A Multi-sited Ethnography of Non-Conforming North American Muslims

FAIN: FT-270308-20

Katrina Daly Thompson
University of Wisconsin, Madison (Madison, WI 53715-1218)

Research and writing leading to an ethnographic monograph on the use of language (both Arabic and English) to create communities of nonconforming Muslims in North America.

Muslims on the Margins tells the ethnographic story of a multi-sited community coalescing around creative (re)interpretations of the Qur’an, critical questioning of taken-for-granted Muslim norms, and radical inclusion of those who are ‘queer’ in various ways. The book's humanizing, ethnographic, and sociolinguistic approach centers on the voices and interpretations of LGBT and gender-nonconforming Muslims and their allies collected over a 45-month period in North American face-to-face and international online groups that label themselves “progressive” or “inclusive.” By examining how eclectic participants form small and large-scale communities, learn and teach one another the norms of these communities, and find meaning in their practices, the book will lead to deeper understanding of Muslim diversity, overturn stereotypes that Islam and queerness are incompatible, and encourage appreciation for both similarities and differences across religious beliefs.

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