The Muslim in Muslim Politics

• In Event: Positionality and Reflexivity in Political Science I: The Domestic Context

Abstract

Over the last twenty years, scholars have explored the status of Muslims and Islam in Western nations and have contributed important insights. For instance, one key thread of literature has focused on Islamophobia, what it means, how it emerges, and what forms it may take (Beydoun 2018, Sheehi 2011). Another, focuses on Muslim populations and has produced empirical evidence on Muslim political behavior (Ayers 2007, Barreto and Bozonelos 2009, Choi, Gasim, and Patterson 2011, Dana, Wilcox-Archuleta, Barreto 2017), institutions (Jamal 2005, Dana, Oskooii, Barreto 2011, Cury 2016), and integration (Adida, Laitin, Valfort 2016, Dancygier 2017). Given the political salience of Muslims and Islam, such research is invaluable and timely. However, little attention has been paid to who is conducting this research, the process by which it has been produced, nor its subsequent reception in the discipline. This paper offers preliminary reflections on these topics and builds on 8 months of fieldwork conducted with Muslim communities in the United States.

Author

• Hajer Al-Faham, University of Pennsylvania