today.

Much of what Muslims experience as Islamophobia is not driven by principled debate or legitimate scrutiny of religious ideas, but by hostility directed at a minority community because of its perceived racial, cultural or visible differences. This form of prejudice targets people as Muslims, or as those assumed to be Muslim, regardless of their individual beliefs, views or conduct.

For this reason, any effective definition must go beyond addressing only overt criminal acts. Anti-Muslim racism frequently operates through stereotyping, racialisation and institutional bias, shaping how Muslims are treated in public life, employment, education and civic spaces. Recognising these patterns is essential if public bodies are to effectively combat anti-Muslim racism.

We recognise that the Government’s current approach seeks to protect individuals while safeguarding freedom of expression. These objectives are not in conflict. Protecting free speech and tackling anti-Muslim racism are both necessary for a healthy, cohesive society.

What must be avoided, however, is allowing abstract free-speech concerns to obscure or diminish the real and measurable harms experienced by Muslims across Britain today.

Any definition intended to address anti-Muslim racism must reflect the reality that Muslims are routinely targeted as a racialised minority, not simply as adherents of a faith. Whether the language used is “Islamophobia” or “anti-Muslim hostility”, a framework that fails to acknowledge this lived experience will be inadequate. The credibility of any proposed definition must therefore be judged not by its intentions or terminology, but by whether it meaningfully responds to the realities faced by British Muslims today.