MUSLIMS IN DIASPORA

This course is an exploration of the varieties of Muslim experiences in Europe and North America, with particular attention to local debates and controversies focused on Muslims, especially post-9/11.  How do these controversies expose tensions in prevailing notions of cultural citizenship and nationhood? How do such tensions affect the life possibilities of Muslims in diasporic communities?  What perspectives can the varied situations of Muslim minorities contribute to understandings of identity, ethnicity, and diaspora?  How can an examination of Muslim practices denaturalize Western understandings of the notions of religion, secularism, and the nature of human rights? The course will include primary sources throughout, including the Quran and Hadith, writings by important Muslim thinkers, newspapers, and other media sources to be analyzed as primary sources.