Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 FAMILY, CITIZENSHIP AND ISLAM Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 Studies in Migration and Diaspora Series Editor: Anne J. Kershen, Queen Mary University of London, UK Studies in Migration and Diaspora is a series designed to showcase the interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary nature of research in this important field. Volumes in the series cover local, national and global issues and engage with both historical and contemporary events. The books will appeal to scholars, students and all those engaged in the study of migration and diaspora. Amongst the topics covered are minority ethnic relations, transnational movements and the cultural, social and political implications of moving from ‘over there’, to ‘over here’. Also in the series: London the Promised Land Revisited The Changing Face of the London Migrant Landscape in the Early 21st Century Edited by Anne J. Kershen ISBN 978-1-4724-4727-2 Migration Across Boundaries Linking Research to Practice and Experience Edited by Parvati Nair and Tendayi Bloom ISBN 978-1-4724-4049-5 Human Exhibitions Race, Gender and Sexuality in Ethnic Displays Rikke Andreassen ISBN 978-1-4724-2245-3 The Somatechnics of Whiteness and Race Colonialism and Mestiza Privilege Elaine Marie Carbonell Laforteza ISBN 978-1-4724-5307-5 Secularism and Identity Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 Non-Islamiosity in the Iranian Diaspora Reza Gholami ISBN 978-1-4724-3010-6 Family, Citizenship and Islam The Changing Experiences of Migrant Women Ageing in London NILUFAR AHMED Swansea University, UK Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 First published 2016 by Ashgate Publishing Published 2016 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017, USA Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business Copyright © Nilufar Ahmed 2016 Nilufar Ahmed has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the author of this work. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Notice. Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows: Ahmed, Nilufar, 1976- author. Family, citizenship and Islam : the changing experiences of migrant women ageing in London / by Nilufar Ahmed. pages cm. – (Studies in migration and diaspora) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4724-6619-8 (hardback) 1. Women immigrants–England– L ondon–Social conditions. 2. Muslim women–England–London–Social conditions. 3. Muslims–Cultual assimilation–England–London. 4. Immigrants–Cultural assimilation–England–London. 5. Aging–Social aspects–England–London. I. Title. JV6347.A46 2016 305.48'69709421–dc23 2015028319 Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 ISBN: 9781472466198 (hbk) For my parents Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 This page intentionally left blank Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 Contents List of Figures xi List of Tables xiii Acknowledgements xv Series Editor’s Preface xvii Introduction 1 Migration, Gender and Ageing 2 A Brief History of Migration from Bangladesh 7 Bangladeshis in the UK 12 Existing Research on Bangladeshis 14 Tower Hamlets and the Growth of the Bangladeshi Population 15 Background to the Research 18 The Sample 19 Book Outline 19 1 Conceptual Framework 21 Intersectionality 21 Intersectionality and Identity 27 Applying Intersectionality to this Study 28 2 Methodology 31 Developing a Relationship with Place and Space 32 Phase One 33 Phase Two 34 The Interviews 36 Qualitative Longitudinal Research 37 Reflexivity in Research 38 Conclusion 46 3 Belonging 49 Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 Marriage 49 Arrival 56 Use of Space 61 Growth of the Community 66 Return Visits to Bangladesh 72 Conclusion 73 viii Family, Citizenship and Islam 4 Language, Citizenship and Britishness 75 Language and Citizenship Policies 75 Desire to Speak English 79 Work 80 Family Responsibilities 83 Isolation and Integration 87 Barriers to Learning 89 Britishness 93 Conclusion 95 5 The Family 97 Migration and Changing Kin Networks 98 The Patriarchal Bargain 103 Transnational Marriages 106 Non-arranged Marriages 112 Ageing and Changing Intergenerational Relations 115 The Changing Material Circumstances of the Family 118 Grandparenting 123 The Mobility of the Family 125 Conclusion 127 6 Care and Welfare 129 Care in the Bangladeshi Community 130 Carers in the Study 131 Gender and Family Care 133 Use of Care Services 142 Comparisons with Bangladesh 147 Ageing and Widowhood 150 Housing and care 152 Conclusion 153 7 Religion 155 Religion and Arrival to the UK 158 The Importance of Religion 160 The Spatial Dynamics of Religion 162 Women, Home and Religion 165 Women’s Religious Groups 167 Women’s Use of Mosques 169 Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 Religiosity of the Second Generation 172 Hijab 174 Global Media 179 Conclusion 181 Conclusion 183 Contents ix Appendix 189 References 195 Glossary 239 Index 241 Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 This page intentionally left blank Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 List of Figures I.1 Map of Bangladesh 8 I.2 Map of Sylhet District 10 I.3 Map of Tower Hamlets Borough 15 3.1 Shaheed Minar replica in Tower Hamlets 67 3.2 Bilingual Brick Lane street sign 70 7.1 East London Mosque 172 Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 This page intentionally left blank Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 List of Tables I.1 Bangladeshis in the UK 12 I.2 Details of sample 19 6.1 Carers in the study 132 A.1 Details of the 20 respondents who form the core of the longitudinal research 190 A.2 Respondents from the 100 randomly selected sample in 2001 who were not followed up but whose quotes inform this book 192 A.3 Other respondents from different phases of the research whose opinions inform this book 194 Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 This page intentionally left blank Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 Acknowledgements I thank the Nuffield Foundation for funding the original study in 2000 which forms phase one of the research this book is based on, and from which I draw my longitudinal sample for phase two. I thank Chris Phillipson for recognising my enthusiasm and appointing me as Research Fellow at that time. In 2000–2001 I had the support of multiple community organisations whose time and advice were invaluable. In particular Tower Hamlets Parents Centre whose staff and users provided constant advice and whose insight helped shape the study. This book is based on my PhD, where I revisited women I had met a decade earlier. A self-funded PhD can be a difficult and unsupported process. I cannot thank Max Farrar enough for his advice, encouragement and critical reading of my work during this time and his ongoing mentoring and friendship. I will always be grateful to Farzana Hussain for putting me up and putting up with me during fieldwork, her generosity and good humour made everything wonderful. I thank my siblings, especially my brother Belal, for all their support. And a special thanks to Benjamin Woods for all his help. My greatest thanks, however, go to the extraordinary women who through laughter and tears, and gallons of tea, shared their secrets with me. Their hospitality, compassion and genuine affection have enriched me as a person and their stories are now integral to my own. Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 This page intentionally left blank Downloaded by [National Library of the Philippines] at 23:24 05 November 2017 Series Editor’s Preface Since the early 1980s there has been a burgeoning of research and writing on the migrant experience, the protagonists being males who left home as economic migrants, asylum seekers or refugees. More recently the spotlight has widened to incorporate female mobility: women who are economic migrants, asylum seekers, refugees, or those illegally trafficked as sex or domestic workers. In contrast, little or no interest has been shown in the experiences of the earlier waves of female migration, that which comes under the heading of ‘family reunification’: predominantly women who left home in order to join their husbands – some of whom they had not seen for a number of years – or those who travelled as brides, married to men their barely knew. In this pioneering and scholarly work, Nilufar Ahmed redresses the lacuna in female migration studies by exploring the lifecourse and experiences of women who came from Bangladesh and settled in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the 1970s and 1980s; women who came simply as wives and mothers. However, this is not just a temporally defined examination of female arrival and settlement in a specific place.