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Extremists and Others, Makes Clear Cut Divisions Problematic, and So Undermines the Rhetoric of ‘Them and Us’

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Extremists and Others, Makes Clear Cut Divisions Problematic, and So Undermines the Rhetoric of ‘Them and Us’ This work is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights and duplication or sale of all or part is not permitted, except that material may be duplicated by you for research, private study, criticism/review or educational purposes. Electronic or print copies are for your own personal, non- commercial use and shall not be passed to any other individual. No quotation may be published without proper acknowledgement. For any other use, or to quote extensively from the work, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder/s. Community, politics and extremism: a study of far-right and radical Islamist engagement with wider society Gavin Bailey Submitted for the degree of PhD June 2011 (Award Date 2012) Keele University This electronic version of the thesis has been edited solely to ensure compliance with copyright legislation and excluded material is referenced in the text. The full, final, examined and awarded version of the thesis is available for consultation in hard copy via the University Library. i Abstract This study examines the activities of those allied to the British National Party (BNP) and al-Muhajiroun, groups deemed ‘extremist’ by mainstream society, particularly those actions done as part of the extremist group, but which engage with the wider community. The research comprised of participant-observation and biographical interviews, both with extremist and non-extremist activists and focused on public community engagement. It was conducted in two sites in Stoke-on-Trent; a ‘white site’ with a number of BNP members in leadership positions, and a more dispersed ‘Islamic site’ in which a number of young men were engaged in al-Muhajiroun’s street-based activism. In the context of Community Cohesion and Preventing Violent Extremism policies and programmes, these groups and their members are presented as an existential threat to the nation while still allowed to carry on much of their business. In this light, the research looks at the backgrounds, connections, and political attitudes of extremist activists in order to situate them as community members and not as standing apart from society. The thesis asks how the political and policy context affects their contact with others. It finds that the connections and continuities, in background and political attitudes, between extremists and others, makes clear cut divisions problematic, and so undermines the rhetoric of ‘them and us’. The thesis argues that the government and media emphasis on particular extremist groups, as opposed to racism and intolerance more generally, is counterproductive. The singling out of particular groups allows those social groups from which the stereotyped extremists are drawn to see themselves as unfairly targeted. The conflation of political extremism with terrorism and other violent extremism at the same time exaggerates any threat of violence. A sense of injustice and fear can then fuel further extremism. ii SUBMISSION OF THESIS FOR A RESEARCH DEGREE Part I. DECLARATION by the candidate for a research degree. To be bound in the thesis Degree for which thesis being submitted PhD Title of thesis Community, politics and extremism: a study of far-right and radical Islamist engagement with wider society This thesis contains confidential information and is subject to the protocol set down for the submission and examination of such a thesis. YES/NO [please delete as appropriate; if YES the box in Part II should be completed] Date of submission 24.06.11 Original registration date 01.02.07 (Date of submission must comply with Regulation 2D) Name of candidate Gavin Bailey Research Institute Social Sciences Name of Lead Supervisor David Gadd I certify that: (a) The thesis being submitted for examination is my own account of my own research (b) My research has been conducted ethically. Where relevant a letter from the approving body confirming that ethical approval has been given has been bound in the thesis as an Annex (c) The data and results presented are the genuine data and results actually obtained by me during the conduct of the research (d) Where I have drawn on the work, ideas and results of others this has been appropriately acknowledged in the thesis (e) Where any collaboration has taken place with one or more other researchers, I have included within an ‘Acknowledgments’ section in the thesis a clear statement of their contributions, in line with the relevant statement in the Code of Practice (see Note overleaf). (f) The greater portion of the work described in the thesis has been undertaken subsequent to my registration for the higher degree for which I am submitting for examination (g) Where part of the work described in the thesis has previously been incorporated in another thesis submitted by me for a higher degree (if any), this has been identified and acknowledged in the thesis (h) The