5. Exposing Injustice: Challenging Discrimination & Dominant Narratives

2021 ◽  
pp. 236-295
Author(s):  
Daryl Davis ◽  
Charlotte Webb ◽  
Magnus Ag ◽  
Os Keyes
Keyword(s):  
Dominant Narratives

Young Muslim America

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muna Ali
Keyword(s):  
Public Discourse ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Cultural Citizenship ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Muslim American ◽  
Daily Lives ◽  
Community Culture ◽  
Identity Studies ◽  
Anthropology Of Islam ◽  
Dominant Narratives

This book explores the identities, perspectives, and roles of the second and subsequent generations of Muslim Americans of both immigrant and convert backgrounds. As these younger Muslims come of age, and as distant as they are from historical processes that shaped their parents’ generations, how do they view themselves and each other? What role do they play in the current chapter of Islam in a post-9/11 America? Will they be able to cross intra-community divides and play a pivotal role in shaping their community? Culture figures prominently in the discussions about and among Muslims and is centered on four dominant narratives: 1) culture is thought to be the underlying cause of an alleged “identity crisis,” 2) it presumably contaminates a “pure/true” Islam, 3) it is the cause for all that divides Muslim American immigrants and converts, which could be remedied by creating an American Muslim community and culture, and 4) some Americans fear an “Islamization of America” through a Muslim cultural takeover. In this ethnographic study, Muna Ali explores these questions through these four dominant narratives, which are both part of the public discourse and themes that emerged from interviews, a survey, social and traditional media, and participant observation. Situating these questions and narratives in identity studies in a pluralistic yet racialized society, as well as in the anthropology of Islam and in the process and meaning of cultural citizenship, Ali examines how younger Muslims see themselves and their community, how they negotiate fault lines of ethnicity, race, class, gender, and religious interpretation within their communities, and how their faith informs their daily lives and how they envision a future for themselves in post-911 America.

THE POLITICAL ECOLOGY OF ‘INCURSIONS’: LIVESTOCK, PROTECTED AREAS AND SOCIO-ECOLOGICAL DYNAMICS IN THE MARA REGION OF KENYA

Africa ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 84 (4) ◽  
pp. 614-637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bilal Butt
Keyword(s):  
Political Ecology ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Land Tenure ◽  
Domestic Animals ◽  
Supporting Evidence ◽  
Management Policies ◽  
Material Conditions ◽  
Dominant Narratives ◽  
Mara Region

ABSTRACTAcross the world, the presence of domestic animals in protected areas (PAs) is considered an ‘incursion’ that threatens the economic and ecological viability of these areas. Dominant narratives about incursions inaccurately describe the relationships between people and PAs because they lack adequate contextualization. In this paper, I rely on a political-ecological framework to argue for an alternative narrative. Through a case study from a PA in southern Kenya, I demonstrate how incursions are instead modern co-productions that arise from the intersections between changing political geographies of resource control and variable animal geographies of resource utilization – thus clarifying a long-standing debate about the presence of domestic animals in PAs. I rely on direct empirical and supporting evidence from place-based studies to illustrate the spatial and temporal differences in resource access strategies of wildlife and livestock within and outside the PA. I contrast these against changing land tenure and resource management policies to highlight how livestock movements into PAs are patterned in ways that reflect the changing nature of PA management, the material conditions of the landscape, and the agency of animals. Through these investigations, this paper provides a more accurate and nuanced explanation for livestock movements into PAs.

An Ethos of Deconstruction in Multi-Cultural and Multi-Religious Contexts

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 368-385
Author(s):  
Johann-Albrecht Meylahn
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Values ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Local Context ◽  
Traditional Practices ◽  
Ethical Norm ◽  
Ethical Conflicts ◽  
Textual Space ◽  
Alternative Practices ◽  
Dominant Narratives

The essay will focus on the role of Derrida’s différance in opening a space for an alternative ethos in religious or cultural plural contexts. In postcolonial contexts individual human rights, as the universal norm, is challenged by religious and cultural traditional practices. Some of the traditional practices are incompatible with individual rights and this is aggravated in a postmodern context as there is no universal meta-narrative to arbitrate between the conflicting practices. The result of this conflict is often a stalemate between the universal rights of individuals, often marginal individuals (children, homosexuals and women), over against religious and cultural values and traditions of the particular local context or religious or cultural group. The question this article focuses on is how deconstruction can help to move beyond such ethical conflicts. The article proposes that deconstruction can offer a way of reading, interpreting and understanding these cultural practices within their contexts, by taking the various practices (texts) within their contexts seriously as there is no beyond the text. This reading creates an inter-textual space between the various dominant narratives for the emergence of an alternative ethos. This emerging ethos is not presented as the ethical norm, but rather as an open, expectant attitude towards all the texts involved. This attitude can maybe open the space for alternative practices beyond the stalemate in multi-religious and multi-cultural contexts.

