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ISPU provides objective research and education about American Muslims to support well- informed dialogue and decision-making.
Islamophobia Spikes in 2026 Election Cycle
Research shows that Islamophobia intensifies during election seasons, when anti-Muslim rhetoric is deliberately used as a tool to advance specific policies or candidates. And, Saher Selod writes in ISPU’s Substack, as current political rhetoric targeting Muslims increases with campaigning for the midterm elections, Republicans in states like Texas and Oklahoma are in active attack mode against their Muslims constituents. Photo of Ken Paxton by Gage Skidmore
Abdul El-Sayed’s nomination sits at the intersection of two important trends the data bear out: American Muslims are becoming more visible, organized, and engaged in American political life, even as public endorsement of anti-Muslim stereotypes is rising. In a new Substack, Tuqa Nusairat writes about the escalating anti-Muslim rhetoric after El-Sayed’s primary win in Michigan—and how Muslims may respond.
American Muslim Poll 2025
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Our strategy of equipping leaders multiplies our impact as the data lives on in the work of those who catalyze change.
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to inform stories about Muslim communities in the United States.
Our Impact
I remember the first time I learned ISPU’s facts and data about American Muslims and anti-Muslim discrimination, and the impact it had on my own understanding of the ways that anti-Muslim bigotry shows up in our country. It completely shifted my paradigm of what it means to love my Muslim neighbors from one of charity to mutual solidarity. It helped me to see the role that I have to play from where I’m situated, understanding that my own sense of freedom and dignity is tied to that of my Muslim neighbors.
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Misinformation & Bias
Addressing misconceptions and providing factual data about American Muslim communities.
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Understanding and articulating the diverse needs of American Muslim families.
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COUNTERING AND DISMANTLING ISLAMOPHOBIA
ISPU Scholars
Asifa Quraishi-Landes is a fellow at ISPU and a Professor of Law at University of Wisconsin Law School. She specializes in comparative Islamic and U.S.constitutional law. She was
Laila Alawa is the Founder and CEO of The Tempest, the global tech and media company changing the narrative of diverse millennial women in the world. Previously, Laila
Dr. Sahar Khamis is an associate professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is an expert on Arab and Muslim media,
Muniba Saleem, PhD, is an Associate Professor in media psychology at the University of California Santa Barbara’s Department of Communication, and a Faculty Associate at the Institute for
Kumar Rao is a lawyer and advocate with years of experience partnering with grassroots organizations and elected officials in the fight to strengthen our democracy, and for racial
Abbas Barzegar is a scholar at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding. He is also an Assistant Professor of Islam at Georgia State University. His scholarly research
Radwan Ziadeh is a scholar at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU), a senior fellow at the United States Institute for Peace, and a Dubai Initiative
Dalia Mogahed is a scholar at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding. Mogahed is the former Director of Research at ISPU, where she led the organization’s pioneering
Saeed A. Khan is currently in the Department of History and Lecturer in the Department of Near East & Asian Studies at Wayne State University-Detroit, Michigan, where he
Moustafa Bayoumi is the author of the critically acclaimed How Does It Feel To Be a Problem?: Being Young and Arab in America (Penguin), which won an American
Todd Green is the Executive Director of America Indivisible, a coalition effort to address rising bigotry against members of Muslim communities. Previously, he served as a professor of
Lance D. Laird is Assistant Professor in the Family Medicine Department and the Graduate Division of Religious Studies at Boston University. He began studying the Islamic tradition as
Abdulkader Sinno is an Associate Professor of Political Science and Middle Eastern Studies at Indiana University, Bloomington. He received his PhD from UCLA in 2002, was a CISAC
Hamada Hamid Altalib is a Senior Fellow and former Director for the Center for Global Health at ISPU. He is also an Assistant Professor in the Departments of
John O. Voll is Professor Emeritus of Islamic History and past Associate Director of the Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.
Sameera Ahmed, PhD, is the executive director of The Family and Youth Institute, a leading research and education organization dedicated to strengthening and empowering individuals, families, and communities.
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What Can You Do?
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Conducted by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU) in partnership with Stanford’s Muslim Mental Health and Islamic Psychology Lab, this qualitative study
