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The British
Muslim communities are a model for
examination and analysis in the
European Muslims Page for many
reasons. There is a long history of
interactions between Muslims and the
British. Many think that the British
Muslim communities are the result of
post-World War migration. But there
is evidence that Muslims have been
in Britain in some way since the
eighth century, based on the
discovery of coins of King Offa
stamped with the Shahadah, the
Muslim declaration of faith. Many
manifestations since that date point
to the presence of Muslims, but
their existence was significant only
after their communities were
established in the 19th century
after international commerce routes
opened up.
Today there
are 1.6 million British Muslims who
form a broad spectrum ethnically,
ideologically, and culturally. There
are Muslims from South Asia and also
Arab, Kurdish, Nigerian, Turkish,
and Turkish-Cypriot communities.
There are refugees from Iran, Iraq,
Afghanistan, Somalia, and the
Balkans. There are also some 5,000
to 10,000 Muslim converts, about
half of whom are Afro-Caribbean (Euro-Islam.info).
Achievements
and Underachievements
Compared to
some immature European Muslim
communities, the British Muslim
communities may be considered as
highly organized, with their own
institutions, mosques,
professionals, and media
organizations. Subsequently, one can
talk about certain British Muslim
achievements on individual and
institutional levels.
But one
cannot ignore the issues of British
Muslim underachievements in
education, labor, health, housing,
etc. These underachievements might
be seen in light of restricted
opportunities and religious
discrimination, especially after
9/11 and 7/7.
Multiculturalism:
Coping With the Divisions
The
introduction of multiculturalism is
another reason that the European
Muslims Page pays special attention
to the British Muslim case. It is
widely known that Britain adopted
multiculturalism as one of the key
models of integrating minorities
into European countries. For a long
time, the multicultural British
model was celebrated as a two-way
positive process of integration that
worked differently for different
groups and considered their
distinctive culture and ethnic
identities. But recently and
especially after 7/7, many debates
related to integration and
multiculturalism have resurfaced.
Some people referred to the failures
of the multicultural model to cope
with the racial and religious
divisions that led to inequalities.
Trevor Phillips put it clearly:
"In recent years we've focused
far too much on the 'multi' and not
enough on the common culture"
("After 7/7: Sleepwalking to
Segregation," Commission for
Racial Equality, 22
September 2005). Doors are still
opened for more discussions and
redefinitions through theoretical
analysis and practical experiences.
Anglo-American
Ties
The British
involvement with the United States'
geopolitical projects, especially
after 9/11, caused serious changes
that affected the British Muslim
presence and performance. Some
analysts consider 7/7 as a direct
result of Anglo-American
geopolitical ties and British
foreign policies. Ironically, the
activation of the British anti-war
movements and the Muslim involvement
with them have resulted for the same
reasons.
To
understand the challenges facing the
British Muslim communities, we
should observe the connections
between British foreign polices and
domestic agendas and procedures.
We all know
about 9/11 and the following
terrorist attacks in Bali, Madrid,
and London. All those incidents
worked, to some extent, to portray
Islam and Muslims as real threats to
the world order. Although many
Muslim voices condemned the
terrorist attacks and asked for
structural solutions to confront
terrorism, no one denies that the
Muslims, especially in the Western
societies, have been badly affected
by these kinds of generalizations
and misunderstandings.
Facing
Islamophobia
British
Muslims faced Islamophobic stances
in different ways, whether on the
micro level in their daily lives or
on the macro level by being targeted
by proposed governmental anti-terror
laws and security measures.
Despite all
these waves of threats against
Muslims, more balanced views in
British society are always declared
by some media outlets, experts, and
civil rights activists that refuse
practices such as detention without
trial, house arrest, and
non-disclosure under criminal
penalties, etc. These balanced views
in Britain notice the consequences
of these proposed laws: threatening
freedom without providing security.
Dealing with terrorist threats as
merely a security file without
considering the structural reasons
politically, socio-economically, and
culturally will only lead to more
failures and divisions.
Putting
the House in Order
On the
other hand, the British Muslim
communities need a lot of work to
put their house in order.
Self-criticizing, managing disputes,
encouraging intradialogue, building
coalition with the different British
groups, and bridging generational
gaps are among the possible
techniques that the British Muslims
may use to resettle their positions
and increase their potentials.
The special
page British Muslims: Pride &
Fear explores the repercussions of
the London bombings in the Post-7/7
Section. It engages with the
concepts of loyalty and belonging in
the British & Muslim? Section.
The Muslim Voices Section features
British Muslims' interactions with
their larger society. More profound
analysis of the domestic and
overseas issues are found in the In
Depth Section.
British
Muslims: Pride & Fear
accumulates our work on
understanding and contextualizing
the British Muslim issues. Moreover,
this special page opens the door for
discussions and comments to enhance
our coverage interactively. |
