By Omar Bah
Momodou Malcolm Jallow, a native Gambian-Swedish MP, has described as ‘shameful’ the dehumanisation and marginalisation of Muslims in Western countries.
In a statement released on International Day Against Islamophobia, MP Jallow, who is known for his advocacy against racism and discrimination in Sweden, said: “Islamophobia is not just prejudice. It is not mere ignorance. It is a political weapon—sharpened, deployed, and wielded by governments, media, and institutions to dehumanise, marginalise, and ultimately erase Muslims from public life.
“And nowhere is this more evident than in the West, where Islamophobia has become state policy. From France’s hijab bans to Denmark’s state-protected Quran burnings, from racist immigration laws that let thousands of Muslim refugees drown in the Mediterranean to Sweden’s government openly legitimising anti-Muslim hate, one thing is clear: Islamophobia is not an accident. It is an agenda.”
He said in Sweden; the government has abandoned any pretense of being a champion of human rights.
“It has instead embraced far-right narratives, normalising the idea that Muslims are a threat to democracy. When Richard Jomshof called Islam an ‘abhorrent religion,’ Ebba Busch framed Muslims as a societal danger, and Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson minimised Islamophobia while exaggerating other forms of hate—they are not just expressing opinions. They are setting state policy,” he said.
MP Jallow added: “And let’s be clear: The same rhetoric that fuelled the Christchurch massacre, the Quebec Mosque shooting, and the attacks on mosques across Europe is now being spoken from the podiums of Western parliaments.”
He said the so-called “Great Replacement” theory—the conspiracy that Muslims are “taking over”—has moved from the fringes of white supremacist groups to the heart of political discourse.
“This is not just Sweden’s shame. It is the shame of every Western government that has allowed Islamophobia to become the last socially acceptable form of racism. It is the shame of every journalist who has peddled the narrative of the Muslim threat. It is the shame of every institution that has turned a blind eye as entire communities are vilified, attacked, and excluded. And history is watching.”
MP Jallow added that the West once asked itself: “How did we allow anti-Semitism to thrive in the 1930s? How did we normalise apartheid? How did we justify colonial genocide? Today, we ask: How did we let Islamophobia become the new apartheid? The new fascism? The new justification for hate?”
“This is not just a warning. It is a demand.
Islamophobia must end. Governments that uphold it must be held accountable. Politicians who spread it must be confronted. And the people who refuse to be silent in the face of rising fascism—must rise. Because the world has seen what happens when hate is allowed to fester. And we refuse to let history repeat itself,” he concluded.
