The intersection of racism and the prevention of Islamist extremism: examining stigmatization in the German prevention landscape

Based on a broad understanding of institutions, the question of institutional racism concerns not only specific authorities, but also political fields established through formal and informal rules and norms. Since 9/11, the so-called prevention of Islamist extremism, shaped and regulated by various state and non-state institutions, has developed as an independent field of work in many western countries. Thus, it is not surprising that critical security researchers have increasingly addressed the question of the potentially stigmatizing effects of this work on Muslim minorities. However, initial findings from our research project on the nexus between the prevention of Islamist extremism on the one hand, and racism in Germany on the other, show that the connections between the two are far more complex than assumed. Certain prevention practices, such as the specific targeting of Muslim individuals and communities, seem not only to have stigmatizing effects (racism through prevention), but also to (re)produce anti-Muslim racism. At the same time, the study also shows that racist ideas in society can hinder the implementation of prevention measures (racism within prevention). In this light, Gaspar and Kirchgässner argue that the prevention of Islamist extremism must be understood as an (institutionalized) political field that not only has stigmatizing effects but also operates within existing racist structures. To understand these structures better, they argue for a stronger theoretical link between critical security studies and research on racism.