Eurabian nightmares: American conservative discourses and the Islamisation of Europe

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to examine a theme that has become highly prominent in American conservative discourses of recent years, the supposed Islamisation of Europe. In doing so, the article contends that writers propounding the notion of European Islamisation typically misrepresent and misinterpret statistics and trends. Equally, their characterisations of European Muslims, as strongly under the sway of radical Islamist beliefs, are frequently simplistic and misleading. Furthermore, it is shown that conservatives' interest in this topic arises from more than just a concern for the future of Europe. Instead, many conservatives use this issue to present a particular construction of the 'European model' of politics and society, as a means of reasserting long-standing warnings about the dangers of everything from multiculturalism to an expansive welfare state. © 2011 Board of Transatlantic Studies.