Politicizing Islam: The Islamic Revival in France and India (Religion and Global Politics)

Home to the largest Muslim minorities in Western Europe and Asia, France and India are both grappling with crises of secularism. In __Politicizing Islam__, Fareen Parvez offers an in-depth look at how Muslims have responded to these crises, focusing on Islamic revival movements in the French city of Lyon and the Indian city of Hyderabad. Presenting a novel comparative view of middle-class and poor Muslims in both cities, Parvez illuminates how Muslims from every social class are denigrated but struggle in different ways to improve their lives and make claims on the state. In Hyderabad's slums, Muslims have created vibrant political communities, while in Lyon's banlieues they have retreated into the private sphere. __Politicizing Islam__ elegantly explains how these divergent reactions originated in India's flexible secularism and France's militant secularism and in specific patterns of Muslim class relations in both cities. This fine-grained ethnography pushes beyond stereotypes and has consequences for burning public debates over Islam, feminism, and secular democracy. Politicizing Islam Explores Islamic Revival Movements In The French City Of Lyon And Its Outer Banlieues And The Indian City Of Hyderabad, Where Parvez Conducted Two Years Of Ethnographic Research, Immersed In Mosque Communities, Women's Welfare Centers, Islamic Study Circles, And Philanthropic Associations. The Book Provides An In-depth View Of Middle-class Muslims And Elites, As Well Poor And Subaltern Muslims In Stigmatized Neighborhoods, To Show How Muslims Make Claims On The Secular State And Struggle To Improve Their Lives As Denigrated Minorities. In Hyderabad, Muslim Elites Struggle For Redistribution To The Poor, Who Then Use Their Patronage To Practice Autonomy From The State And Build Vibrant Political Communities. In Lyon, Middle-class Muslims Face Widespread Discrimination And Negotiate With The State For Religious Recognition. But They Remain Estranged From Muslims In The Banlieues Who Have Embraced A Sectarian Form Of Islam And Retreated Into The Private Sphere. Politicizing Islam Explains How These Diverse Movements Originated In Either A Flexible Or Militant Secularism, And How Muslim Class Relations Ultimately Have Consequences For Debates Within The Islamic Tradition, The Situations Of Muslim Women, And The Potential For Minority Democratic Participation. Introduction: Politicizing Islam Across North And South -- Secularism And Muslim Marginality -- Politics Of Redistribution -- Political Community In The Slums Of Hyderabad -- Politics Of Recognition -- Antipolitics In The Banlieues Of Lyon -- Conclusion: Democracy, Feminism, And The War On Terror -- Between The Logic Of Logic And The Logic Of God -- Interviews. Z. Fareen Parvez. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. This comparative ethnography explores Islamic revival movements in France and India, home to the largest numbers of Muslim minorities in Western Europe and Asia. Parvez provides an in-depth view into how Muslims in two cities struggle to improve their lives as denigrated minorities, amid national crises of secular democracy.