Book on Muslim Youth Identities, Co-Authored by St Mary’s Academic, Published

Troubling Muslim Youth Identities: Nation, Religion, Gender published by Palgrave Macmillan, and co-authored by academic at St Mary’s University, Twickenham Dr Kathleen Fincham, alongside Professor Máiréad Dunne, Dr Naureen Durrani, and Dr Barbara Crossouard all from the University of Sussex, has been published.

The publication will be of interest to students and scholars in the fields of development studies, social and cultural studies, gender, geography, education and peace and conflict studies.

 The book explores the production of Muslim youth identities, with respect to nation, religion and gender in Pakistan, Senegal, Nigeria and Lebanon. As Muslim-majority, post-colonial states with significant youth populations, these countries offer critical case studies for the exploration of the different grammars of youth identities, and ‘trouble’ the perceived homogeneity of Muslims in local and global imaginaries.

The authors offer rigorous and detailed accounts of the local, situated and contingent ways in which youth articulate their identities and sense of belonging, and the book reflects on the importance of affect, belonging and affiliation in the construction of youth narratives of identity as well as highlighting their political and contested nature.

Dr Jordan Naidoo from The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) commends the book for analysis that will help ‘challenge the current discourse around global citizenship education that has a tendency towards simplistic prescriptions linked to curriculum, measurement and indicators’. Moreover, Professor Cécile Laborde, University of Oxford, praises the book as ‘an extremely valuable resource for anyone seeking to go beyond well-worn clichés about global Islam’.

Prof Philip Booth, Director of Research and Public Engagement at St Mary’s, commented, “St Mary’s is rightly very proud of Kathleen’s contribution to this important topic.

We are delighted that our undergraduate and postgraduate students will continue to benefit by learning from experts, such as Kathleen, who are at the cutting-edge of research into developing trends, and pertinent international topics.”