ABSTRACT
The foundations of American prejudices concerning Turks derived originally from stereotypes brought to the New World from Europe. Chief among these was religiously motivated dislike of Islam and distrust of Muslims. These prejudices were powerful in past American culture and remain strong today. It is impossible to believe, however, that anti-Muslim prejudice was ever strong enough to be the cause of the belief that Turks have ever been genocidal criminals. Although it drew some of its power from traditional prejudice against Muslims, the belief that Turks committed genocide against Armenians was actually the result of a sophisticated campaign to vilify the Turks. This campaign had two pillars - American missionaries and British propaganda. This chapter considers the former.
