(I'll play devil's advocate here because obviously I don't [edit: missed word] condone any kind of prejudice or racism. So please take what I am about to say not as something I endorse.)
Religious intolerance at least makes more sense than racism based on nationality. You cannot choose what nationality you were born into. And while religion is not always a choice, it can be changed. This is why we had crusades, why people convert, etc. I cannot make a white German an African American, but I can convert a muslim to christianity.
This also matters much more than nationality. Religion or faith in general is based on rules about how to live your life. And as much as you want to be living independently - you cannot live by your set of rules if everyone around you has a vastly different set of rules. The rational response would be to find a compromise and adapt. The subconscious response often is "change your rules to mine". Because rules can be changed indeed. Skin color can't.
There are places where people celebrate each other's cultures rather than make it a cultural clash. That does require a bit of maturity from everyone. But it's way more pleasant than even having a uniform culture.
It does - and might be more possible with a little bit of help from the media and government, who instead pour fuel on the fire for political gain.
It’s a very difficult topic, however.
My parter and i are different races, but culturally English - we were both born here. Our mixed race son goes to school in the suburbs that is about 70% or 80 % white - which is representative of the local demographic.
I have white friends in the inner city where that ratio is reversed and many immigrants don’t have great English and are just beginning their integration journey.
I’m honest enough to say I wouldn’t be comfortable with that. I don’t know if I should be or not .
Because religion stops being imaginary when executed on a human mind that's capable of applying it to reality. How many people know who lived in the middle east before it became the middle east of today?