Information and Dialogue in the Struggle against Islamophobia: The Jeddah Declaration for a Culture of Moderation

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the Anti-Islamophobia Media Strategy presented during the 11th session of the Islamic Conference of Information Ministers (Session of the New Media to Counter Terrorism and Islamophobia), which took place in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 19-21 December 2016. Built around the idea of a culture of moderation, especially taking into consideration that moderation is “the pillar of Islamic identity”, the Jeddah Declaration, issued at the end of the conference, represents the peaceful and determined commitment of the Muslim world to participate fully in the globalized world, building bridges and rejecting unfounded prejudice and generalizations. Considering that the proceedings of the Conference have gone largely unnoticed in Western media, this paper intends to bring them to the attention of the international academic community, and subsequently to offer comments and reflections that will also highlight the problematical relationship between knowledge and prejudice.