Rozina Ali Traces 25 Years of US Islamophobia in New Book

3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Sep 9

Rozina Ali’s new book “Seasons of Fury,” released ahead of the 25th anniversary of 9/11, argues US Islamophobia long predates the attacks and has become more entrenched, not less.
Ali links that history to decades of national-security policy, from Nixon-era surveillance of Arab Americans to post-9/11 FBI informants in mosques and neighborhoods, saying suspicion of Muslims became institutionalized.
One case in the book follows Abdeen Jabara, whom Ali describes as the first US citizen acknowledged by the NSA as having been surveilled, illustrating how anti-Arab monitoring expanded into broader anti-Muslim scrutiny.
Ali says the climate has worsened again in 2026: a Pew poll found most Muslims report daily discrimination, and the share of US adults who see Islam as more violence-prone than other religions has more than doubled since 9/11.
She argues the backlash now shapes politics directly, pointing to attacks on Muslim politicians, petitions targeting New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and Texas and Florida labeling CAIR a terrorist organization.