Donald Trump, “Judeo-Christian Values,” and the “Clash of Civilizations”

Abstract

Anti-Muslim feeling in the USA reflects not only long-standing antipathy linked to the events of 11 September 2001 but also reveals the success of an ideologically-focused political argument, one that has deliberately exaggerated the extent of values-based incompatibility between all Muslims and all “Westerners.” This was exhibited by Donald Trump and other leading Republicans in the 2016 presidential campaign, who sought to highlight the perceived virtues of American “Judeo-Christianity” while implicitly or explicitly denigrating the values and ethics of Muslims, both in America and around the world. The article examines the Trump administration's policy regarding America's claimed “Judeo-Christian values” and differences with those of Muslim-majority societies.

ORCID

Jeffrey Haynes http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8434-6951

Notes

1 According to Gibson (2011),

Breivik claimed that he is a Christian in various forums, but most explicitly and in greatest detail in the 1,500-page manifesto he compiled over several months and posted on the Internet. ‘At the age of 15 I chose to be baptised [sic] and confirmed in the Norwegian State Church,’ the 32-year-old Breivik wrote. ‘I consider myself to be 100 percent Christian’.

2 The 2013 Pew Report comprised over 38,000 face-to-face interviews, conduced with Muslims in 39 countries in more than 80 languages. They were divided into six regions for the purpose of the report: Southern and Eastern Europe (Russia and the Balkans), Central Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jeffrey Haynes

Jeffrey Haynes is Professor of Politics at London Metropolitan University and Director of the university’s Centre for the Study of Religion, Conflict, and Cooperation. He is the author or editor of more than 40 books. The most recent are World Politics: International Relations and Globalisation in the 21^st Century (2017; co-author) Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2nd. ed., and Nations Under God (2015; co-editor) E-International Relations Publishing.