All four resources offered individual concerns relating to religion at the intersectionality of academia and sport. Kwame Anthony Appiah is a gay American British philosopher who grew up in Ghana. Simran Jeet Singh is an American Sikh professor, writer, and activist. Jaclyn Rekis is a post-doctoral fellow at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and philosopher at the University of Western Ontario, Canada and Haifaa Jawad is an Iraqi Muslim scholar of theology and religion at the University of Birmingham, U.K.
Rekis (Rekis, 2023) and Jawad’s (Jawad, 2022) articles resonated with Crenshaw’s (Crenshaw,1991) in highlighting how women are vulnerable to violence within and beyond religious groups. Rekis’ analysis of Sojourn Truth exemplified the variations of violence, from discrediting knowledge to dehumanising through rape. The case study of Truth demonstrated the inseparable strength of intersectionality across faith, race and gender, which effectively supported Rekis’ argument for including religion in Crenshaw’s list of suppressed groups. Rekis example of women understanding workplace sexual harassment emphasises how reducing opportunities for knowledge can render a woman’s experiential understanding unintelligible. Disempowerment via knowledge control related to Jawad’s observations of Muslim women in sports, where clothing regulation obstructs and prevents inclusion, which fosters misunderstandings about the Muslim faith, women and sports.
Rekis historical definitions offer depth to religion as a ‘conception of reality’(Rekis, 2023: 789) that brings together social identity and worldview in ways that Appiah’s lecture (TED, 2014) scratches the surface. Appiah’s preference for charisma means, his argument for a non-existent religion resulting from the separation of religion and science dating back to Darwin overshadows his nuanced list of faiths showing differences within each one eg Muslim, Sikh, and Shia. Appiah’s proposition of a world with ancestors and contemporary life existing together is articulated in more depth by Rekis when she suggests ‘granting credibility’ to other’s beliefs as a means of offering integrity to other ways of being, (which does not necessarily mean agreeing to an entire set of beliefs), and allows for the hearer and the knower to expand and enrich both their worldviews. (Rekis, 2023: 793)
Singh’s (Trinity, 2016) teaching approach proactively responds to what Rekis described as dominant voices such as white Christian Nationalism acting as obstacles to knowledge and influencing religious and non-religious communities to disempower and discredit other voices. (Rekis, 2023: 794) Singh invites difference into the classroom to engage constructively with arguments rather than destructively. Singh’s academic approach contradicts Rekis assertion that the secularism of academic environments fosters negative prejudices, real or anticipated however this relates to my previous post concerning how identity categorisation can lead to destructive effects of “othering”. Both these aspects could relate to UAL’s Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Annual Report showing a decline of students declaring a religion or belief, which falls from 34% to 29% between 2019/20 and 2023/24. (UAL, 2022) Teaching studio practice and theory means I am well positioned to grant credibility to other beliefs which include Muslim, Christian and Buddhism. In decolonising the theory module I’ve found students making relationships between their faith and Australian First Nations beliefs however I find students are generally reluctant to reveal their faith for fear of prejudices, which makes Rekis’ article apt. Students’ faith is often revealed through their work, which appears a space to test safety, and could provide an excellent platform for my intervention to invite difference as Singh does.
Reference list
Crenshaw, K. (1991) ‘Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity politics, and Violence against Women of Color’, Stanford Law Review, 43(6), pp. 1241–1299. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/1229039.
Jawad, H, (2022) ‘Islam, Women and Sport: The Case of Visible Muslim
Women’, LSE, 22 September. Available at: Islam, Women and Sport: The Case of Visible Muslim Women | Religion and Global Society (lse.ac.uk) (Accessed: 26 May 2024).
