This dissertation asks how Muslims in north India today understand four paradoxical aspects of Sufi saint shrine traditions. The shrines of Sufi saints are sometimes regarded as apolitical, sacred, all-inclusive, and anti-elite religious spaces. At the same time, they are sites that are politicized, illegally bought and sold as commercial real estate, fuel for Islamic sectarian divisions, and often controlled by upper-caste Muslim elites. Based on the analysis of historical archival materials and twelve months of ethnographic fieldwork in Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh), this dissertation argues that shrines are sites that straddle the dīn-duniyā distinction in Islam. Dīn (understood as “religion” in the modern period) is the atemporal, immaterial domain of true spirituality, whereas duniyā (“world”) is the realm of this-worldly material concerns and temporal impermanence. As sites imbued with the ethereal barakah (love of God manifest as the power of a blessing) of Sufi saints that aid individuals in drawing near to God by transcending “worldly” desires and also material commodities that are aggressively competed over by adversarial stakeholders (e.g., the state, real estate mafias, sectarian rivals), these shrines are paradoxically both of dīn and of duniyā. When asked how one can differentiate between dīn and duniyā—for example, when a Sufi politician is acting a religious manner or in a worldly manner—many of my interviewees explained that one can distinguish between these two domains based on the material presence of money. In this dissertation, I argue that the concept of money (paisā; also, “money” in English) acts as a symbol to help Muslims in Lucknow navigate this paradoxical quality. By attributing to the materiality of money those aspect of shrine operations associated with duniyā, interviewees effectively identified the boundary line dividing dīn from duniyā, thereby resolving the ostensibly contradictory nature of, for example, the politicization of an apolitical space. As a key signifier in the broader neoliberal context of Lucknow and the global politics of Sufism, money is an important concept by which Muslims make sense of the social, economic, and political complexities of Muslim life in the north India.

Islamophobia and misconceptions or negative portrayal of Muslims have led Muslims in Western societies being discriminated by people who hold religious and racial prejudice. Against this backdrop, Muslim communities in Britain run a national campaign called “Visit My Mosque”. This thesis explores whether the campaign follows the three variables of social movements: political opportunities, mobilising structures, and framing processes to take shape and emerge. Close examination to data, collected from interviews with four Muslim activists, reveals themes which point to the variables. The regional political context in Europe following the terrorists attack at the office of Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris triggers activists in Britain to launch the “Visit My Mosque” campaign. The political climate provides an opportunity for Muslims to take collective action. The pressure on Muslim communities, as a result of Islamophobia and negative portrayal of Muslims by some sections of the media, provides narratives to transform grievances into action. And finally, the campaign emerges due to the presence of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) which facilitates the campaign and provides support to networks of participating mosques. These findings may offer more understanding into the study of social movements in general and religious activism in particular.

This research project, based on qualitative fieldwork undertaken in Edinburgh between 2011 and 2013, explores the ways in which Scottish Muslims have conceptualised and operationalised Muslimness in negotiation of and adaptation to the surrounding social, cultural and political environment. Using Edinburgh as a case study and 9/11 as an important historical reference point, this project analyses the transformations and developments of individual and collective Muslimness within a national and local context influenced by the global, social and political responses to the tragic terrorist attacks that took place in the USA and, subsequently, in Europe. As a whole, this thesis maintains that Muslimness in Scotland has undergone a transformation over the past decade, a transformation which is still ongoing, in which the focus on Islam has increased within both the Muslim community and broader society. At the individual level, this thesis shows that Muslim identities are dialectically shaped at the interplay between macro-structurally shaped sociopolitical understandings of Islam and micro-level, daily conceptualisations of self within the context of intergenerational changes, global and local Islamic affiliations and Scottish cultural influences. Nation, religion, ethnicity, culture and ideology intermingle to shape fluid, reactive, expressive, performed and developmental identities that are adapted to, and played out within, the local Scottish context. These same elements inform the ways in which Muslim communitarianism has been ‘done’ in Edinburgh in the wake of the post-9/11 global, national and local (often securitised) reconceptualisations of Muslimness. As a network of collective diversity based on broad religious homogeneity, relative cultural similarity and variable ethnic diversity, Edinburgh’s Muslim community has developed divergent trajectories as a consequence of intergenerational changes and varying social, political and institutional attitudes towards Islam. While airports seem to be the major loci for the socially interacted stigmatisation of Muslims, Edinburgh appears to maintain relatively modest, albeit emotionally impactful, levels of daily discrimination towards people of Islamic faith within a context of heightened negative labelling of visible Muslimness.

