Gendering Religious Reflexivity in Minority Groups: The Case of Pakistani Canadian Muslims

• In Event: 2166 - Section on Racial and Ethnic Minorities Refereed Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable 100min: Table 8: Racialization & Muslims

Abstract

In this paper, I demonstrate how the perception of threats to the minority group that participants belong to pushes them towards religious orthodoxy, which in turn reinforces orthodox approaches to gender. Drawing on theories of racialization and gender, I explore how divergent approaches to religion originate in natal family experiences and create separate pathways through which participants experience contrary perceptions of racialization, which in turn create gendered religious reflexivities. Contrasting orthodox reflexive participants with heterodox reflexive participants, I reveal how participants are pushed towards specific approaches to religious reflexivity based on how they (1) experience natal family ethnic retention, (2) perceive religious based discrimination, especially regarding their faith as under threat, and (3) undertake critical engagement of religion in a religious-minority setting. I utilize a sample of Pakistani Canadian Muslims to parse out differences between orthodox and heterodox reflexivity. Orthodox reflexive Muslims engage in daily rituals centered on the five pillars, imagine a distinct difference between “Pakistani” and “Canadian” Islam and clearly indicate they think the latter superior, and express misogynistic masculine gender performance (even if they identify as women). Contrastingly, heterodox reflexive Muslims engage in fluid spiritual practices rather than regimented practices (e.g., the five pillars), deny differences in broad strokes between “Pakistani” and “Canadian” Islam, though some indicate the former may be better, and express fluid gender performance with an appreciate of femininity (even if they identify as men). For both heterodox and orthodox reflexive Muslims, the gendered religious practices inform their marital relations and parenting approaches.

Author

• Sarah Shah, University of Toronto