DOCSLIB.ORG

Downloading It Onto

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Downloading It Onto RESPONSES TO AND INTERPRETATION OF ANTI-MUSLIM RACISM IN CANADA: A COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVE by Alnoor Gova A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSPHY in The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (Centre for Cross Faculty Inquiry in Education) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) October 2015 © Alnoor Gova, 2015 Abstract(( Against the backdrop of rising levels of anti-“Muslim” racism (aka Islamophobia) in Canada, coupled with the nation-state’s targeting and surveillance of these communities, my dissertation sets out to interpret the responses to this racism by the affected communities themselves. In this study, I employ qualitative methodology within a critical race theoretical framework informed by indigenous and post-colonial theory. After inviting participation from self-identified Muslim and Arab community organizations, whether outwardly responding to racism or not, over a one year period (2011-2012), I interviewed eleven diverse organizations, all of which are working in various capabilities and focus on community capacity building – including in the sectors of professional mentorship and networking, activities such as multi/inter-faith programming, social services, and advocacy for their communities. I asked participants to share their narratives and views on a wide array of questions: their assessment of the situation of their communities and constituencies in Canada, their experiences with “community government,” and their assessment of the “good Muslim/bad Muslim” nexus. I classify data I gathered into a heuristic of three types of responses: direct, status and native informant, and argue that although most of them fall into the range of status, it is direct responses – ones that commence and attend to racial injustice – that can have the most positive impact in terms of overall responses to systemic anti-Muslim racism. ! ii Preface This dissertation is an original intellectual product of the author, Alnoor Gova. The fieldwork reported in Chapters 4 was covered by UBC Ethics Certificate number H11-00634. ! iii Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................................ii! Preface............................................................................................................................................ iii! Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................iv! List of Tables....................................................................................................................................v! Acknowledgements .........................................................................................................................vi! Dedication ......................................................................................................................................vii! 1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................................1! 2 Conceptual Background and Context for the Study....................................................................14! 2.1!Demographics(of(Muslims(in(Canada.......................................................................................... 14! 2.2(Race=ing(the(World:(How(We(Got(Here ...................................................................................... 21! 2.3!Race=ing(Muslims:(Public(Perceptions(about(Appearing(“Muslim”(in(Canada.............. 32! 2.4!Disciplining(the(Canadian(Voluntary(Sector ............................................................................ 47! 2.5!Good(Muslims((native(informants)(/(Bad(Muslims................................................................ 59! 2.6(Palestine............................................................................................................................................... 65! 3 Methodology and Research Methods..........................................................................................75! 3.1(We(are(Our(Methodologies:(Researcher(Reflexivity(and(Positionality........................... 75! 3.2(Racial(Insiders(and(Racial(Matching ........................................................................................... 80! 3.3(Study(Design(Participant(Organizations.................................................................................... 82! 3.4(Critical(Race(Theory,(Methodology,(and(Qualitative(Inquiry ............................................. 85! 3.5(Methods ................................................................................................................................................ 91! Open-ended and Semi-structured Interviewing..........................................................................91! Counter-Narratives: The Power and Dismissal of Stories ......................................................93! Storytelling as Resistance: Multi-Method/Composite Stories...............................................96! 3.6(Process(of(Analysis............................................................................................................................ 98! 4 Data Findings ............................................................................................................................103! 4.1(What(would(you(tell(a(Martian(about(who/what(Muslims/Arabs(are,(along(with(their( situation(in(Canada? ................................................................................................................104! 4.1.1(Views(On(Top(Down(anti=Muslim(/(anti=Arab(Racism.....................................................117! 