"People Are Enemies to What They Don't Know" Managing Stigma and Anti-Muslim Stereotypes in a Turkish Community Center

《"People Are Enemies to What They Don't Know" Managing Stigma and Anti-Muslim Stereotypes in a Turkish Community Center》

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关键字: stigma management; Islam; cultural education; dialogue; critical race theory; GROUP IDENTIFICATION; UNITED-STATES; IDENTITY; AMERICAN; ISLAM; RACE; WOMEN; ARAB; DISCRIMINATION; NEGOTIATIONS

作者单位: [Paul, Crystal] Louisiana State Univ, Sociol, Baton Rouge, LA 70803 USA. [Becker, Sarah] Louisiana State Univ, Sociol & Womens & Gender Studies, Baton Rouge, LA 70803 USA. Paul, C (reprint author), Louisiana State Univ, Dept Sociol, 126 Stubbs Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803 USA. E-Mail: cpaul6@lsu.edu

摘要: In the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, anti-Muslim discourse and sentiment has become pervasive in the West. Using a collaborative ethnographic approach, we observe how participants at a Turkish Community Center (TCC) cultivate stigma management strategies against the cultural backdrop of post-9/11 anti-Muslim stereotypes. In our analysis, we use Goffman's work on stigma and critical race theory to explore the socially embedded nature of stigmatization processes for Turkish Muslims in a local community center. Our findings reveal how aspects of Turkish culture and Islam, together with a structural context that facilitates collective stigma management, allow TCC participants to effectively manage stigma and combat anti-Muslim stereotypes. Turkish participants use the practice of dialogue to prioritize secular identity(ies) through cultural education, normalize the Muslim self in conversation about religion, and embody a gendered presentation of Islam and Turkish culture. While facilitating individual and collective resilience for TCC participants in the face of stigmatization and pervasive anti-Muslim sentiment, these practices also contribute to the reproduction of broader patterns of racial, cultural, and gender inequality.