“Make Sure You See This”: Counternarratives of Multilingual Black Girls’ Language and Literacy Practices

2021 ◽  
pp. 238133772110382
Author(s):  
Vivian E. Presiado ◽  
Brittany L. Frieson
Keyword(s):  
Bilingual Education ◽  
Literacy Practices ◽  
Black Girls ◽  
Language And Literacy ◽  
Social Worlds ◽  
Bilingual Programs ◽  
Daily Lives ◽  
Critical Scholarship ◽  
The Rich ◽  
Dominant Narratives

Critical scholarship in bilingualism and bilingual education has documented multiple ways that the rich language and literacy practices of Black children participating in bilingual education programs are often erased in favor of dominant narratives about the literacy practices of their White Mainstream English–speaking peers. Utilizing Black girl literacies, raciolinguistics, and translanguaging as theoretical orientations, and counternarratives as an analytical tool, this article presents a cross-case analysis of two ethnographic case studies that explored how multilingual Black American girls enrolled in an elementary dual-language bilingual education program employed their literacies to navigate their social worlds, by challenging raciolinguistic ideologies and hegemonic systems of oppression in their daily lives. It also presents the nuanced nature of multilingual Black girls’ literacies and the various roles that they serve, which are often ignored in multilingual spaces. The need to learn from multilingual Black girls’ counternarratives is emphasized by engaging in a deeper sociopolitical understanding of the complex issues that Black girls face on a regular basis, which are often extended in bilingual spaces. Specifically, we call for educators to create critical translanguaging spaces that honor multidimensional counternarratives and intimately connect with the unique epistemologies and literacies that Black girls in bilingual programs bring to the table.

scholarly journals Human Trafficking and Media Myths: Federal Funding, Communication Strategies, and Canadian Anti-Trafficking Programs

2014 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann De Shalit ◽  
Robert Heynen ◽  
Emily Van der Meulen
Keyword(s):  
Human Trafficking ◽  
Communication Strategies ◽  
Federal Funding ◽  
Labour Migration ◽  
Visual Content ◽  
Governmental Organization ◽  
Government Communication ◽  
Nous Concluons ◽  
Dominant Narratives

This article looks at debates over human trafficking by considering the linkages between federal funding, media myths, and non-governmental organization (NGO) activities and by examining the textual and visual content of NGO websites. By highlighting the ways in which NGOs echo government communication strategies, we argue that these debates are constrained not only by the current political terrain, but also by an ingrained and problematic anti-trafficking discourse. Further, we interrogate the language and emotive appeals of NGOs that receive federal funding for anti-trafficking programming through the exploration of counter-discourses developed by both scholars and independent organizations that are critical of dominant narratives and policies. We conclude by suggesting that alternative narratives and media strategies are needed for the development of more nuanced and authentic conceptions of labour, migration, and sex work.Cet article examine les débats sur la traite des personnes en considérant des liens entre le financement fédéral, les mythes des médias, et les organisations nongouvernementales (ONG) et en examinant le contenu textuel et visuel des sites web des ONG. En analysant la façon dont les activités des ONG reflètent les stratégies de communication du gouvernement, nous soutenons que ces débats sont limités non seulement par le terrain politique actuel, mais aussi par un discours anti-trafic enraciné et problématique. En outre, nous interrogeons le langage et les appels émotifs des ONG qui reçoivent des fonds du gouvernement fédéral pour la programmation pour la lutte contre la traite à travers l’exploration de contre-discours développés par les universitaires et les organisations indépendantes critiques de récits et politiques dominants. Nous concluons en suggérant que les récits alternatifs et des stratégies médiatiques sont nécessaires pour le dévelopment des conceptions plus nuancées et authentiques du travail, de la migration, et du travail du sexe.

