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Muslim Youth and the Mufti

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Muslim Youth and the Mufti Muslim Youth and the Mufti: Youth discourses on identity and religious leadership under media scrutiny S. Ihram Masters Honours Degree 2009 University of Western Sydney IN THANKS: To Allah the All Compassionate for allowing me to attempt this work... To my husband and children for supporting me throughout this work... To Haneefa and Adam – you made life easier To my supervisors – Dr. Greg Noble, Dr. Scott Poynting and Dr. Steven Drakeley To the tranquil cafes of Brisbane for providing inspiration.. To my Muslim community – that we may be reminded, and there may be some be some benefit in the reminder. STATEMENT OF AUTHENTICATION: The work presented in this thesis is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, original except as acknowledged in the text. I hereby declare that I have not submitted this material, either in full or in part, for a degree at this or any other institution. .................................................. Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................... iii Chapter 1: Background ............................................................................................................ 1 Literature Review ............................................................................................................... 10 Arabic Background Muslim Community in Australia ....................................................... 10 Citizenship and Inclusion ................................................................................................... 12 Protest Masculinity ............................................................................................................ 14 Cultural Identity ................................................................................................................. 15 Sheikh Al Hilaly al Din Al Hilaly ...................................................................................... 16 Chapter 2: The Contested Nature of Muslim Leadership ...................................................... 18 Changes in Organisation and Representation ................................................................ 19 The Creation of the 'Mufti‟ ............................................................................................ 24 An Analysis of the Mufti‟s Controversial „Sermon‟ ...................................................... 25 Reaction to the Mufti‟s „Sermon‟ .................................................................................. 31 Charismatic and Defiant Leadership .............................................................................. 34 Chapter 3: Moral Panics and Responsive Strategies .............................................................. 44 Sources of Information and Interpretation ..................................................................... 45 Media Moral Panic in Context ....................................................................................... 49 Zones of Acceptance ...................................................................................................... 56 Response to opposing calls from the Media and the Mufti ............................................ 58 Chapter 4: Identity ................................................................................................................. 66 Citizenship and Ontological Security ............................................................................ 66 Multiple and Global Identities ....................................................................................... 69 Achieving Ontological Security ..................................................................................... 74 Religious „Framework of Living‟ .................................................................................. 76 An „Australian‟ Islamic Identity .................................................................................... 80 Acquiring Social Capital ................................................................................................ 83 i Social Marginalisation ................................................................................................... 84 Feelings of Personal Responsibility ............................................................................... 89 Chapter 5: Imams and Mentors .............................................................................................. 96 Imam‟s Qualifications .................................................................................................... 97 Imams and the Media ................................................................................................... 101 Using Commonsense ................................................................................................... 102 Shopping Around for A Suitable Imam ....................................................................... 104 Relevance of the Imam‟s Teachings ............................................................................ 108 Finding a Comfortable Mosque ................................................................................... 110 Potential for Terrorism ................................................................................................. 113 Criticism and accountability of Imams and Khutbas ................................................... 117 Other Mentors .............................................................................................................. 121 Sources of Islamic Knowledge and Mentoring ............................................................ 123 Chapter 6: Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 126 References ............................................................................................................................ 139 Glossary ............................................................................................................................... 149 ii Abstract This thesis examines the influences and discourses that young people from an Arabic speaking and Muslim background experience and respond to in developing their understanding of community political events and community identity. The research has focussed on the evolution of diverse leadership of their community, and debates on leadership particularly in terms of key events involving media and the community in relation to Sheikh Taj el Din Al Hilaly as the Mufti of Muslims in Australia. It has also explored the various influences on young people from family, religious and peer mentors in shaping the discourses in which they engage. This study has focussed on young men of Muslim background because these men are often seen as the most vulnerable to influence from radical leaders. Based on interviews with young Arabic background Muslim males in South Western Sydney and an analysis of media representations of Islamic leadership focussing on a case study of events involving Sheikh al Hilaly in late 2006 and 2007, this research explores young Muslim men‟s perceptions of the role of the religious leader and what requirements they consider are necessary for religious leadership in the Australian Muslim community. The thesis argues that these young men, in a climate of negative portrayal of their religion, their leaders and their community, negotiate their needs for relevant religious leadership through internal criticism while maintaining public support for defiant Muslim leaders in order to restore personal dignity when enduring an Islamophobic climate. It also argues that these young men recognise the inadequacy of their leaders in addressing such Islamophobia and draw on a diverse array of strategies to maintain ontological security - in particular a religious „framework of living‟ and the development of an authentic Australian Islamic culture. Without a suitable „bridging dialogue‟ between Oriental and Occidental perceptions of the Muslim community their sense of place and identity is significantly affected and they are vulnerable to brotherhoods offering membership in an „imagined community‟ of a global Ummah with a more Islamist message. iii Chapter 1: Background The Muslim community in Australia and even the Muslim Lebanese community in Sydney is not a monolithic entity as it is often represented in political discourse, but comprises a wide diversity of ethnic groups, religious associations and religious adherence. In 1976 an attempt at unified representation and organization of the Muslim community was made with the establishment of the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils (AFIC). It saw itself as the representative of the diverse Muslim community both nationally and internationally (El Erian 1990). In 1990, Sheikh Taj al Din Al Hilaly – then the controversial Egyptian Imam of the Lakemba mosque – was appointed to the position of Mufti by AFIC in a successful bid to forestall attempts to have him deported following anti-Jewish statements made during a talk at Sydney University in 1988 (Norington 2006). Although remaining as the leading Imam in the most populous mosque in Sydney – run by the Lebanese Muslim Association – Sheikh Taj Al Din Al Hilaly then assumed national importance as the appointed spiritual leader of the Australian and New Zealand Muslim community. He continued to be seen as a controversial figure whose statements were regularly interpreted as incompatible with the values of Australian society (Sheridan
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