Is China an anti-Muslim country?

China as a country is not against any religion particularly. Its people practice all kind of religion, including Islam that has been around for centuries. Part of traditional cuisine in Beijing is Halal for that reason (Hui cuisine).

The country is ruled by the Chinese communist party that has a long tradition of opposing religious groups of all kind. No religious activity is tolerated without reviews and approval from the local government. Therefore, Christians, Muslims and Buddhists need to refer to instances of the government regarding the scope and content of their cult.

If you talk to Chinese people of Han ethnicity (the majority of Chinese) living in big cities, you will find out that many are blatantly racist against people from Xinjiang - the region in China with the biggest Muslim population. As a French, I found it quite similar to the existing racism towards people from Northern Africa you can find in France. People call them thieves, crooks and accuse them of the worst crimes without any basis, mostly uncontrolled fear supported by newspaper headlines business. The main difference with France is that I have never heard any Chinese, even the worst racist, refer to the people in Xinjiang by their faith. Faith is not just that big an issue in China. It may be changing slowly, but there is no religious framing of people like in the West. So I will say no, people in China are not anti Islam per se.

This text was originally published in quora.