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Islamophobia Awareness month is a campaign co-founded in 2012 by a group of organisations to deconstruct and challenge stereotypes about Islam and Muslims. The month long campaign aims to work with Police and Crime Commissioners, local Councils, journalists and local media, Councillors and local MP’s, Mosques, Universities, Schools, community groups and others to raise awareness of Islamophobia and to encourage better reporting of incidents to the police.

The key aims of IAM are:

• Relationships - To build strong relationships and educate a wide audience through training and resources.
• Empowerment - To empower wide audiences to apply their learning and contribute to positive change.
• Equality - To amplify Muslim voices within equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) practices.
• Discussion - To encourage open discussion on topics related to IAMs mission.
• Stereotypes - To provide a counter-narrative that challenges stereotypes of Muslims.

This year’s IAM theme is ‘Seeds of Change’ with the goal of ‘emphasising how small actions can lead to big change. Whether it’s starting a conversation, challenging someone’s views, or something more, we can all plant a seed to help tackle Islamophobia.’

Find out more and get involved

For information about IAM and how to get involved please visit: About Islamophobia Awareness Month   

For resources and factsheets please visit: Resources Islamophobia Awareness Month

Partnering with the Aziz Foundation to offer scholarships for British Muslim students

The Aziz Foundation offers Masters scholarships for British Muslim students and Sussex is one of the foundation’s university partners. Jointly we offer five fee-paying scholarships a year for British Muslim students to do a Masters’ degree at Sussex. 

During Islamophobia Awareness Month, the Aziz Foundation is hosting an event for undergraduate students on campus Monday 18 November from 2pm-4pm where Sussex students can find out more about scholarship opportunities. Students will also hear from inspirational speakers, including previous Aziz scholars who will be sharing insights and reflections about how the scholarship has impacted their studies and their careers. 

Support

Support for Muslim staff and students is offered by the University’s Chaplaincy Team.

The University of Sussex is committed to providing a safe, inclusive and respectful environment for every member of its community. If you or someone else has experienced behaviours such as bullying, harassment, a hate incident, sexual violence, domestic abuse or discrimination, you can let us know using this Report and Support tool: Report + Support - University of Sussex

Further support

• Brighton and Hove Muslim Forum – a non-profit organisation aiming to serve the religious, social and cultural needs of the Brighton & Hove Muslim community
• The Muslim Youth Helpline – a charity which provides pioneering faith and culturally sensitive services to Muslim youth in the UK.

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