Absolutely. My work, my research, and my scholarship is about having self-critical conversations amongst Muslims, so intra-Muslim conversations that are self-critical. I am in no way interested in promoting a definition of Islamophobia that would restrict my own speech. Legitimate critique, in my mind, is not Islamophobic.
Islamophobia is irrational and hyperbolic speech about Islam and Muslims that demonizes them, that dehumanizes them. I trust the hate speech laws in Canada, which I think are robust along with the legislative system. When somebody makes an accusation of Islamophobia, and if they appear before a judge, he or she will make a decision about whether that is, indeed, Islamophobic or a legitimate critique. In no way do I see Islamophobia as a way to not have difficult conversations.
In response to that, communities need to have a sense of security in order to engage in self-critical conversation. Islamophobia stops that from happening. If I'm spending my time saying, “I'm a human, I'm a human,” I can't ask myself and my community difficult questions.