4.2(On(the(Effects(of(Community(Government..............................................................................123! 4.3(On(the(Good(Muslim((Native(Informant)(/(Bad(Muslim(Nexus.........................................136! 4.4(Organizational(Responses:(Analysis(in(Relation(to(Heuristic ..........................................145! On Queer Muslims in Need of Rescue: A Multi-Method/Composite Narrative.......... 151! 5 Conclusion: Reading Responses within the Current Climate of Islamophobia in Canada .......157! References ....................................................................................................................................177! Appendix – Interview Protocol ....................................................................................................198! ! iv List of Tables Table 1 Participating Organizations..............................................................................................84! Table 2 Categories of Organizational Responses to anti-Muslim/Arab Racism.........................100 ! v Acknowledgements Acknowledge God and my parents, for continuously and unconditionally nurturing and sustaining me. I am indebted to my participants, without you my study would not have been possible. Thank you for your generosity and spirit in sharing your experiences and stories with candor. Thank you to my committee, in particular, Dr. Jennifer Chan and Dr. Sunera Thobani, for your unconditional support and invaluable guidance in my research, and Dr. Dory Nason for your critical and insightful suggestions. Thank you Dr. Summer Pervez, for your assistance and dedication in editing this text. And friends who gave their time, space encouragement and input into these ideas. Thank you to the University of British Columbia and the Center for Cross Faculty Inquiry, for their financial assistance. ! vi Dedication I dedicate this dissertation to my parents, my courageous participants, friends and individuals who have made positive contributions to my life, my inspiring mentors, and to all racialized communities. ! vii 1 Introduction The rising levels of racism towards Muslims, Arabs, and other racialized groups frequently perceived as Muslim, combined with the increasingly negative stereotyping of them in Canada and the enactment of legislation in regards to national security, has made the study of this phenomenon increasingly timely. Such racism has also been visited historically and presently upon communities of brown/ black/ yellow/ red people, who are conflated as a homogenous “Other” said to be antithetical to “the West,” “Western civilization,” and/ or “Western values.” In a post-9/11 era, this “Other” has increasingly tended to conflate a cache of diverse communities and has come to include Arabs, South Asians, and Africans into a racial construct called “Muslim-looking,” a term that collapses an array of characteristics – such as dress, accent, language, national origin, religion, and phenotype –"across a differentiated group of non-Muslims (Ahmad, 2004). Now, along with self-identified Muslims, any ostensibly brown/black person, who may or may not be practicing or self-identified as Muslim (Sikhs for example, and other non-Europeans), have also become targets of profiling that operates in the name of national security. Extreme legislation in the name of national security threatens to take everyone’s civil liberties and rights; but has led to an increase in stereotyping, security profiling, and racial discrimination. Further, acts of racial hatred against Muslims, Arabs, and/or those who are deemed “Muslim-looking” have become largely normalized in the public sphere of Western countries, including Canada.1 The presence of Muslims has impacted the Canadian demographic
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Duckie Archive
    DUCKIE ARCHIVE (DUCKIE) ©Bishopsgate Institute Catalogued by Various, 2018-2019. DUCKIE Duckie Archive 1996-2018 Name of Creator: Duckie Extent: 55 Files Administrative/Biographical History: Amended from the Duckie Website (2020): Duckie are lowbrow live art hawkers, homo-social honky-tonkers and clubrunners for disadvantaged, but dynamically developing authentic British subcultures. Duckie create good nights out and culture clubs that bring communities together. From their legendary 24-year weekly residency at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern to winning Olivier awards at the Barbican, they are purveyors of progressive working class entertainment who mix live art and light entertainment. Duckie combine vintage queer clubbing, LGBTQI+ heritage & social archeology & quirky performance art shows with a trio of socially engaged culture clubs: The Posh Club (our swanky showbiz palais for working class older folk, now regular in five locations), The Slaughterhouse Club (our wellbeing project with homeless Londoners struggling with booze, addiction and mental health issues), Duckie QTIPOC Creatives (our black and brown LGBTQI youth theatre, currently on a pause until we bag a funder). Duckie have long-term relationships with a few major venues including Barbican Centre, Rich Mix, Southbank Centre and the Brighton Dome, but we mostly put on our funny theatre events in pubs, nightclubs, church halls and community centres. They are a National Portfolio Organisation of Arts Council England and revenue funded by the Big Lottery Fund. Duckie produce about 130 events and 130 workshops each year - mostly in London and the South East - and our annual audience is about 30,000 real life punters. Custodial History: Deposited with Bishopsgate Institute by Simon Casson, 2017.
