Islam on Campus : Contested Identities and the Cultures of Higher Education in Britain

Islam on Campus explores how Islam is represented, perceived, and lived within higher education in Britain. It considers the changing nature of university life, and the place of religion within it. Even while many universities maintain ambiguous or affirming orientations to religious institutions for reasons to do with history and ethos, much western scholarship has presumed higher education to be a strongly secularising force. This framing has resulted in religion often being marginalised or ignored as a cultural irrelevance by the university sector. However, recent times have seen higher education increasingly drawn into political discourses that problematize religion in general, and Islam in particular, as an object of risk. Using the largest data set yet collected in the UK, Islam on Campus explores university life and the ways in which ideas about Islam and Muslim identities are produced, experienced, perceived, appropriated, and objectified. The volume considers the role universities and Muslim higher education institutions play in the production, reinforcement, and contestation of emerging narratives about religious difference. This is a culturally nuanced treatment of universities as sites of knowledge production, and contexts for the negotiation of perspectives on culture and religion among an emerging generation. This collaborative study demonstrates the urgent need to release Islam from its official role as the othered, or the feared. When universities achieve this we will be able to help students of all affiliations and of none to be citizens of the campus in preparation for being citizens of the world. Cover Praise for Islam on Campus: Contested Identities and the Cultures of Higher Education in Britain Islam on Campus: Contested Identities and the Cultures of Higher Education in Britain Copyright Acknowledgements Contents List of Figures List of Tables Introduction Chapter 1: Muslims in the Twenty-First Century University: Higher Education and its Cultural ‘Other’ Introduction: The Segregated Seating Controversy Contested Histories, Contested Identities The Public University and the University’s Publics The Neo-liberal University The University as a Site of Inclusion and Exclusion The Postcolonial University Caveat: Is the UK University Secular? The University as a Site of Heightened Risk Islam and the Securitization Agenda Conclusions: A Heightened Othering? Chapter 2: Ethical Agency: Researching Islam on Campus Introduction: Beyond Ethical Neutrality Positionality, Perspective, and Identity Ethnographically Informed Approaches Pre-emptive Epistemic Injustice: Author Voice and Respondent Voice Research Design: Islam on Campus The Qualitative Case Studies The Quantitative Survey Analysis of Findings Conclusions Chapter 3: Diversity in the Muslim Student Experience: Individual and Institutional Dimensions Introduction: Muslim Students in the Twenty-First Century Organizational Cultures in Higher Education The Governing Discourse The Social Contexts of Teaching and Learning The Campus Interaction Order The Six Case Studies The Universities Central University Heritage University Citywide University Greenfield Campus Muslim Colleges Olive Tree College City Muslim College Conclusions Chapter 4: How is Islam Known and NotKnown on Campus? Knowing as Social Transformation Knowing and Not Knowing on Campus? Sources of Knowledge of Islam and Religion Negotiating Islam on Campus How do Muslims ‘Do’ Knowledge? What Conceptions of Higher Education can Islamic Knowledge Provide? Conclusions: Between Negotiation and Non-Negotiation, a Continuum of Knowledge of Islam on Campus Chapter 5: Islam and Gender on Campus Gendering Islam Situating Gender and Islam on Campus Muslim Women and the Hijab, Niqab, and Burqa Stereotyping Muslim Men Capturing the Gendered Diversity of Muslims on Campus The Politics of Dress Muslim Women’s Negotiations of the Politics of Dress Muslim Men and the Politics of Dress Gendered Stereotypes of Muslims Gendered Positioning on Campus Conclusions Chapter 6: Islam and Religious Diversity on Campus: Negotiating Different Lives Together Introduction Contextualizing Religion or Belief in Universities Complicating ‘Inter-religious’ Experiencing Religious Diversity on Campus ‘Gates and walls’: Barriers to Inter- and Intra-religious Dialogue Three Modes of Prejudice and Discrimination Inter-religious Dialogue and Understanding Intra-religious Dialogue and Understanding Personal Encounters Politics of Questioning A Four-Point Model of Campus Diversity: Between Active and Passive Diversity Conclusions: Inter-religious Respect Rather than Tolerance Chapter 7: ‘Radicalization’: Anxiety and Stigma in Campus Contexts Introduction ‘Radicalization’ and the Prevent Strategy Campus Cultures of Anxiety and Suspicion Radicalization as Stigma Institutional Variations The Response from Muslim Colleges Conclusions Chapter 8: Multiple Hierarchies: The Politics of Knowledge in Islamic Studies Introduction: Textual Hierarchies and Boundary-making in Islamic Studies Shifting the Post/Colonial Hierarchy of Islamic Studies in the UK: Knowledge and Politics in Changing Contexts The Enduring Gendered Hierarchies of Islamic Studies Gender, Agency, and Power in the Islamic Studies Classroom Conclusions: A Dialogic Islamic Studies, Neither Inside nor Outside the Critical Hierarchy Chapter 9: Freedom of Speech: Righting Epistemic Wrongs for Citizens of the Campus Introduction Ethical Language ‘Liberal’ and ‘Guarded Liberal’ Models of Free Speech Libertarian and ‘No-Platforming’ Approaches Students’ Opinions about Free Speech on Campus Prevent Duty Guidance, Power, and Testimonial Injustice The Chilling of Speech This Confected Metaphysics of Violence Law, Human