Journal of Muslims in Europe 

About: Journal of Muslims in Europe is an academic journal published by Brill. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Islam & Politics. It has an ISSN identifier of 2211-792X. Over the lifetime, 173 publications have been published receiving 615 citations.

Global Diyanet and Multiple Networks: Turkey's New Presence in the Balkans

Abstract: Turkey’s relations with the Muslim communities of Southeast Europe have changed significantly since the early 2000s, when Turkish actors largely replaced Wahhabi and Salafi missionaries. This paper discusses four domains of the new Turkish presence: The intellectual and political networks in the Balkans around Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu; non-conventional foreign policy actors of the Turkish state such as the Turkish Development Agency (TIKA) and the Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet); and finally Islamic grassroots organisations, such as the Gulen movement. United by a common imaginary of neo-Ottomanism’, these actors have contributed to the strengthening of the established Islamic communities and to the visibility of the Ottoman tradition of Hanafi Islam in the Balkans.

Muslims Denouncing Violent Extremism: Competing Essentialisms of Islam in Dutch Public Debate

Abstract: This article explores statements made by Dutch Muslims against violent extremism, and explains these statements in the context of the growing pressure exerted on Muslim minorities in Europe to present themselves as peaceful and loyal citizens. It problematises the often-repeated call on Muslims to denounce terrorism, and reveals that Dutch Muslims have condemned violent extremism more often than is commonly acknowledged. However, essentialist statements about Islam as a violent religion often provoke competing essentialisms of Islam as a ‘religion of peace’. In analysing such statements as ‘performative performances’, the author demonstrates how public debate about violent extremism feeds into Muslim perceptions of what Islam ‘really’ is.

Exploring the Impact of Islamophobia on Visible Muslim Women Victims: A British Case Study

Abstract: This article presents the empirical findings from a British-based project that sought to explore the nature and impact of ‘street-level’ Islamophobia on women who are visibly recognisable as Muslim—hereafter referred to as visible Muslim women in this article. Drawing on the findings from in-depth interviews with twenty visible Muslim women, this article highlights how despite the fact that such Islamophobia is largely manifested in low-level ways it has significant impacts on the everyday lives of its victims as also the way in which their identities are both perceived and defined. In doing so, this article considers how the experience of Islamophobia not only affects the daily life of these women and their families, but also affects their sense of belonging to British society while making them re-evaluate how they feel about being British.

Beyond the domestication of Islam in Europe: A reflection on past and future research on Islam in European societies

Abstract: Within two decades Islam in European societies has developed from an issue of minor academic interest into one of the fastest growing research fields. The main reason for this is no doubt the emergence of new regimes of governmentality in most countries in Europe that emanate from the complex relationship between integration, and political priorities of security and national identity, the ‘domestication of Islam’. The narrowing down of research foci in the field of Islam in Europe has caused a serious academic neglect particularly where it concerns the entanglement of Islamic practices with everyday life, the religious engagements, expressions and experiences among young people, and the transformation and reconfiguration of Islamic authority. These three fields are of course closely connected, but also have their specific features and dynamics. The article explores these fields of research beyond the domestication paradigm.

'You Need to Present a Counter-Message': The Racialisation of Dutch Muslims and Anti-Islamophobia Initiatives

Abstract: Dutch researchers and activists have drawn attention to the huge number of Islamophobic events taking place; ranging from degrading remarks to violent attacks. In this article I look at the work of anti-Islamophobia initiatives within the broader framework of the racialisation of Muslims. Firstly, I argue that racialisation interpellates Dutch Muslims as an unacceptable “Other.” Secondly, I illustrate how anti-Islamophobia activism is informed by, and at the same time challenges, the racialisation of Muslims. In so doing I want to contribute to the debates about how Muslims are able to claim a ‘Muslim voice’ in a context in which racialisation seems all-encompassing.1