When is an attack perceived as terrorism? Anecdotally, violent events in the media are more often labeled terrorism when the perpetrator is Muslim. The media has profound effects on the public’s perception of issues such as terrorism. However, public views on labeling terrorism have not been tested empirically. This research aims to explore how the public perceives a violent event depending on the context. Using a 2 (Muslim vs. Christian perpetrator) x2 (male vs. female perpetrator) x2 (unknown vs. political motive) experimental design, participants were presented with varying conditions of an attack. They were asked to report their perceptions of the attack and perpetrator, as well as their attitudes towards different policies. Findings show that attacks with Muslim perpetrators were more likely to be labeled terrorism, and the terrorism label is correlated with support for policies negatively affecting Muslims.

In many European countries, despite decades of learning about the risks of discrimination and the conflicts associated with it, discrimination against minorities persists. Many have criticized European governments for not doing enough to challenge the negative stereotypes and prejudices against minority groups, especially in education and employment. In this thesis, Muslim minority groups in Bulgaria, France, and the Netherlands will be used as case studies to explore the varying dynamics underlying this discrimination and strategies that can be implemented to overcome discrimination. This thesis will recommend a series of policy approaches in areas such as civic integration, education reform, anti-discrimination law, and monitoring and evaluation to help reduce minority discrimination European countries.

The aim of this research is to investigate the extent to which human rights in Islam corresponds with the international schemes of human rights despite its "cultural particularities". This thesis investigates the right to freedom of faith in light of the main textual sources in Islamic Shariah focusing on the concept of apostasy. To put the study in context, the research traces the history of human rights in both the Islamic and Western perspectives.

The Uighur issue is of vital regional and global security importance to China. Although minority separatists are not well armed and seem to be largely disorganized, the violence poses a very real threat to China's ability to develop Xinjiang. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s behavior toward its Muslims has received renewed Western attention in the aftermath of 9/11. China's Uighurs have responded to CCP policies with violence and separatist activity, but the Hui (ethnic Chinese who are Muslim) have reacted with relatively high levels of accommodation. Some have blamed Uighur separatism on external influences (such as transnational terror) and Islam. However, the puzzle is, why do the Uighurs engage in separatism where the Hui do not? This study contributes to existing literature by directly comparing the Uighurs and Hui in order to determine the reasons behind Uighur separatism and Hui accommodation. This thesis argues that the Uighurs and Hui have faced different social and economic realities which have led to different perceptions of inequality and thus, different reactions to CCP policy. Also, unlike Uighur ethnic identity, Hui identity stems from and is compatible with the PRC and Chinese society. This study uses primary sources including interviews with Uighurs, Hui and Han Chinese conducted in western China during June and July of 2006.

Marriage is an important phenomenon that occurs in most societies across the world. Within the Islamic belief system, marriage is regarded as a sacred union and is obligatory on all Muslim people. This qualitative study explored the perceptions that eight young Muslim South African adults have regarding marriage, using semistructured interviews. The data was analysed by following a thematic content analysis framework which highlighted aspects such as the extent to which participants ascribed to their religious beliefs regarding marriage, any societal influences that may have shaped their views on marriage as well as the factors they believed lead to the success as well as the breakdown of marriages. From the results, it was evident that young Muslim South African adults had positive views on marriage, and expected to get married at some point in their lives. This was primarily due to their religious Islamic backgrounds and family upbringings. Moreover, the results indicated that young Muslim adults are more flexible with regard to engaging in pre-marital romantic relationships, yet continued to hold marriage in high regard. Participants outlined factors such as teamwork from spouses, trust, commitment, understanding, honesty as well as communication between spouses as integral in achieving and maintaining a successful marriage. These perceptions are discussed in relation to findings from other studies. The need for pre-marital programmes for young Muslim adults is highlighted.

