View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by White Rose E-theses Online Implications of the ‘War on Terror’ for Muslim women in Britain; Narratives of resistance and resilience Andrea Tara-Chand Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy The University of Leeds School of Law December 2015 The candidate confirms that the work submitted is his/her own and that appropriate credit has been given where reference has been made to the work of others. This copy has been supplied on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. The right of Andrea Tara-Chand to be identified as Author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. © 2015The University of Leeds and Andrea Tara-Chand i Acknowledgements This research is indebted to the women in Fieldway who put their faith in this study, and opened up their ‘off stage’ spaces to this research unreservedly; for that I am eternally grateful. I would like to particularly acknowledge my key contact, called the ‘known informant’ in this research to ensure his confidentiality, because without this support it would have been difficult to conduct the study that lies at the heart of this thesis. I would also like to acknowledge the academic institutions and professionals that have made this thesis possible. In particular, I would like to thank Professor Adam Crawford, for staying the course through the journey of this thesis. I would like to thank Adam for his guidance and feedback and Professor Paul Knepper for his insightful comments. I am also indebted to the White Rose Doctoral College for providing the funding for this study. Finally, but certainly not least, I am truly indebted to my partner, Louise, for keeping me fed and watered and going the extra mile on more than one occasion. Without this support, and the support of the other people mentioned, this thesis journey would have been more complex and difficult. ii Abstract This thesis troubles the deafening silence, surrounding South Asian Muslim women’s (SAMW) experience, of the collateral damage from the ‘War on Terror’ as prolonged adversity and harm. It identifies forms of adversity to which SAMW are exposed and their resilience responses in the ‘War on Terror’. This thesis offers a radical critique, of adversity, resistance, and resilience through the frames of temporality and hegemony. It exposes interrelated tensions inherent in resilience as survival/ coping, or as transformation/ adaptation. Hegemony brings power and resistance, to the centre of the concept in new ways; problematizing accepted notions of resilience as the capacity to ‘bounce back’ to a former state of equilibrium. It identifies the past in the present; in this frame the ‘War on Terror’, is a present day manifestation of past patterns of ideological struggle with roots in empire. Ethnographic research was undertaken with SAMW, in a neighbourhood in the north of England, to gather information on SAMW’s experience of adversity, resistance, and resilience to the effects of the ‘War on Terror’. The research identified mechanisms in community, neighbourhood, and through state institutions, that support SAMW’s resilience. The findings, unequivocally identified links between SAMW’s fear of assault/adversity and the ‘War on Terror’; as signified in 9/11. SAMW had little, if any, recourse to material resources as insulators from adversity, and, civil and civic institutions failed to offer SAMW adequate support. Social capital, generated in relationships and social networks, insulated SAMW, and enabled them to build hybrid ‘resistant identities’. This thesis identifies new ways of thinking about the ‘War on Terror’, adversity and resilience; it presents new knowledge to highlight the urgency for further investigation into adversity and resilience in conditions of prolonged trauma. The imperative is to address dislocations between SAMW and local and national state institution iii Table of Contents Part I Through the lens of power – South Asian Muslim women’s continuing struggle with adversity; resistance and resilience ....... 1 Chapter One: Introduction ......................................................................................... 2 1.1 Introduction ................................................................................... 2 1.2 The aims of this thesis .................................................................... 7 1.3 Focus on South Asian Muslim women in Britain ........................... 10 1.4. Conceptual frames....................................................................... 12 1.4.1 Adversity, resilience and adaptation................................... 12 1.4.2 Hegemony as ideological struggle ..................................... 13 1.4.3 Islamophobia...................................................................... 16 1.4.4 Feminist and anti-imperialist frames................................... 19 1.5. The structure of this thesis........................................................... 21 1.5.1 Thesis Part I – Through the lens of power – South Asian Muslim women’s continuing struggle with adversity; their resistance and resilience .................................................... 21 1.5.2 Thesis Part II – research methods, tensions and positioning........................................................................... 24 1.5.3. Thesis Part III – Research findings and analysis. Women’s narratives: adversity and resilience..................... 27 1.5.4 Thesis Part IV – Conclusion - extending knowledge.......... 31 Chapter Two: The problem of resilience................................................................. 35 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................... 35 2.2 Developments in resilience thinking.............................................. 37 2.2.1 The genealogy of resilience: from static structures to dynamic systems ................................................................ 37 2.2.2 The problem of risk and protective factors ......................... 42 2.3 Social structure, place and governance ........................................ 45 2.3.1 Social interaction................................................................ 46 2.3.2 Social capital...................................................................... 49 2.4 The problem and possibility of neighbourhood.............................. 56 2.5 Resistance and resilience ............................................................. 60 2.6 Conclusion; do we better understand resilience?.......................... 64 iv Chapter Three: British/South Asian Muslim relations: Hegemony, power, and resistance .................................................. 66 3.1 Introduction ................................................................................... 66 3.2 Coercion and consent ................................................................... 67 Early contact ....................................................................... 68 Transformation in Indian ..................................................... 71 The struggle for Indian independence................................. 74 3.2.1The ‘India question’............................................................. 77 3.2.2 Gender and empire ............................................................ 79 3.2.3 The end of empire.............................................................. 84 3.2.4 Religious implications of global change ............................. 86 3.3 The Present .................................................................................. 89 3.3.1 The ‘War on Terror’............................................................ 89 3.3.2 The UK government response to ‘new terrorism’............... 94 3.4 CONTEST – the UK’s counter terrorism strategy.......................... 96 3.4.1 Prevent............................................................................... 99 3.4.2 The notion of ‘shared values’ ........................................... 103 3.5 Gender and counter-terrorism..................................................... 105 3.5.1 Muslim women – pawns in the struggle for ideological supremacy? ...................................................................... 107 3.5.2 Constraints on Muslim women of political visibility........... 107 3.5.3 Opportunities for women in political visibility.................... 111 3.5.4 Women’s invisibility in counter-terrorism.......................... 114 3.6 Conclusion .................................................................................. 117 Part II Research methodology Research involving South Asian Muslim women......................... 120 Chapter Four: Research involving South Asian Muslim women......................... 121 4.1 Introduction ................................................................................. 121 4.2 Epistemologies of South Asian Muslim women........................... 123 4.3 Methodology and research design .............................................. 125 4.3.1 A narrative approach........................................................ 130 4.4 Research design ......................................................................... 131 4.4.1 Neighbourhood selection ................................................. 131 4.4.2 Sampling; research participants......................................