Review by Choice Review
Taras (Tulane Univ.) makes an insightful contribution to the study of European responses to immigrants and Muslims in particular. He begins by placing prejudice and phobias about the "other" in a scholarly context with a review of the literature. He continues with an examination of norms, practices, and models, notably British and French, of formulating immigrant rights. Tracing the evolution from fears about immigrants to Islamophobia, he highlights the contradictions between the concerns of the public and those of the political elites in Europe. Taras also notes the paucity of reliable data on the effects of immigration on the economic, social, and political systems of European countries. This, he points out, is exacerbated by normative inhibitions to public discussion of issues that are viewed as politically incorrect. Taras concludes his well-documented study with a number of counterfactuals that might have prevented the phobias from taking root in the political fabric of Europe. The bibliography is brief but current. The book is strongly recommended for university students as well as researchers on Islamophobia, immigrant rights, and European politics. Summing Up: Highly recommended. General readers, undergraduate students, graduate students, and research faculty. R. P. Peters University of Massachusetts at Boston
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
