Immigration, Integration and Ingestion: the Role of Food and Drink in Transnational Experience for North African Muslim Immigrants in Paris and Montréal
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Wilfrid Laurier University Scholars Commons @ Laurier Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive) 2017 Immigration, Integration and Ingestion: The Role of Food and Drink in Transnational Experience for North African Muslim Immigrants in Paris and Montréal Rachel D. Brown [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.wlu.ca/etd Part of the Religion Commons, Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons, and the Sociology of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Brown, Rachel D., "Immigration, Integration and Ingestion: The Role of Food and Drink in Transnational Experience for North African Muslim Immigrants in Paris and Montréal" (2017). Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive). 1901. https://scholars.wlu.ca/etd/1901 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive) by an authorized administrator of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Immigration, Integration and Ingestion: The Role of Food and Drink in Transnational Experience for North African Muslim Immigrants in Paris and Montréal By Rachel Diane Brown Bachelor of Arts, University of Waterloo, 2007 Master of Arts in Social Sciences, McMaster University, 2009 DISSERTATION Submitted to the Department of Religion and Culture in the Faculty of Arts In partial fulfilment of the requirements for Doctorate of Philosophy in Religion and Culture Wilfrid Laurier University ã Rachel Diane Brown 2016 Abstract This dissertation is motivated by two research questions: (1) how can food act as a means of reimagining, recreating, reaffirming, and expressing, sometimes complicated and contested identities for minority religious immigrant communities in highly secular contexts? (2) What impact does the context of reception, particularly the host society’s unique and complex history and interaction with colonialism, immigration, secularism, and nationalism, have on these identity negotiations? To examine these questions, I conducted a comparative ethnographic study of the foodways of North African Muslim immigrants in Paris, France, and Montréal, Canada, in 2012-13. The results presented here show that food is often the most important symbol of identity engaged by my informants. By choosing which religious/cultural food practices to continue and which ones to alter, by choosing to label them in precise ways, by relegating these practices to specific places and times, my informants reveal the complex and varied ways that Muslims negotiate their identities in transnational context. In settings such as Paris and Montréal, where outward/public signs of religiosity can be seen as problematic, and food culture is central to national identity, I argue that these kinds of actions take on particular importance for immigrants living in these cities. In line with scholarship in religion and migration, I show how reception directly influences the practices and identities of its immigrant communities. While the fear may be that by maintaining or even increasing practices that indicate difference, that highlight the “homeland” side of one’s transnational identity, immigrants may not integrate fully into the host culture, my research shows the exact opposite effect. In Canada, within multi- and inter-cultural contexts my Montréal informants felt more Canadian or had a greater desire to “be Canadian,” and on the whole felt free to express and engage their individual identities, whether religious, ethnic or cultural, In France, the opposite was true. I use food as the lens to reveal that France’s universalistic and assimilationist immigration policies undermine its efforts to emphasize equality. ii Acknowledgements This work would not have been possible without the openness and willingness of many members of the Maghrébine community in both Paris and Montréal, to welcome me into their lives, and for many, their homes. My time at the Grande Mosquée de Paris was facilitated by administrators, spiritual leaders, and especially the wonderful women who work tirelessly every day during Ramadan in the mosque kitchen. I am deeply indebted to them for giving me such a rich start to my fieldwork. I would especially like to thank Sabrina, Sami, Imad and Miriam for their help, and most of all their friendship during my time in Paris and beyond. In Montréal, the community at La Mosquée Al Rawdah opened the door to the Canadian side of my research, putting me in touch with many wonderful informants. Words aren’t enough to express my gratitude to Rahima and Yamna for their kindness, generosity, encouragement and constant care. Ma famille française, Cindy, Patricia, Gérard, Monique, Jeremy, and Liz: all of this would be non-existent without you. You all introduced me to the Paris I know and love. Cindy, my