Negotiating British Muslim Belonging: A Qualitative Longitudinal Study

Phoenix, Aisha

Abstract

British Muslims are often viewed as holding values incompatible with Britishness, regarded with suspicion and sometimes subjected to gendered forms of racism. Research projects have found that identifiably Muslim women face everyday microaggressions, yet little is known about how they negotiate both this and their identities over time. This article addresses this gap by reporting the results of qualitative longitudinal research that explores the narratives of two young British Muslim women over a seven-year period. The women were first interviewed when they were single undergraduates in 2010 and followed up as married young professionals in 2017. On both occasions they were negotiating their identities and sense of belonging in a climate of heightened scrutiny of Muslims. The paper examines their reflections on: “fitting in” with Britishness, their religious identities and the complexity of belonging. Methodologically, it contributes to qualitative longitudinal narrative research.

Citation

Phoenix, A. (2019). Negotiating British Muslim Belonging: A Qualitative Longitudinal Study. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 42(10), 1632-1650. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2018.1532098

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Sep 28, 2018
• Online Publication Date: Nov 5, 2018
• Publication Date: Jan 1, 2019
• Deposit Date: Oct 23, 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 15, 2019
• Journal: Ethnic and Racial Studies
• Print ISSN: 0141-9870
• Electronic ISSN: 1466-4356
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 42
• Issue: 10
• Pages: 1632-1650
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2018.1532098