La perception de l'islam dans les deux pays s'inscrit dans deux contextes historiques très différents, qui ont forgé des systèmes de contraintes et de ressources propres. Les dynamiques de ces contextes sont de deux natures, endogène et exogène. Endogène, d'abord, pour l'histoire migratoire et les conditions d'installation spécifiques des populations musulmanes dans les deux pays. Les dynamiques exogènes découlent de la prise en charge par les autorités publiques. En analysant l'islam sous ce prisme multidimensionnel, cette thèse sert trois objectifs respectivement épistémologique, méthodologique et heuristique. D'un point de vue théorique, la thèse montre que la perception de l'islam par les partis politiques illustre la nécessité d'articuler des processus de surdétermination structurelle et des modalités d'objectivation dans l'approche sociologique. En termes pratiques, cela implique l'exploration de nouvelles manières de trianguler les outils qualitatifs et quantitatifs pour combiner les dimensions microsociologiques, mésosociologiques et macrosociologiques, de même que diachronicité et synchronicité des constats empiriques. Ce faisant, la comparaison examine comment deux "types" de traditions légales-politiques ont modelé différentes réponses à la question de l'intégration des musulmans dans les cadres cognitifs et axiologiques du pays, et permet de mettre en perspective des discours et des représentations sur la période 2001-2015. La thèse montre la pertinence limitée de dualismes traditionnels comme l'opposition droite/gauche sur cette question et suggère des postures alternatives pour dépasser ces biais / The perception of Islam in France and Australia revolves around two very different socio-historical contexts, which produced differentiated systems of constraints and resources for political parties. The structuring dynamics of these contexts are both endogenous and exogenous. The endogenous ones include the migratory history and the specific conditions of settlement of Muslim populations in both countries. The exogenous dynamics ensue from the public authorities' management. In analysing Islam under this multidimensional prism, this thesis serves three purposes: an epistemological one, a methodological one and a heuristic one. From a theoretical point of view, it shows that the perception of Islam by political parties epitomises the necessity of articulating structural overdetermination processes and modalities of objectivation in the sociological approach. In practical terms, this involves exploring new ways to triangulate qualitative and quantitative tools for combining microsociological, mesosociological and macrosociological dimensions, as well as the diachronicity and synchronicity of empirical observations. In doing so, the comparison examines how two "types" of legal-political traditions have shaped different answers to the same question of integrating Muslims within the axiological and cognitive frameworks of the country, and further enables putting into perspective party discourses and representations on the period 2001-2015. It shows the limited relevance of traditional dualisms like the Left/Right opposition on this issue and suggests alternative analytical stances to overcome their biases

Thesis advisor: Natana DeLong-Bas / This thesis analyzes intimate partner violence (IPV, also referred to as domestic violence) in Muslim communities in the U.S. from a legal, psychological, and theological perspective. IPV is a global issue—it is in no way confined to one ethnicity or religion. However, every community has its own set of challenges to face when dealing with IPV. This thesis assesses the risk factors that may be present in Muslim communities in the U.S.— risk factors include behaviors and beliefs that may harm victims of IPV as they seek help, support, and safety. It is equally important to assess sources of strength found within the community that help victims fight oppression, re-gain self-esteem, live in safety, and face their experiences of IPV with a resilient spirit. This thesis is a resource for all advocates who work with Muslim IPV victims and will enable them to use an Islamic framework to help bring healing and restoration to survivors of IPV. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Arts and Sciences Honors Program. / Discipline: Theology.