The Center for Global Policy in Washington, DC recently released a new report on Muslims in Western Europe and the United States. Co-authored by Myriam François and Bethsabée Souris, the report compares the integration experiences of Muslims in the UK, US, and France, drawing out lessons learnt and policy recommendations from those diverse experiences.
Religion & Diplomacy had an opportunity ask François several questions via email about the findings and implications of the report. François is a senior fellow at the Center for Global Policy and freelance journalist, broadcaster, and writer with a focus on current affairs, Europe and the Middle east. What follows is a transcript of our conversation.
Religion & Diplomacy: Not to judge a book by its cover, but let’s talk first about the evocative cover of this report. It features a picture of two fashionable young Muslim women walking past an H&M in a European city. One is wearing a hijab, the other is not. The image contrasts sharply with the images often associated with the ‘Muslims in the West’ discussion—bearded men protesting in distinctly Middle Eastern or South Asian garb or women in burqas strolling through some gritty, disadvantaged neighbourhood. What does your report’s front cover tell us about Muslims in the West?
François: It probably says more about the poor state of media representations of Muslims, which unlike the real diversity we find within the community, in style, ethnicity, religiosity, etc, we tend to find a very common, angry looking lady in a face veil. I think we hoped to reflect the reality of a growing European Muslim community which is at ease with its identity and at home.
R&D: In your comparison and evaluation of the policy responses to Muslims in France, the UK, and the US, you use terms like “assimilation,” “soft assimilation,” “integration,” and “multiculturalism.” Which term best captures an optimal approach to native-born and immigrant Muslim communities?
François: The terminology in this field is highly contested and for good reason – assimilation speaks to the idea of an immigrant/foreign community expected to change itself to adapt to a fictionally static host community—the reality is of course that the process of ‘integration’ is a two-way process of mutual accomodation in which all parties shift in order to forge a new state or culture. But both terms are problematic in the context of conversations about European-born individuals who happen to be Muslim, since it ‘otherises’ them as ‘foreign’ and ‘immigrant’ largely on the basis of their skin colour, rather than their lived experience.
Multiculturalism refers very specifically to a political ideal forged in the British context but which has since largely lost favour in political circles. The optimal approach is one which provides opportunities for all members of society on an equal basis and recognises the inherently changing nature of culture.
R&D: You highlight the discrimination faced by Muslim immigrants in employment and social services. In your assessment, how much of that discrimination and marginalization is related to their “Muslimness”—and the securitized prejudices associated with Islam—versus the unfortunate reality that immigrant communities of all sorts face an uphill battle when seeking to integrate into a new country?
Myriam François. Photo credit: SOAS
François: It’s a double penalty, the immigrant penaly which you note, and which applies to immigrant groups, but in many cases we are not talking about immigrants, we are talking about europeans or americans and continuying to use the language of immigration. And the second layer of the penalty is linked to discourse around Muslims and Islam which not only sees them as a potential threat (terrorism), but also as inherently incompatbile with European ‘values’ on the basis of their religious identity. It think that does make this distinct.
R&D: You grapple with an interesting dilemma: policies and initiatives aimed at helping ‘Muslims’ can actually ironically fuel the growing perception that Muslims are a monolithic bloc that poses a unique challenge to liberal Western values. How should governments and civil society groups navigate that tension?
François: I’m not certain the term ‘Muslim’ is very helpful in policy circles actually. I’m more inclined to think the focus should be primarily on economic and social inequalities. Religion is in reality just one part of most Muslim peoples’ identity and only one part of the puzzle in understanding the challenges they face.
R&D: Relatedly, you have positive things to say about the approach to Muslims in pre-9/11 America—before the U.S. government developed its massive apparatus of Muslim engagement. Is the lesson here that less is more where it comes to fostering successful accommodation and integration of Muslims?
François: I think Muslim ‘exceptionalism’, the idea that Muslims need to be treated differently because of some ‘unique’ challenge they pose is actually deeply problematic.
R&D: One of the flashpoints in the debate about Muslims in the West is freedom of religion. On the one hand, there are some Christians who oppose the construction of mosques on the grounds that Islam is an ideological threat to religious freedom. On the other hand, there are some Muslims who push for their community’s religious freedoms but maintain decidedly un-liberal views toward non-Muslims. How do we foster greater respect for pluralism and the religious rights of all communities and individuals?
François: I think there is a tension in liberal societies more broadly in how to manage illiberal views—which incidently are not limited to some parts of Muslim communities. Is liberalism a tool to allow the articulation of a range of perspectives, including some which may be illiberal? Or is it a state ideology, as seems to have been suggested from David Cameron’s Munich speech in 2011 onwards?
Creating a sense of co-existence and community is about forging a shared identity which all members of society can identify with and I think this will necessarily begin with quite a profound reform of education.
R&D: Your own story is one of studying Islam and becoming a Muslim yourself. How has your own experience as a white European Muslim shaped how you see the obstacles and opportunities facing Muslims in the West?
François: Our subjectivities always inform our outlook, it is a delusion to think otherwise. My proximity to the subject certainly means I am very invested in understanding how best to solve the problems observed in this field.
R&D: The report has several policy recommendations, aimed particularly at the US government. In your view, which one is the most urgent or could make the biggest impact if adopted?
François: I think the hope is that governments might consider an integrated approach. There is no magic bullet. This is about a commitment to pursuing an altogether different approach to Muslim communities. What is urgent is the change in direction.
R&D: Finally, since the horrific mosque shooting in Christchurch there has been considerable praise for the manner in which New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has responded to the tragedy. What are some of the key lessons that American and European leaders can learn from her response?
François: Prime Minister Ardern distinguished herself first and foremost by an attitude of compassion for her fellow citizens’ loss and a desire to stand with, not above, the Muslim community. This is imagery we are not frequently exposed to, and which is why I believe it was so ‘surprising’ to many people. She treated Muslims as any emotionally-aware human would and responded to the incident similarly to how we might expect had it been any other group. This combination of compassion and ‘non-exceptionalism’ is what I think really distinguished her among other ‘Western’ leaders.