    [Show full text]
  • From Immigrant to Citizen in a Multicultural Country
    Social Inclusion (ISSN: 2183–2803) 2018, Volume 6, Issue 3, Pages 229–236 DOI: 10.17645/si.v6i3.1523 Article Passing the Test? From Immigrant to Citizen in a Multicultural Country Elke Winter Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada; E-Mail: [email protected] Submitted: 3 April 2018 | Accepted: 15 May 2018 | Published: 30 August 2018 Abstract Almost all Western countries have recently implemented restrictive changes to their citizenship law and engaged in heated debates about what it takes to become “one of us”. This article examines the naturalization process in Canada, a country that derives almost two thirds of its population growth from immigration, and where citizenship uptake is currently in decline. Drawing on interviews with recently naturalized Canadians, I argue that the current naturalization regime fails to deliver on the promise to put “Canadians by choice” at par with “Canadians by birth”. Specifically, the naturalization process constructs social and cultural boundaries at two levels: the new citizens interviewed for this study felt that the nat- uralization process differentiated them along the lines of class and education more than it discriminated on ethnocultural or racial grounds. A first boundary is thus created between those who have the skills to easily “pass the test” and those who do not. This finding speaks to the strength and appeal of Canada’s multicultural middle-class nation-building project. Nevertheless, the interviewees also highlighted that the naturalization process artificially constructed (some) immigrants as culturally different and inferior. A second boundary is thus constructed to differentiate between “real Canadians” and others.
    [Show full text]
  • Back and Welcome to Unity's 2021 Programme of Events
    2021 SEASON unitytheatreliverpool.co.uk Welcome back and welcome to Unity’s 2021 programme of events. We are delighted to finally be sharing Showcasing Local Talent with you some of the exciting productions With over 40 events and 100 artists and activities that form a special year already involved, our specially curated of work from Unity. reopening activities are a manifestation of this. Like everyone, our 2020 wasn’t quite the year we had planned. Originally Supporting Artists intended to be a landmark celebration This new season includes 22 of our 40th anniversary, instead we Merseyside-based creatives and found our doors closing indefinitely. companies who feature as part of The implications of the pandemic our Open Call Programme. Created and shutdown of venues across the UK to provide income and performance were serious and far-reaching, but they opportunity to local artists after allowed us to take stock and question a year without both, the Open Call our role as an arts organisation. celebrates these artists, their stories, communities and lives. What has emerged is a renewed commitment for Unity to provide 2021 welcomes a huge-new event space and opportunity for people series as part of our talent development to be creative, enjoy high-quality programme - Creative’pool. This will entertainment and celebrate the provide personalised training, workshops, communities of Liverpool. We want advice, exclusive events and development to continue to inspire creative opportunities to over 200 artists a year. risk and achieve a fairer, more supportive and accessible world. Access for All After a year of such uncertainty some of you may understandably be nervous about venturing into buildings.
