One matter that emerges most clearly from the studies gathered in this book is the complexity of the issues discussed. It is manifest that any attempt to look at Muslims in Europe as a homogeneous mass is illusory, quite apart from being inadequate, both empirically and cognitively. Bosnian Muslims live under conditions and in ways which are both internally differentiated and complex. Algerians in Aulney-sur-Bois, Kashmiris in Bradford, Kurds in Oslo or Turks in Kreuzberg all live in similarly diverse conditions.

Yet we are being told repeatedly Muslims, European or otherwise, are above all Muslims, and that by this token alone they are distinctive and must be treated as such. In recent years, this oversimplified opinion has gained momentum, overcoming common sense, to the extent that some sections of the public regard all Muslims with various degrees of xenophobia, often with a mild, implicitly tribal sentiment of communal intimacy. This xenophobia is reflected in much of what is said about European heritage by politicians (not only conservative ones), sections of the press, and certain prelates. It is shared, and expressed in different tonalities, with deliberate alarmism, overtly malignant as well as seemingly benign, as in the case of nativist political parties, certain sections of the press (most notably in Italy) or notorious publicists such as Oriana Fallacci.