Rights, and Religious Tradition Students in Danger: Melting or Exploding? A Pedagogy of Hope Chapter 10: Conclusions Summary of Findings National Survey and Campus Findings Students Distinguish Religion from Islam, and Islam from Muslims Muslim Students Feel a Heightened Vulnerability Muslim Students Embrace Learning, but University Learning Struggles to Embrace Them University-based Learning about Religion is More Often Informal Rather than Classroom-based; Could it be More? Securitization is Driven by Fear, not Familiarity Gender Inter-religious Relations Radicalization Islamic Studies Wider Implications Higher Education as a Contested Site for the Definition of ‘Religion’ Recommendations Appendix 1: What is the Religious Profile of Students in the UK’s Higher Education Sector? Interpretative Note Appendix 2: The Demographic Constituency of the Survey Sample Gender Ethnicity International/EU/Home Students Undergraduate/Postgraduate Status Degree Subject Bibliography Index Islam on Campus explores how Islam is represented, perceived, and lived within higher education in Britain. It considers the changing nature of university life, and the place of religion within it. Even while many universities maintain ambiguous or affirming orientations to religious institutions for reasons to do with history and ethos, much western scholarship has presumed higher education to be a strongly secularising force. This framing has resulted in religion often being marginalised or ignored as a cultural irrelevance by the university sector. However, recent times have seen higher education increasingly drawn into political discourses that problematize religion in general, and Islam in particular, as an object of risk.0Using the largest data set yet collected in the UK, Islam on Campus explores university life and the ways in which ideas about Islam and Muslim identities are produced, experienced, perceived, appropriated, and objectified. The volume considers the role universities and Muslim higher education institutions play in the production, reinforcement, and contestation of emerging narratives about religious difference. This is a culturally nuanced treatment of universities as sites of knowledge production, and contexts for the negotiation of perspectives on culture and religion among an emerging generation. This collaborative study demonstrates the urgent need to release Islam from its official role as the othered, or the feared. When universities achieve this we will be able to help students of all affiliations and of none to be citizens of the campus in preparation for being citizens of the world This book explores how Islam is represented, perceived and lived within higher education in Britain. It is a book about the changing nature of university life, and the place of religion within it. Even while many universities maintain ambiguous or affirming orientations to religious institutions for reasons to do with history and ethos, much western scholarship has presumed higher education to be a strongly secularizing force. This framing has resulted in religion often being marginalized or ignored as a cultural irrelevance by the university sector. However, recent times have seen higher education increasingly drawn into political discourses that problematize religion in general, and Islam in particular, as an object of risk. Using the largest data set yet collected in the UK (2015–18) this book explores university life and the ways in which ideas about Islam and Muslim identities are produced, experienced, perceived, appropriated, and objectified. We ask what role universities and Muslim higher education institutions play in the production, reinforcement and contestation of emerging narratives about religious difference. This is a culturally nuanced treatment of universities as sites of knowledge production, and contexts for the negotiation of perspectives on culture and religion among an emerging generation. We demonstrate the urgent need to release Islam from its official role as the othered, the feared. When universities achieve this we will be able to help students of all affiliations and of none to be citizens of the campus in preparation for being citizens of the world. Islam on Campus explores how Islam is represented, perceived and lived within higher education in Britain. It is a book about the changing nature of university life, and the place of religion within it. Even while many universities maintain ambiguous or affirming orientations to religious institutions for reasons to do with history and ethos, much western scholarship has presumed higher education to be a strongly secularizing force. This framing has resulted in religion often being marginalized or ignored as a cultural irrelevance by the university sector. However, recent times have seen higher education increasingly drawn into political discourses that problematize religion in general, and Islam in particular, as an object of risk. Using the largest data set yet collected in the UK, this book explores university life and the ways in which ideas about Islam and Muslim identities are produced, experienced, perceived, appropriated, and objectified. It asks what role universities and Muslim higher education institutions play in the production, reinforcement, and contestation of emerging narratives about religious difference. This is a culturally nuanced treatment of universities as sites of knowledge production, and contexts for the negotiation of perspectives on culture and religion among an emerging generation. It demonstrates the urgent need to release Islam from its official role as the othered, the feared. When universities achieve this we will be able to help students of all affiliations and of none to be citizens of the campus in preparation for being citizens of the world.