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Young Muslims in Brisbane: Negotiating Cultural Identity and Alienation

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Young Muslims in Brisbane: Negotiating Cultural Identity and Alienation CHAPTER 4 Young Muslims in Brisbane: Negotiating Cultural Identity and Alienation Goolam Vahed INTRODUCTION ment in the secondary labor market, low income levels, lack of opportunity, and perceptions of This paper examines, broadly, the religious, discrimination’ (Fozdar and Torezani, 2008: 31). cultural and national identities, and self-percep- These issues are not peculiar to Australia but a tions of young Muslims in Brisbane and the concern for many Western countries, and must social, economic, and political context in which be seen in the broader context of the increasingly these are being configured.1 While Australia’s important role played by belief and religion in the migrant intake has been racially diverse since the post-Cold War world. 1970s with the arrival of the Lebanese, Turks, and Vietnamese, followed in the 1980s and 1990s by METHODOLOGY migrants from places like Fiji, India, Taiwan, China, and Sri Lanka, and a substantial number of This study draws on quantitative and quali- humanitarian migrants from Africa from around tative data, as well as newspaper reports and the year 2000, the Labor government under John websites of relevant organizations to examine Howard (1996-2007) adopted a hostile attitude whether young Muslims experience discri- towards refugees in response to growing anti- mination, and if so, how this is impacting on their Asian sentiment in the 1990s (Jupp, 2007). The identities and what policies can be implemented September 2001 attacks on the Twin Towers in to alleviate the situation. The qualitative aspect New York, Bali bombings in 2002 which targeted involved in-depth interviews with a small, but Australians, the arrest of alleged Muslim terror- important, number of community leaders and ists in Sydney and Melbourne during November others involved with young Muslims, whose 2005, riots in Cronulla during December 2005, and profiles are included at the end of this paper, while the more general “War on Terror” heightened the quantitative aspect is based on 63 question- debates about multicul-turalism in Australia and naires filled out by a randomly selected but raised questions in many minds about Muslim representative sample of young Muslims.2 This citizenship and belonging, and how best to acco- study seeks especially to present the voices mmodate religious identity. Muslims themselves. It begins by profiling These questions were raised regularly and Muslims, and then explores some of the issues publicly by some of the country’s most prominent affecting young Muslims, such as the challenges leaders, including the then Prime Minister John they face in relation to mainstream3 Australian Howard, Treasurer Peter Costello, Labor leader society, generational relationships between Kim Beasley, and the popular Premier of New parents and young Muslims; the affiliation South Wales, Morris Iemma, as well as conser- between young Muslims across ethnic, linguistic, vative columnists in widely read newspapers like cultural, and national backgrounds, pressures to the Courier-Mail and The Daily Telegraph which assimilate, language and other problems at school, play an important role in shaping public opinion. socio-economic pressures, and contested autho- Muslims, whether immigrant or indigenous, Sunni rity among Muslims. The findings of this study or Shi’ite, conservative or liberal, are treated as a are important, both for young Muslims them- homogenous grouping by outsiders, and increa- selves, as they seek to chart a path to adulthood, singly subjected to intense pressure to defend which is already beset by many pitfalls, as well as themselves for the actions of others, demonstrate for policy makers who, one would assume, want their loyalty to “the nation,” and reaffirm their to make optimum use of human capital and acceptance of “Australian values”. It is not achieve social cohesion (Fozdar and Torezani, surprising therefore that among many refugees 2008: 58). and migrants, especially those of Middle Eastern Though Muslims have been in the national appearance, there are ‘pockets of “niche” employ- spotlight in recent years because of international 36 GOOLAM VAHED geo-political tensions, they constitute less than railways and immigration restrictions from 1901 two percent of the Australian population, destroyed their trade, and this embryonic Muslim numbering 340,390 in 2006 (Saeed, 2006). They community gradually disappeared. A permanent are diverse in terms of ethnicity, national origins, Muslim population established itself after World language, culture, and class. While they come War Two when Australia’s need for labour from over a hundred countries, the majority are resulted in the White Australia policy being of Lebanese and Turkish background and most modified in 1956 and the basis of immigration (82.9%) are concentrated in New South Wales shifting from race to occupational skills (Kivisto (NSW) and Victoria. Queensland is home to 20,481 2002). Small numbers of ‘White’ Muslims arrived (6%) of Australia’s Muslim population. Of these, from Cyprus, Bosnia, Albania, Bulgaria, and 14,584 live in Brisbane. This is a relatively young Russia, then 10,000 Turks between 1967 and 1971, population, with 5,401 (37%) aged nineteen or and 17,000 Lebanese from 1975 to 1985. While under. A further 3104 (21.28%) are aged between Muslims are an integral part of the Australian 20 and 29. All told, almost 60% of Muslims are social landscape, their relationship with the under the age of 30. There are marginally more mainstream has been problematic, with acute males than females in this age category, 4382 to tension during watershed national and 4123. Muslims, who are concentrated in south- international incidents such as the controversy east Queensland suburbs like Mansfield, Mount over Salman Rushdie’s Satanic Verses in 1989; Gravatt, Kuraby, Rochedale, Runcorn, and Eight the Gulf War in 19914, the attack on peacekeeping Miles Plain, comprise just 0.2 percent of Brisbane’s forces in Somalia in 1993, the bombing of the USS population of almost a million. Cole in Yemen in 2000, attack on the World Trade Of those who identified themselves as Muslim Centre in New York on 11 September 2001 and the in Queensland in 2006, 28.75% were born in subsequent protracted ‘War on Terror’ (see Deen, Australia, 6% in Bosnia and Herzegovina, 5.29% 2003 and Mubarak, 1996). in Fiji, and 4.91% in Indonesia. Other significant Muslim communities in Australia, like their countries of origin were Afghanistan, Iraq, counterparts in other Western countries, have Pakistan, South Africa, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, faced increased verbal and physical harassment, Malaysia, and Bangladesh. Only 9.5% of mothers which intensified when Australians became direct and 6.3% of fathers were born in Australia. Of victims of terrorism in Bali on 12 October 2002. the 8064 Muslims in Queensland who were in the Eighty Australians died when two night clubs workforce, 53% held full-time jobs; the rest were were bombed (see Deen, 2003; Kabir and Moore, either working part-time or unemployed. In terms 2003; and Saeed 2003). In the perception of many of income, 60% of those who declared their Muslims, 9/11 was a watershed event in terms of income earned less that $599 per week, which falls their relationship with mainstream Australian on the lower end of the income scale. While this society. According to A.A.: paper makes certain generalizations about “One of the issues [facing youth] would Muslims, it should be noted that they are diverse include marginalization from mainstream in terms of class, nationality, and ethnicity, and Australians after 9/11. There has been a strong whether they came as skilled migrants or as sense of “us” and “them”. The Muslim youth are refugees with little or few skills to offer. Their very aware of the fact that they are seen as different adjustment and needs and experiences are in every aspect of life, from primary school to consequently very different. secondary school, and tertiary institutions. Prior to that I would say I generally felt comfortable 9/11 AND THE EMERGING within mainstream Australia, if I may use that IDENTITY CRISIS terminology for the broader community. However, after September 11, I think that the media played Islam is not a new religion in Australia. The a significant role, also our parliamentarians and Macassarese visited the north coast on fishing people in influential positions had a significant expeditions as early as the seventeenth century role in creating a biased opinion towards (MacKnight, 1976). Afghan Muslim camel riders Muslims as Islam was linked to terrorism and arrived from the mid-nineteenth century to carry terrorist acts and violence.” supplies into the interior to keep remote A.J., who migrated to Australia in 1988, also settlements alive (Kabir, 1998: 57-137). The identified 9/11 as a key moment: YOUNG MUSLIMS IN BRISBANE 37 “Pre-9/11, my neighbour didn’t even know I time and space to work out their identities. One is was a Muslim. We as Muslims kept our religion reminded here of Asad’s point that while to ourselves. We kept it in our pocket. We did not Westerners often ask whether Muslims can adjust share our Islamic values with our neighbours. to new conditions, ‘the question is rarely raised Suddenly 9/11 happened and then my neighbour as to whether the institutions and ideologies of would say “Hey, his name is ................., he’s a the West can adjust to a modern world of which Muslim.” And then suddenly there was this culturally diverse immigrants are in integral part’ awakening. That, yes, I have got a Muslim (Asad, 1997: 194). neighbour! How many Muslims are in This challenge comes at a time, as G.S. Queensland? How many are in Australia? So observes, when young Muslims, like youth of all the whole thing just opened up overnight. To backgrounds, ‘are really trying to search for their give you an example, in the days after 9/11 the identity.
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