The 'White Army of Terror': European Converts to Islam and Public Imagination

Abstract

This paper focuses on the representation of European converts to Islam in the public imagination. Firstly, the theoretical grounds for representations of converts in public imagination are identified and media images of converts involved in political violence are presented. The second part of the paper discusses the three prevailing motifs pertaining to European converts to Islam within the context of political violence. The Young and Angry, Swift and Deadly, and Gullible and/or Brainwashed motifs present in public imagination, and ubiquitous in the media and pop culture, are often mimicked in scholarly analyses. While these three images are not the only media representations of European converts to Islam, they are the most prevalent and thus indicate the main influences in shaping the public imagination. This paper accordingly elucidates how such conceptualisation leads to a false and misleading perception of the connection between European converts to Islam and terrorism.