    [Show full text]
  • Ishaq V Canada: “Social Science Facts” in Feminist Interventions Dana Phillips
    Document generated on 09/25/2021 1:10 p.m. Windsor Yearbook of Access to Justice Recueil annuel de Windsor d'accès à la justice Ishaq v Canada: “Social Science Facts” in Feminist Interventions Dana Phillips Volume 35, 2018 Article abstract This article examines the role of social science in feminist intervener advocacy, URI: https://id.erudit.org/iderudit/1057069ar focusing on the 2015 case ofIshaq v Canada (Minister of Citizenship and DOI: https://doi.org/10.22329/wyaj.v35i0.5271 Immigration). InIshaq, a Muslim woman challenged a Canadian government policy requiring her to remove her niqab while reciting the citizenship oath. See table of contents The Federal Court of Appeal dismissed several motions for intervention by feminist and other equality-seeking organizations, emphasizing their improper reliance on unproven social facts and social science research. I argue that this Publisher(s) decision departs from the generous approach to public interest interventions sanctioned by the federal and other Canadian courts. More importantly, the Faculty of Law, University of Windsor Court’s characterization of the intervener submissions as relying on “social science facts” that must be established through the evidentiary record ISSN diminishes the capacity of feminist interveners to effectively support equality and access to justice for marginalized groups in practice. 2561-5017 (digital) Explore this journal Cite this article Phillips, D. (2018). Ishaq v Canada: “Social Science Facts” in Feminist Interventions. Windsor Yearbook of Access to Justice / Recueil annuel de Windsor d'accès à la justice, 35, 99–126. https://doi.org/10.22329/wyaj.v35i0.5271 Copyright (c), 2019 Dana Phillips This document is protected by copyright law.
    [Show full text]
  • The Influence of Terrorism on Discriminatory Attitudes and Behaviors
    Shades of Intolerance: The Influence of Terrorism on Discriminatory Attitudes and Behaviors in the United Kingdom and Canada. by Chuck Baker A Dissertation submitted to the Graduate School-Newark Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey In partial fulfillment of the requirements For the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Program in Global Affairs Written under the direction of Dr. Gregg Van Ryzin and approved by ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ Newark, New Jersey May, 2015 Copyright page: © 2015 Chuck Baker All Rights Reserved ABSTRACT The Influence of Terrorism on Discriminatory Attitudes and Behaviors in the United Kingdom and Canada by Chuck Baker Dissertation Director: Dr. Gregg Van Ryzin, Ph.D. Terrorism has been shown to have a destabilizing impact upon the citizens of the nation- state in which it occurs, causing social distress, fear, and the desire for retribution (Cesari, 2010; Chebel d’Appollonia, 2012). Much of the recent work on 21st century terrorism carried out in the global north has placed the focus on terrorism being perpetuated by Middle East Muslims. In addition, recent migration trends show that the global north is becoming much more diverse as the highly populated global south migrates upward. Population growth in the global north is primarily due to increases in the minority presence, and these post-1960 changes have increased the diversity of historically more homogeneous nations like the United Kingdom and Canada. This research examines the influence of terrorism on discriminatory attitudes and behaviors, with a focus on the United Kingdom in the aftermath of the July 7, 2005 terrorist attacks in London.
    [Show full text]
  • Canada and the Middle East Today: Electoral Politics and Foreign Policy
    CANADA AND THE MIDDLE EAST TODAY: ELECTORAL POLITICS AND FOREIGN POLICY Donald Barry Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper came to power in 2006 with little experience in foreign affairs but with a well developed plan to transform his minority Conservative administration into a majority government replacing the Liberals as Canada’s “natural governing party.”1 Because his party’s core of Anglo-Protestant supporters was not large enough to achieve this goal, Harper appealed to non- traditional Conservatives, including Jews, on the basis of shared social values. His efforts were matched by those of Jewish leaders and the government of Israel to win the backing of the government and its followers in the face of declining domestic support for Israel and the rise of militant Islamic fundamentalism. These factors accelerated a change in Canada’s Middle East policy that began under Prime Minister Paul Martin, from a carefully balanced stance to one that overwhelm- ingly favors Israel. Harper’s “pro-Israel politics,” Michelle Collins observes, has “won the respect—and support—of a large segment of Canada’s organized Jewish community.”2 However, it has isolated Canada from significant shifts in Middle East diplomacy and marginalized its ability to play a constructive role in the region. Harper and the Jewish Vote When he became leader of the Canadian Alliance party, which merged with the Progressive Conservatives to form the Conservative Party of Canada in 2004, Tom Flanagan says that Harper realized “The traditional Conservative base of Anglophone Protestants [was] too narrow to win modern Canadian elections.”3 In a speech to the conservative organization Civitas, in 2003, Harper argued that the only way to achieve power was to focus not on the tired wish list of economic conservatives or “neo-cons,” as they’d become known, but on what he called “theo-cons”—those social conservatives who care passionately about hot-button issues that turn on family, crime, and defense.