scholarly journals The Similar-Sounding Surnames of Haplogroup R-BY140757

2020 ◽  
Vol 2021 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mike Fitzpatrick ◽  
Ian Fitzpatrick
Keyword(s):  
Critical Review ◽  
Haplotype Analysis ◽  
Dna Analysis ◽  
Norman Conquest ◽  
Dominant Narratives

Y-DNA analysis is a remarkable method that can inform patrilineal genealogies, both ancient, and modern. Applied here to facilitate a critical review of Branan pedigrees, an analysis of haplogroup R-BY140757 results in a deep questioning of the dominant narratives of the O’Braonáin Uí Dhuach (O’Brenan of Idough). What results is a disruption of those narratives that is total. The O’Braonáin Uí Dhuach, held by Ossorian historians to share descent from Cearbhall, King of Osraí (843-888 AD), we argue, are not Osraighe, but are an Uí Failghi tribe – this based on the ultimate authority of Dubhaltach Mac Fhirbhisigh. Hence, Y-DNA connections between Branans, or those with similar-sounding surnames, and related others, are a false trail for those who claim descent from Cearbhall. Once Mac Fhirbhisigh is embraced, and the erroneous pedigrees of the O’Braonáin Uí Dhuach are set aside, the origins of men with Branan, and similar-sounding surnames, of haplogroup R-BY140757, can be correctly determined. And, based on Y-DNA haplotype analysis, it is considered those origins are not with the O’Braonáin Uí Dhuach, or any Irish clan. Rather, haplotype R-BY140757 appears to have originated from a family who settled near Braham, in Suffolk, after the Norman conquest of England. The key figure in the appearance of R-BY140757 pedigrees in Éire is Sir Robert de Braham, who was Sheriff of Kilkenny ca. 1250 AD.

scholarly journals Translingualism as Creative Revolt: Rewriting Dominant Narratives of Translingual Literature

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah Tate Williams
Keyword(s):  
Driving Force ◽  
Mexican American ◽  
Linguistic Diversity ◽  
Easy Access ◽  
Hybrid Identity ◽  
Dual Identity ◽  
American Author ◽  
Dominant Narratives ◽  
Identity Expression ◽  
Meaningful Interaction

This essay traces the global development of translingual literature in order to confront the pervasive myth of the monolingual paradigm which insists that meaningful interaction can only occur in one language at a time in a given context. This paper shows that this Eurocentric mindset persists in translingual literature, negatively affecting critical accounts of translingual authors whose work falls outside of monolingual parameters. It offers a more appropriate account of a few of these authors, who use their writing to actively work against the monolingual paradigm and promote linguistic diversity. These authors employ translingualism as a necessary tool of identity expression, refusing to reshape themselves to the standards of a monolingual cultural purity. By prioritizing their own hybrid voices, translingual authors put the onus of comprehension on their readers, inverting the paradigm of monolingualism by denying easy access to the monolingual reader. It will focus especially on Mexican-American author Sandra Cisneros, whose hybrid identity is a driving force in her work, and who uses translingualism especially in her poetry, to fully express her dual identity.

Damaged, Deficient or Determined? Deconstructing Narratives in Family Therapy

1996 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 123-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Kottler ◽  
Judith Soal
Keyword(s):  
Family Therapy ◽  
South African ◽  
Analytic Approach ◽  
Narrative Approach ◽  
Family Unit ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
The Family ◽  
Truth Claims ◽  
Dominant Narratives ◽  
Objective Existence

This study attempts to challenge the prevailing understanding of family problems within the field of family therapy. Drawing on post-structuralist approaches to knowledge, truth and power, we suggest that the problems experienced by the families cannot be seen to have an objective existence, or to be internal to the ‘family unit’. Rather, the problem-saturated narratives presented by families are shaped by an investment in socially constructed knowledges which ascribe meaning to experience. A discourse analytic approach is used to explore the dominant narratives of a coloured South African family presenting for family therapy. Discourses of civilization, ideal mothers and families, and therapy are considered to have informed these narratives. An analysis of the implications of these discursive investments, and the contradictions within and between these discourses, is conducted. This analysis suggests the manner in which this family is subjugated and rendered damaged and deficient through an aspiration to unobtainable and contradictory ideals. The study also examines the way in which the truth claims of these discourses are challenged by a therapist adopting a narrative approach to family therapy.

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