Gender, Faith and Locality: Muslim Women in Scotland
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Gender, Faith and Locality: Muslim Women in Scotland Rahielah Noreen Ali A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Geography, Politics and Sociology at Newcastle University June 2013 ABSTRACT Muslim women in Scotland have been largely absent from research and literature concerning Islamic communities in Britain. Using empirical data consisting of 37 in- depth interviews and five focus groups across three research sites, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee, this study analyses the everyday lives and experiences of Muslim women in Scotland. This thesis opens up the nuanced ways that Muslim women practice their faith, refashion their interpretations of Islamic dress while also directing social and domestic interactions. I bring together a series of chapters which investigate how there is a growing awareness, sensitivity and acknowledgement of political and social changes led by Muslim women. I also draw attention to the struggles of Muslim women as they endure on one hand the patriarchal cultures and strict adherences born out of authoritarian interpretations of religion and, on the other hand experiencing and managing a number of social and political misrepresentations. Furthermore, the study highlights how Muslim women formulate and practice multi- layered and multi-dimensional identities alongside their experiences of community cohesion. Simultaneously, I discuss how they consider religious racism in a world dominated by negative depictions of Muslims and Islam. Using a qualitative approach, the study reveals a number of intricate abstractions that view Muslim women under a microscopic lens, reformulating and reconstructing their social and personal identities to encourage a debate on the role of faith in everyday belonging, becoming empowered through the concept of Hijab practice and speaking about the disharmonies which exist within Muslim communities. I argue that Muslim women are becoming more ‘risk-aware’ (Haw, 2009), have created spaces of responsiveness through local-level activism and are continually contributing and working to represent themselves socially, economically and politically in a post-devolved Scotland, actions that often to undetected in wider debates and discussions about Muslim women in Britain today. i Acknowledgements First and foremost I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to my supervisors, Professor Peter E. Hopkins and Professor Anoop Nayak who have been unwavering in their support throughout my doctoral study. Their expertise and guidance has given me the strength, grounding and confidence needed to complete this thesis and I am forever grateful for their inspiration at every stage of my PhD journey. Also, thanks to Ruth Whatling, my supervisor at The Scottish Government, for her continued support and, Dr. Steve Taylor and Dr. Andrea Abbas for their earlier encouragement and backing. I offer my heartfelt appreciation to those involved with the planning of the fieldwork, those who helped me gain access, and who provided a space for interviews, focus groups and invaluable meetings. I’m indebted to all of my wonderful participants for sharing with me their time and allowing me to draw upon their precious words and experiences. I would especially like to thank both the ESRC and The Scottish Government for financially supporting my project and to Newcastle University for providing a creative environment where I could reflect on my research, pen my ideas and exchange innovative thoughts with other postgraduate students and staff. These experiences have been monumental for me and I would like to extend my particular thanks to: Rebecca Leigh Payne (for the ‘5 minute’ chats and the midnight McFlurry runs), Kate Botterill for the many laughs and good times, Charlotte Johnson, Jeff Chase, Rupert Bainbridge, Alison Williams and Pauline Ogg, for keeping me focused and positive throughout my research. I’d also like to say a big thank you to those who have encouraged me, stayed with me and contributed in other considerable ways over the course of my thesis. To Nusrat, Raye and Maryam, my beautiful friends who have been with me over many years. To Yassar, Lynton and my friends at FBSG who have helped in more ways than they could ever imagine. The completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the patience and generosity of my incredible family. I’d like to thank them from the bottom of my heart for their love, affection and for always being there, each and every day. Finally, I’d like to dedicate this thesis to my mother, Suna Bi, the most amazing Muslim woman in my life, who sacrificed her freedoms so I could have mine. ii Table of contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................ i Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ ii Table of contents ...............................................................................................................iii List of Figures ..................................................................................................................viii List of Tables ...................................................................................................................viii Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... ix Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 1 1.2 Motivation for Research ............................................................................................. 3 1.3 Research questions ..................................................................................................... 4 1.3.1 Methodology ........................................................................................................ 4 1.4 Limitations of research ............................................................................................... 5 1.5 Outline of the Thesis .................................................................................................. 5 Feminist Geographies of Muslim Women ....................................................................... 9 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 9 2.2 Bridging discourses of Faith and Race ..................................................................... 12 2.3 Speaking ‘for’ ‘Race’ ............................................................................................... 14 2.4 Muslim Geographies ................................................................................................ 15 2.5 Muslims in the West ................................................................................................. 19 2.6 Gender, faith and the nation ..................................................................................... 22 2.7 Contemporary understandings of Muslim dress ....................................................... 26 2.8 Practicing the sacred ................................................................................................. 28 2.9 Concluding remarks ................................................................................................. 30 Muslims in Scotland: A Historical and Demographic Overview ................................. 32 3.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 32 3.2 Muslims and the economy in Scotland .................................................................... 34 3.2.1 Glasgow ............................................................................................................. 34 iii 3.2.2 Edinburgh .......................................................................................................... 36 3.2.3 Dundee ............................................................................................................... 37 3.3 Scotland and Islam ................................................................................................... 40 3.4 Global and national events ....................................................................................... 42 3.5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 46 Methodology ..................................................................................................................... 48 4.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 48 4.2 Situating feminist methodologies ............................................................................. 49 4.3 Understanding feminist methodologies of Muslim women in Scotland .................. 50 4.4 Placing feminism and religion .................................................................................. 50 4.5 Recruiting participants ............................................................................................. 52 4.5.1 Gatekeeping concerns ........................................................................................... 54 4.6 Introducing the participants .....................................................................................