Department
Department of Political Science
Phone
+1 (210) 9998340
Email Address
pobrien@trinity.edu
Room
105I
Websites
Peter O'Brien's Vita, Peter O'Brien's Digital Commons Page
Headshot of Peter O'Brien

Education

  • Ph.D. - Univ of Wisconsin-Madison
  • B.A. - Kalamazoo College  

Selected Publications

  • “Blocking Migration: The Underside of European Politics.” Populations 1/4/23 (2025): 1-22. link
  • “Resistance to Islamophobia: ‘Westophobia’ in Social Media.” (with Jordan Nelson) Comparative Civilizations Review 93 (Fall 2025)
  • “Bordering in Europe: Differential Inclusion.” Border Crossing 9/1 (2019): 43-62. Link
  • “Counter-terrorism in Europe: Discord and Disorder.” In Terrorism, Global Politics, and Transatlantic Relations: Threats and Challenges, ed. Tobias Hof (New York: Palgrave Macmillan: 2022), pp. 105-26
  • “Irregular Migration in Europe: Inclusive Exclusion.” In Immigrants, Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Times of Crises, ed. Theodoros Fouskas (Athens: European Public Law Organization, 2021), pp. 663-690
  • "Counter-terrorism in Europe: the Elusive Search for Order.” European Security 23/3 (2016): 366–384. link
  • The Muslim Question in Europe: Political Controversies and Public Philosophies. (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2016)
  • "Islamophobia & Europhobia: Subaltern Discourse & Its Limits." Islamophobia Studies (Summer 2016)
  • "Postmodern Politics: Manipulating Images of Islam in Contemporary Europe." In Muhammad in the Digital Age, ed. Ruqayya J. Khan (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2015), pp. 83-107
  • European Perceptions of Islam & America from Saladin to George W. Bush: Europe's Fragile Ego Uncovered. (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009)
  • "Making (Normative) Sense of the Headscarf Debate in Europe"German Politics and Society 27/3 (Autumn 2009): 50-76
  • Beyond the Swastika: The Legacy of the Holocaust and Postwar Immigration Policy in Germany. (London: Routledge, 1996)
  • "Islamophobia & Europhobia: Subaltern Discourse & Its Limits." Islamophobia Studies (Summer 2016)
  • “Islamophilia in Medieval Spain.” (with Christiana Zgourides). Common Knowledge 24/1 (2018): 35–55.

Subjects Taught

  • Introduction to Political Philosophy
  • Political Economy
  • European Politics
  • Power and Knowledge
  • Contemporary Political Thought
  • Global City Berlin (in Berlin)  

Community Service & Involvement

  • Volunteer at Center for Refugee Services
  • Volunteer at Village at Incarnate Word (senior community)
  • Baritone in San Antonio Mastersingers
  • Fan of TU's resident SOLI Chamber Ensemble

Teaching and Expertise

My research investigates the way in which Europeans view and interact with non-Europeans both in the past and in the present, including what that reveals about European identity or self-understanding itself.While my predominant focus is on relations with Muslims (e.g., Islamophobia in Europe), I have also published in the area of anti-Americanism in Europe. I have been Social Science Research Council Fellow at the Free University in Berlin and Fulbright Professor at Boğaziçi University in Istanbul and at the Humboldt University in Berlin.