    [Show full text]
  • Equality and Diversity Within the Arts and Cultural Sector in England, 2013-16
    Equality and diversity within the arts and cultural Sector in England, 2013-16: Evidence Review September 2016 Equality & Diversity: Evidence Review Contents 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1 2 Context ........................................................................................................................................ 3 3 Review Results ............................................................................................................................ 7 4 Disability ...................................................................................................................................... 9 5 Race ........................................................................................................................................... 17 6 Sex/gender ................................................................................................................................ 26 7 Age ............................................................................................................................................ 35 8 Sexual orientation ..................................................................................................................... 41 9 Gender re-assignment .............................................................................................................. 47 10 Religion and/or belief ..............................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Report on Public Forum
    Anti-Terrorism and the Security Agenda: Impacts on Rights, Freedoms and Democracy Report and Recommendations for Policy Direction of a Public Forum organized by the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group Ottawa, February 17, 2004 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .......................................................................................................2 ABOUT THE ICLMG .............................................................................................................2 BACKGROUND .....................................................................................................................3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .....................................................................................................4 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR POLICY DIRECTION ..........................................................14 PROCEEDINGS......................................................................................................................16 CONCLUDING REMARKS...................................................................................................84 ANNEXES...............................................................................................................................87 ANNEXE I: Membership of the ICLMG ANNEXE II: Program of the Public Forum ANNEXE III: List of Participants/Panelists Anti-Terrorism and the Security Agenda: Impacts on Rights Freedoms and Democracy 2 __________________________________________________________________________________ ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Forum session reporting
    [Show full text]
  • Human Rights and Creed Research and Consultation Report
    Human Rights and Creed Research and consultation report ISBN: 978-1-4606-3360-1 (Print) 978-1-4606-3361-8 (HTML) 978-1-4606-3362-5 (PDF) © 2013 Queen’s Printer for Ontario Available in various formats Also available online: www.ohrc.on.ca Disponible en français Human rights and creed research and consultation report Contents I. Introduction ................................................................................................................ 1 1. Setting the context................................................................................................... 1 2. The purpose of this report........................................................................................ 2 3. Criteria for assessing and developing human rights policy ...................................... 2 II. Executive summary................................................................................................... 3 III. Background and context ......................................................................................... 7 Key questions .............................................................................................................. 7 1. Current social and demographic trends ................................................................... 7 1.1 Diversity of creed beliefs and practices.............................................................. 7 1.2 Individual belief and practice............................................................................ 10 1.3 Policy and program trends ..............................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • The Effects of Islam, Religiosity, and Socialization on Muslim-Canadian Opinions About Same-Sex Marriage
    COMPARATIVE MIGRATION STUDIES www.comparativemigrationstudies.org Published by: Amsterdam University Press The Effects of Islam, Religiosity, and Socialization on Muslim-Canadian Opinions about Same-Sex Marriage Christopher Cochrane CMS 1 (1): 147–178 DOI: 10.5117/CMS2013.1.COCH Abstract Critics of Islam often frame anti-Islamic positions as a defense of tolerance against intolerance, and of equality against inequality. Islam, for this perspec- tive, poses challenges for the ideological integration of Muslim immigrants in Western societies. This paper examines Canadian Muslims’ opinions about same-sex marriage. The analysis suggests that Canadian Muslims, as a group, do have distinctively negative opinions about same-sex marriage, but that there is substantial and systematic variation in opinions about this issue within the Muslim-Canadian community. Indeed, it is religiosity in general, rather than Islam in particular, that generates negative opinions about gay marriage. Exposure to the Canadian context, and especially postsecondary education, largely undoes the distinctiveness of Canadian Muslims’ opinions about this issue. Keywords: Islam, Muslims, Immigration, Public Opinion, Same-Sex Marriage 1. Introduction In January 2007, the town of Hérouxville, Québec, Canada drafted a series of resolutions aimed at prospective immigrants. The most controversial resolution prohibited the stoning of women in public. “Nous considérons que les hommes et les femmes sont égaux et ont la même valeur,” the docu- ment proclaims, reaffirming the community’s basic commitment to the fundamental rights of women, including their right to walk unaccompanied in public, attend school, and operate a vehicle (Municipalité de Hérouxville, 2010). The anti-Muslim sentiment that inspired these resolutions was CMS 2013, VOL.