sister, thank you for inviting me into your family all those years ago and for completely changing my life by your presence. Patricia, thank you for opening your home to me, sharing in many meals, and tirelessly correcting my French so that I could conquer the language. Gérard and Monique, thanks to your generosity I was able to have my own home while I conducted this research in Paris. I cannot thank you enough for that. Ma Liz, pour toutes les soirées de conversation, pour tous les verres qu’on a partagé, pour les vacances passées ensemble, pour ton amitié et ton grand coeur, je te remercie fortement. I would like to thank my family for their constant and enduring support and love. To my amazing family-in-law—Yvonne, Roger, Gerard, Karine, Sandra, Michael and Eric—thank you for pushing me forward in my studies and cheering me on with every new step. Matt and Graham, my brothers and first and longest friends, you have both taught me what hard work and dedication look like. Thanks to the two of you, and Dayna and Alison, for holding down the home front while I spent long periods of time away. To my parents, Diane and Tom Brown, thank you for believing in me always, and for standing beside me as I moved all over, even if that meant that I wasn’t always home for the holidays. You are the best parents a daughter could ever ask for and much of this work is thanks to your support. iii To the many other friends, family members, and supporters along the way—Katrina, Cyndi, Britt, Chantelle, Kristi, Bev, Kevin, the Youngs and Kellers, Kendra, Laura, Sean, Melinda, Ryan, Sarah, Roger, Mary-Ellen, Kaitlin and Rylan—thanks for sharing in a cup of tea or glass of wine, for pushing me forward when things were tough, for your listening ears, and caring voices. I appreciate you all. Jyordyn, you have listened to me talk about this dream since we were teenagers. Thank you for your constant enthusiasm and encouragement, and for being my best friend. I owe a great depth of gratitude to my colleagues and friends who pushed me forward in this endeavour, offering words of encouragement, challenge, and humour. Amar, thanks for giving me motivation to prove to the world that food is essential to our knowledge about people. Thanks Jason for being my conversation partner in Anthropology and wine. 10 years ago Sahir you inadvertently started me on the path to my pursuit of knowledge about everyday Islam: thank you for that. Shoba, thanks for your solidarity in this chaotic time of academic life, and remember, we will always have Paris. Zabeen, your passion for this pursuit continually motivates me. Scott, I’m convinced that I would not have gotten through the past five years without you. For those many conversations in the freezing cold basement of the PAS, for many skype calls, for providing so much laughter in tough moments, for inspiring me in so many ways, I thank you. Rory you have been my sounding board for all issues both academic and personal over the past seven years. You have read almost everything I’ve written. You’ve visited me in every place I have lived. You believed in me and this project even when I did not. Thank you for all of this and the countless other things you have done for me over the years. To all the faculty members in the joint Religious Diversity in North America program at Wilfrid Laurier and the University of Waterloo, especially Jason Neelis, Paul Freston, Carol Duncan and Doris Jakobsh, thank you for what you do. Doris, thank you particularly for being such an inspirational teacher to me all those years ago. Funding from the Department of Religion and Culture, the Faculty of Graduate and Post Graduate Studies at Wilfrid Laurier, along with an Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) and a Joseph Armand Bombardier Canadian Graduate Scholarship from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), made this research possible. Visiting Research Fellowships at the University of Montréal, and especially the Centre for Studies in Religion and Society (CSRS) at the University of Victoria, gave me the iv opportunity to engage about my work with a variety of scholars from all over the world. My time at the CSRS taught me a great deal about scholarship and collegiality, and played a significant role in shaping my academic trajectory. While all of the fellows with whom I interacted at the CSRS influenced my work, I would especially like to thank Scott, Carolyn, Angela, Justine and Madeline for their many insights and their friendship. To Bonnie, Rina, and Robbyn, your administrative support was beyond helpful on so many occasions. Paul Bramadat guided, supported and advanced this project in ways I could have never anticipated and for which I am deeply thankful. Paul, you are more than an advisor, mentor, or colleague, you are a dear friend, and have had a huge impact on who I am as a scholar. I thank you from the depths of my heart for all that you did, and continue to do, for me.