Negotiating Perceptions and Constructing Identities: Muslim Strategies in St. John’s, Newfoundland
This thesis examines how Muslims in Canada negotiate perceptions in their interactions with non-Muslims and other Muslims. What strategies do Muslims in Canada use to combat these perceptions? How do perceptions of Islam and Muslims impact Muslims’ constructions of identities? In order to answer the...
Main Author: | |
---|---|
Format: | Thesis |
Language: | English |
Published: |
2013
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10393/26140 |
id |
ftcanadathes:oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:OOU.#10393/26140 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftcanadathes:oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:OOU.#10393/26140 2023-05-15T17:21:33+02:00 Negotiating Perceptions and Constructing Identities: Muslim Strategies in St. John’s, Newfoundland Downie, Caitlin 2013-09-18T19:50:54Z http://hdl.handle.net/10393/26140 en eng http://hdl.handle.net/10393/26140 Islam Islamophilia Islamophobia Religion Religious Identity Religion in Canada Thèse / Thesis 2013 ftcanadathes 2014-06-14T23:47:42Z This thesis examines how Muslims in Canada negotiate perceptions in their interactions with non-Muslims and other Muslims. What strategies do Muslims in Canada use to combat these perceptions? How do perceptions of Islam and Muslims impact Muslims’ constructions of identities? In order to answer these questions a case study was conducted in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Interviews with Muslims living in St. John’s explored how they respond to perceptions of Islam and how they negotiate their identities in everyday life. This study found that perceptions of Islam and Muslims played an important role in the construction of Muslims’ identities despite the low incidence of Islamophobia. Perceptions of Islam and Muslims often led to an increase in knowledge of Islam, an increase in affiliation with their Muslim identities and increase in religiosity. However, an alternative impact was a distancing from Islam. Participants used numerous strategies to combat negative perceptions of Islam and Muslims including taking up an educator role and becoming representative. Further, many participants separated culture and religion, creating a ‘true’ Islam and contributing to islamophilia. However, other participants challenged philic and phobic accounts of Islam by voicing their lived practices and presenting multiple and dynamic Islams. Thesis Newfoundland Theses Canada/Thèses Canada (Library and Archives Canada) Canada |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Theses Canada/Thèses Canada (Library and Archives Canada) |
op_collection_id |
ftcanadathes |
language |
English |
topic |
Islam Islamophilia Islamophobia Religion Religious Identity Religion in Canada |
spellingShingle |
Islam Islamophilia Islamophobia Religion Religious Identity Religion in Canada Downie, Caitlin Negotiating Perceptions and Constructing Identities: Muslim Strategies in St. John’s, Newfoundland |
topic_facet |
Islam Islamophilia Islamophobia Religion Religious Identity Religion in Canada |
description |
This thesis examines how Muslims in Canada negotiate perceptions in their interactions with non-Muslims and other Muslims. What strategies do Muslims in Canada use to combat these perceptions? How do perceptions of Islam and Muslims impact Muslims’ constructions of identities? In order to answer these questions a case study was conducted in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Interviews with Muslims living in St. John’s explored how they respond to perceptions of Islam and how they negotiate their identities in everyday life. This study found that perceptions of Islam and Muslims played an important role in the construction of Muslims’ identities despite the low incidence of Islamophobia. Perceptions of Islam and Muslims often led to an increase in knowledge of Islam, an increase in affiliation with their Muslim identities and increase in religiosity. However, an alternative impact was a distancing from Islam. Participants used numerous strategies to combat negative perceptions of Islam and Muslims including taking up an educator role and becoming representative. Further, many participants separated culture and religion, creating a ‘true’ Islam and contributing to islamophilia. However, other participants challenged philic and phobic accounts of Islam by voicing their lived practices and presenting multiple and dynamic Islams. |
format |
Thesis |
author |
Downie, Caitlin |
author_facet |
Downie, Caitlin |
author_sort |
Downie, Caitlin |
title |
Negotiating Perceptions and Constructing Identities: Muslim Strategies in St. John’s, Newfoundland |
title_short |
Negotiating Perceptions and Constructing Identities: Muslim Strategies in St. John’s, Newfoundland |
title_full |
Negotiating Perceptions and Constructing Identities: Muslim Strategies in St. John’s, Newfoundland |
title_fullStr |
Negotiating Perceptions and Constructing Identities: Muslim Strategies in St. John’s, Newfoundland |
title_full_unstemmed |
Negotiating Perceptions and Constructing Identities: Muslim Strategies in St. John’s, Newfoundland |
title_sort |
negotiating perceptions and constructing identities: muslim strategies in st. john’s, newfoundland |
publishDate |
2013 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/10393/26140 |
geographic |
Canada |
geographic_facet |
Canada |
genre |
Newfoundland |
genre_facet |
Newfoundland |
op_relation |
http://hdl.handle.net/10393/26140 |
_version_ |
1766106518068920320 |