Diaspora, Islam, and belonging: Conceptualising queer Muslim subjectivities in Berlin By Arnold Kovács Submitted to Central European University Department of Gender Studies In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Critical Gender Studies Supervisor: Dr. Nadia Jones-Gailani CEU eTD Collection Second Supervisor: Dr. Vlad Naumescu Budapest, Hungary 2020 Abstract In this thesis, I explore the formation of queer Muslim subjectivities by attending to the multi- faceted ways in which queer people of Muslim backgrounds respond to the temporal and material realities of the matrix of oppression experienced in Berlin, Germany. The project adopts a postcolonial feminist ethnographic approach in order to centre the voices of people constructed as ‘others’ and address the implications of power and positionality on representation in ethnographic knowledge production by foregrounding reflexivity. My analysis is based upon two months of extensive participant observation, as well as eight semi-structured ethnographic interviews, and an interdisciplinary theoretical framework building on scholarship from Religious Studies, Gender and Queer Studies, and Migration Studies. The thesis argues that queer people of Muslim backgrounds cultivate their selves through the articulation of their sense of belonging as they navigate the historically contingent understandings of Islam and sexuality within the context of migration and diaspora. As I further demonstrate, the differing modes of belonging carved out by queer Muslims in Berlin constitute unique ways of reacting to the material realities experienced within the German secular liberal regime. CEU eTD Collection ii Declaration I hereby declare that this thesis is the result of original research; it contains no materials accepted for any other degree in any other institution and no materials previously written and/or published by another person, except where appropriate acknowledgment is made in the form of bibliographical reference. I further declare that the following word count for this thesis are accurate: Body of thesis (all chapters excluding notes, references, appendices, etc.): 23,886 words Entire manuscript: 32,937 words Signed: Arnold Kovács CEU eTD Collection iii Acknowledgements My first words of appreciation go to Nadia. It is almost impossible to put into words how grateful I am for your emotional support, caring words and intellectual guidance throughout the past two years. You have introduced me to postcolonial theory, taught me how to listen vulnerably, and showed me that it is not possible to be a good scholar without being a good person. It is for you that I still believe in academia and knowledge production. Thank you for being the best imaginable supervisor and the most amazing person I met during my studies! Diolch yn fawr iawn! Celui de-al doilea coordonator al meu, Vlad, îți mulțumesc pentru feedback-ul tău continuu și pentru încrederea pe care o ai în munca mea! Senzitivitatea ta față de religie și suportul tău pentru interacțiunea mea cu teoria lui Asad mi-a adus confort considerabil în fața secularismului nechestionat. Thank you for my interlocutors for opening up your lives to me. This thesis would not have been possible without your trust and help. Please forgive me if I misinterpreted your words! I would also like to thank Fabian for introducing me to Berlin and Ármin for guiding me along German politics. Anna! Köszönöm, hogy mindig számíthatok rád! A hosszas beszélgetéseink és meglátásaid nélkül sokkal kevesebb lennék. I would like to give a big shout-out to the people who made my life at CEU more bearable. Thank you Albina for your friendship and for introducing me to Korean cuisine! Hakima, thank you for your friendship and the long nights of studying infused with the smell of clove and cardamom! Michelle and Watson, you brought joy to my lonely first semesters! Thank you Sahar and Ani for supporting me at times when progress seemed almost impossible. Külön köszönet Ágnesnek, Barbinak, Ilkának és Andreinek, hogy a rengeteg tennivaló közepette mindig akadt CEU eTD Collection időnk egymásra. És végül, köszönöm a családomnak, hogy a döntéseimtől függetlenül mindig és mindenben támogatnak! iv Table of Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... ii Declaration ..................................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ iv Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ v Chapter 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 1.1. A brief history of migration and Islam in Germany ......................................................... 4 1.2. Mapping the literature: Muslim migrants and LGBT+ Muslims in the West ................ 10 1.2.1. Muslim migrants in Germany ................................................................................. 11 1.2.2. LGBT+ Muslims in the West .................................................................................. 13 1.3. Chapter breakdown ........................................................................................................ 18 Chapter 2 Literature review .......................................................................................................... 20 2.1. Religion and the study of Islam...................................................................................... 20 2.2. Subjectivity(ies) and subject formation.......................................................................... 23 2.3. Queerness ....................................................................................................................... 26 2.4. Migration and diaspora................................................................................................... 27 2.5. Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 31 CEU eTD Collection Chapter 3 Methodological considerations .................................................................................... 32 3.1. Research method ............................................................................................................ 32 v 3.2. Research design .............................................................................................................. 35 3.3. Transcription and coding ................................................................................................ 41 Chapter 4 The emergence of a modern Muslim subject ............................................................... 43 4.1. ‘Diaspora Islam’ and its subject positions...................................................................... 46 4.2. Towards a modern Muslim subjectivity ......................................................................... 53 4.3. Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 60 Chapter 5 Individualisation and the Islamic tradition ................................................................... 62 5.1. Muslim belonging and migration ................................................................................... 64 5.2. Sexuality and migration: towards the individualisation of Islam ................................... 66 5.3. Reconceptualising the Islamic tradition ......................................................................... 73 5.4. Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 75 Chapter 6 Compelling queer (Muslim) diasporic moments .......................................................... 77 6.1. Shariah, hudood, whips and lashes................................................................................. 79 6.2. Heterotopic remembrance, joy, and protest ................................................................... 83 6.3. Discussion: queer (Muslim) diasporic moments? .......................................................... 88 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 90 Appendix 1: Informed Consent Form (English version) .............................................................. 92 CEU eTD Collection Bibliography ................................................................................................................................. 96 vi Chapter 1 Introduction When I first arrived in Berlin on a cold December morning in 2017, I felt an immediate affinity towards the city. Taking the S-Bahn from Schönefeld Airport to Neukölln, I distantly observed the flow of people getting on and off the city train. I spent the first day with a friend going first to a Syrian cake shop, and then through a tour of queer bookstores, followed by an afternoon prayer in Germany’s second largest mosque. We ended the day with a dinner of Lebanese hummus and falafel. My first impression of the city stood in stark contrast with the negative depictions propagated in Hungarian media starting from the summer of 2015