thesis submitted is within the required word limit as specified in the Regulations Total words in submitted thesis (including text and footnotes, but excluding references and appendices) 82,646 Signature of candidate ………………………………… Date ………………… Note Extract from Code of Practice: If the research degree is set within a broader programme of work involving a group of investigators – particularly if this programme of work predates the candidate’s registration – the candidate should provide an explicit statement (in an ‘Acknowledgments’ section) of the respective roles of the candidate and these other individuals in relevant aspects of the work reported in the thesis. For example, it should make clear, where relevant, the candidate’s role in designing the study, developing data collection instruments, collecting primary data, analysing such data, and formulating conclusions from the analysis. Others involved in these aspects of the research should be named, and their contributions relative to that of the candidate should be specified (this does not apply to the ordinary supervision, only if the supervisor or supervisory team has had greater than usual involvement). iii Contents Acknowledgements page v 1 Introduction: extremists in the community 1 2 Community cohesion and the threat of political extremism 7 3 Researching far-right and Islamist ‘extremists’ in context 72 The ‘Islamic Site’ 4 ‘I fought the law, and the law won’: the backgrounds of the activists of 114 ‘Hilltop and Beyond’ 5 Religion and politics: everyday (responses to) radical Islamist activism 143 The ‘white site’ 6 Rebels with a cause: the backgrounds of East Estate’s activists 179 7 ‘There’s nothing British about the BNP’: politics and anti-politics on East 206 Estate 8 ‘Cumulative extremism’ and the state as a third actor 239 9 Conclusions 264 Appendix 1: Research sites and individuals 276 Appendix 2: Interview materials 282 Appendix 3: Ethical approval 289 Bibliography 290 iv Acknowledgements This study is dedicated to all the people of North Staffordshire who participated in this research, either as interviewees, gatekeepers, the givers of advice, or just being there during the fieldwork. I thank all those who had an active role in the production of the data. The crossovers between this research, my other research work, and the rest of my life means that encounters outside the fieldwork still made a contribution. First and foremost I thank my supervisor, David Gadd, to whom I am grateful for tireless editing, fresh ideas, and the most important task of saving me from a desire to do too much. This work would not have happened without him. I also thank my second supervisor, Pnina Werbner for stimulating conversation and further ideas on multicultural Britain. Tom Lundberg, now at Glasgow, was briefly my second supervisor, and provided some guidance in political theory literature. The ideas for this research were developed during my time as a part-time student at Goldsmiths College, and I thank Les Back, without whom I would not be a graduate student. This study was funded by the ESRC (award no. PTA-030-2006-00063). I am also grateful for further training and support from the ESRC, UK Grad, and Cambridge Business School. Beyond my supervisors, my thanks go to all those colleagues and friends that have helped me develop the initial idea, the research, and the writing. Particular thanks go to Phil Burton-Cartledge, Liz Carter, Phil Catney, Maleeha Cheema, Geraldine Coggins, Mary Corcoran, Sameena Dalwai, Bülent Gökay, Marie-Andrée Jacob, Tsachi Keren-Paz, Jane Krishnadas, Sherilyn MacGregor, John Miles, Monica Mookherjee, Tarek Mukassabi, Killian O’Brien, Helen Parr, Barry Ryan, Farzana Shain, John Vogler, Jon Weinel, Paul Willis, and Ryan Windeknecht. Outside Keele, I thank Michael Brennan, Jamie Coulthard, Laura Coulthard, Andy Flynn, Ben Gidley, Jayne Humm, Malcolm James, Michael Keith, Mark Leonard, Liz Piper, Amanda Singh, Imogen Slater and Krishnadas Sukumaran. As a parent of two young children I need to thank those who have helped by offering play dates or other care when needed. My Mum and Gayna did the vast majority of this, and for this I am extremely grateful. Thanks also go to Geraldine, Rim, Carla, Dave and Claire, Harmer and Viv. I make a second dedication to all the children that both distracted and inspired: Rosa, Nina, Conor, Sinead, Haleema, Ibraheem, Awad, James, Thomas, Aditya, Rohini, Kiran, Sarika, Lucy, Layla, Saira, Elizabeth, Katie and Daphne. They demonstrate that identity-based conflict is meaningless when arguing over whose turn it is to ride a bike or who can jump the highest. My final thanks go to Helen, then, for putting up with my obsession, and everything else. v 1: Introduction In June 2011, as this thesis was being completed, the British government published the Prevent Review. As with previous iterations of the Preventing Violent Extremism and the related Community Cohesion policies, the Cameron government sought to define and challenge Islamist and right wing ‗extremist organisations that appear to be non-violent‘ (Secretary of State for the Home Department, 2011, p.
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