    [Show full text]
  • Why Are You “Active”? - Voices of Young Muslim Women Post-9/11
    WHY ARE YOU “ACTIVE”? - VOICES OF YOUNG MUSLIM WOMEN POST-9/11 by Jabeen Aslam A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts Graduate Department of Sociology and Equity Studies in Education Ontario Institute for Studies in Education University of Toronto © Copyright by Jabeen Aslam (2011) WHY ARE YOU “ACTIVE”? - VOICES OF YOUNG MUSLIM WOMEN POST-9/11 Master of Arts 2011 Jabeen Aslam Department of Sociology and Equity Studies in Education University of Toronto Abstract Contributing to the literature on the Muslim experience post-9/11, the purpose of this study was to engage with a group that is often talked about, but not with: Muslim youth. Using an integrative anti-racist and anti-colonial approach with an emphasis on a spiritual way of knowing, this study gives voice to young Muslim activists in Toronto who have made the choice to “do something”. The study aims to understand what motivates these young activists, particularly in the context of post-9/11 Islamophobia, with the goal being to challenge stereotypical perceptions of Muslims, while contributing to the body of knowledge that aims to disrupt dominant notions of what “Canadian” identity is. The following analysis helps answer this question, which includes the role of spirituality, the attachment to Canadian identity and the desire to educate. Key challenges and what these youth prescribe for Canada’s future are also discussed. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the numerous individuals who have been instrumental in completing this project. First, to the seven young women interviewed in this paper – for your willingness to participate I am forever grateful.
    [Show full text]
  • Family Conference with a Focus on Children and Family
    CONTACT US Address: 56 W45 Street 4th Floor New York, NY 10036 Phone: +1 (646) 838- 4882 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.jwf.org ISBN: 978-978-969-741-0 Copyright © 2019 Journalists and Writers Foundation All rights reserved. Published in January 2019. Edited by Journalists and Writers Foundation Editorial Board. Designed in Republic of Korea. Printed by Sarsa Prints in Nigeria. Sarsa Prints: Durumi 2, New Site, Gudu District, Abuja/Nigeria COPYRIGHT & DISTRIBUTION Material from this conference proceedings may be reproduced for noncommercial purposes only as long as the Journalists and Writers Foundation (JWF) is fully acknowledged. The conference proceedings may also be distributed and linked to it from your website if the JWF is credited as the source. No part of this conference proceedings may be reproduced or distributed for any commercial purposes without the prior permission of the copyright holder. DISCLAIMER The JWF has made every effort to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information in this conference proceedings; however, the views presented are those of authors and do not reflect or represent the views of the editors or the Journalists and Writers Foundation. We welcome recommendations for corrections with reliable and acceptable sources. You can contact the JWF at [email protected]. CONTACT US Address: 56 W45 Street 4th Floor New York, NY 10036 Phone: +1 (646) 838-4882 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.jwf.org CONTENTS 8 Editor’s Note Journalists and Writers Foundation 10 Opening Speech I Binta Masi Garba 13 Opening Speech
    [Show full text]