Guest Editorial

Abstract

The papers included in this special issue (and the one following) grew out of contributions presented on the panel “Ethnography, Misrepresentations of Islam, and Advocacy” at the 116th Annual Meeting of the American Anthropological Association (AAA) held in Washington, DC during late November and early December 2017. Meryem Zaman and I, the panel co-organizers, felt motivated to draw upon our expertise as anthropologists to respond to the widespread attacks on Islam and Muslims by American politicians, government officials, and media outlets. We called on our fellow social scientists to draw upon their ethnographic experiences to correct misrepresentations of Islam and to advocate for Muslims who are increasingly threatened by anti-Muslim hate and violence. Robert Hefner, James Edmonds, Alisa Perkins, Yamil Avivi, and Katrina Thompson joined us as presenters on the AAA panel. Meryem and I were keenly aware that doing ethnography brings researchers into interpersonal relationships, interactions, and dialogue with Muslims. We participate in protests with Muslim youth, discussions with Sufi sheikhs, tea parties with members of Islamic revival movements, multi-religious prayer vigils, advocacy projects with Latina Muslims, masjid fundraisers, and worship with queer Muslims. Moreover, as social scientists we are trained to carefully consider the ways we represent others as we write ethnographic reports and vignettes. Equipped with knowledge and insights gained from their ethnographic experiences, contributors to these special issues have tried to challenge misrepresentations of Islam and ...