Islam has become an important part of American discourse leading up to the 2012 federal elections and candidates everywhere appear eager to take a position on Islam for political gain. Across the country, rising Islamophobia has made it difficult for some Muslims to build mosques and practice their faith, although their right to do so is enshrined in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

In the current race for the presidential nomination, some candidates are invoking Islam and Muslims in a negative fashion in an attempt to bolster their popularity with populations they perceive to be suspicious of Muslims or Islam. For example, if elected, former presidential candidate Herman Cain promised not to appoint Muslims to his Cabinet.

This is representative of recent trends. In 2010, some Republican Congressional candidates used the proposed Park 51 Muslim community center, famously branded as the “ground-zero mosque”, and fear of Shariah, the principles from which Islamic law is derived, to rally voters to their cause. And elected Congressional leaders, such as Peter King (R-New York), have used their committee appointments to argue that American Muslims are deeply radicalized, a fact repeatedly debunked by several surveys and reports. However, there are others within the Republican Party who eschew this rhetoric, such as presidential candidates Mitt Romney and Ron Paul, as well as others like Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, who appointed a Muslim, Sohail Mohammed, as a state judge despite much opposition.

Individual tolerance or fear of different groups is not confined to political elites. A September 2011 study conducted by two think tanks, Brookings Institution and Public Religion Research Institute, found that over 47 percent of Americans say Islam and American values are incompatible and similar numbers express discomfort with Islam in America.