With God on our side: Christianity, whiteness, Islam and otherness in the Australian experience

Abstract

This article discusses the whiteness of Christianity in Australia and the ways that Islam has been constructed as Other. Its starting point is the phrase used by a protestor at a Reclaim Australia event: ‘Jesus not Islam’. The article begins with a historical contextualization showing how Christianity became white in Europe from around the early seventeenth century. It then discusses how Islam came to be produced as a fundamental threat to Christianity, the moral order articulated through it, and the civilization built on it. The article argues that recognizing this is a necessary foundation for understanding why Islam has been singled out in Australia and the ways that the ‘Australian Muslim’ has been constructed.

Notes

1. Pauline Hanson was the founder in 1997 of the far-right One Nation Party. Hanson was elected to the House of Representatives in 1996. She argued against multiculturalism and Asian migration.

2. There is a halal certification fee. This is usually between $1000 and $2000 each year. The breakdown of costs can be found on the website of Muslims Australia at: http://muslimsaustralia.com.au/halal-accreditation-3/.

3. John Howard was prime minister between March 1996 and December 2007. He is Australia’s second-longest serving prime minister. Howard was the leader of the conservative Liberal Party. On Howard’s religious convictions see Maddox 2005.

4. It is worth noting, if only for the recognition of the many ideological positions that can be held by Christians, that Peter Costello’s brother is the Baptist minister and social activist Tim Costello. Costello was appointed Chief Executive of World Vision Australia in 2004 and has been an outspoken advocate for the humane treatment of asylum seekers.

5. Stephenson tells the story of Bilal ‘a black Abyssinian (Ethiopian) former slave chosen by the Prophet Muhammed to be the first Muslim muezzin (the person who leads the adhan or call to prayer). One of the Prophet’s closest companions, Bilal is revered by Muslims today as a symbol of the racial plurality and equality that characterise Islam’ (12).

6. Adrienne Francis ‘Canberra Muslim woman stopped wearing hijab for fear of being attacked’ on ABC News site, 3 October 2014 at: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-03/canberra-woman-stopped-wearing-hijab-for-fear-of-being-attacked/5789256.

7. See the ‘Reclaim Australia’ group on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/ReclaimAustraliaADL/posts/318738025001572.

8. Tony Abbott became prime minster in 2013, a position he held until rolled by Malcolm Turnbull in September 2015.