Muslim Europe or Euro-Islam Politics, Culture, and Citizenship in the Age of Globalisation by Nezar AlSayyad and Manuel Castells eds. (Oxford: Lexington Books, 2002. 204 pages.)

Abstract

The chapters comprising this volume arise out of a conference held in 1998:
"Islam and the Changing fdentity of Europe." The conference organizers,
frustrated with what they regarded as the insular nature of European and
Middle Eastern area studies research, wanted to examine Islamic identity
and citizenship from a broader interdisciplinary perspective. This volume
therefore brings together specialist contributors from the social sciences,
political science, Middle Eastern studies, and international relations, to
name just some of the disciplines represented.
The editors set the scene by exploring changing realities and percep­
tions of identity within Europe. They note that in some places, the fact of
religious and ethnic diversity has yet to be fully acknowledged and accommodated
as part of a European identity that, historically, was forged largely
in opposition to ''the other" - especially the Muslim "other." As a consequence,
Muslim populations in Europe find themselves part of, and to some
extent a cause of, a complex process of European identity deconstruction
and reconstruction from above and below. The presence of Islam within
Europe's borders is forcing a reexamination of what it means to be
European, and raising profound and challenging questions about issues of
citizenship, participation in civil society, political recognition, inclusion,
and exclusion.
Each contributor approaches the discussion with a common desire to
avoid reductionism, essentialism, and a view of Muslims as members of
homogeneous monolithic communities. Indeed, the diversity within Muslim
communities is seen as part of an important dynamic that will help to forge
what Bassam Tibi calls "Euro-f slam," a form of Islam that is acceptable
(without compromises) to both Muslim migrants (and converts) and secular
European societies. Just as there are forms of Islam - each absolutely
"authentic" - that are distinctive in Africa, Malaysia, or the Arabian
Peninsula, Tibi calls for developing a form of Islam that is adjusted to
European society and the values of individual human rights and liberal
democracy ...