Rekis, J. (2023) ‘Religious Identity and Epistemic Injustice: An Intersectional Account’, Cambridge University Press, Issue 38, pp. 779-800, Available at: 10.1017/hyp.2023.86
Swim England. Guide to engaging Muslim women in swimming. Accessed 26 May. Available at: swimming.org/assets/frontier-two-resources/Guide-to-engaging-Muslim-women-in-swimming.pdf
TED (2014) Kwame Anthony Appiah: Is religion good or bad? (This is
a trick question). 16 June. Available at: Kwame Anthony Appiah: Is
religion good or bad? (This is a trick question) (youtube.com) (Accessed:
26 May 2024.
Trinity University (2016) Challenging Race, Religion, and Stereotypes in Classroom. 1 December. Available at: Challenging Race, Religion, and Stereotypes in Classroom (youtube.com) (Accessed: 26 May 2024).
UAL (2022). Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Annual Report 2022/2023.
UAL. Available at: UAL Equality Diversity and Inclusion annual report 2022/23 (arts.ac.uk) (Accessed: 10 May 2024)
University of Birmingham, Jawad. H. Dr. Accessed 26 May. Available at:.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/tr/jawad-haifaa
Hi Michelle,
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this topic – your synthesis of the different viewpoints of all the resources provided in one single blog post is amazing!
I appreciate your acknowledgment of the vulnerabilities and forms of violence that women face within and beyond religious groups, as exemplified by the Rekis and Jawad examples. I hadn’t fully appreciated how the case study of Sojourner Truth powerfully illustrates the inseparable nature of intersectionality across faith, race, and gender and promotes the argument for including religion as an intersectional identity.
I like the link you drew between Rekis’s call for ‘granting credibility’ to others’ beliefs and Appiah’s proposition of a world where ancestors and contemporary life coexist. It prompts the question of how we can effectively foster mutual understanding and respect for diverse worldviews without necessarily agreeing with them in their entirety… I really like how you articulate something that I have been struggling to put into words in such an eloquent way.
You raise a valid point about Rekis’s assertion regarding the potential negative impact of secularism in academic environments, which could contribute to the ‘othering’ and subjugation of certain identities and I think your acknowledgment of the role you have within your studio teaching context as a conduit to grant credibility to religious identities, is very powerful.
I think the general awareness of our role as educators in this area is sometimes lacking because there is just an assumption that the educational spaces / studio we occupy are solely secular and that that is or should be the norm.
The reluctance you observe among students to reveal their faith underscores the importance of implementing strategies similar to Singh’s approach, where difference is actively invited and engaged with in a constructive manner.
Your proposal for your intervention is also fascinating and I’m curious about your mention of student work as a ‘space of testing safety’ which is something that I suggest is required in terms of allowing students to feel comfortable with expressing their identity online as part of my intervention. Excited to see how your intervention develops!
Yasi
Michelle
Thank you for posting your Unit 2 Blog Post 2: Faith and Intersectionality
I enjoyed reading your post highlighting the intersections of faith, religion, and violence, where a women’s religious faith can make her open to physical harm from different aspects in a society.
You reference several articles to support this point of view (Crenshaw,1991) highlighting how women are vulnerable to violence within and beyond religious groups and ‘Rekis analysis of Sojourn Truth’ are examples of violence inflicted on women. These two articles intersect and reveal to us that institutes, the workplace and structured biases and prejudices-oppresses women of faith and prevent inclusion. Where education and knowledge are withheld. Outward facing religious symbols, ritual, cultural dress can be identifiers of faith but exposes ignorance within a community.
There are many faiths in the world with their own social complexities, can be viewed in one of the articles (Rekis, 2023: 789) as a ‘concept of reality’ and the other demonstrating the lack of faith and shrinking religious practice due to scientific persuasion, evidence-based arguments that challenges religious belief. Appiah’s lecture (TED, 2014)
Do you think that these two ways of thinking can co-exist without drawing conflict. Can it encourage dialogue and understanding and the sharing of knowledge and supporting greater community cohesion?
Can this be applied within a university environment to foster peaceful engagement/dialogue between student bodies that enhances an appreciation of people’s views on faith and greater understanding of intersectionality?
I believe, by creating the opportunities for greater dialogue within the student body (and stop the ‘othering’) we can avoid the destructive elements that has been mentioned in your blog.
I like the conclusion in your final paragraph where UAL’s Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Annual Report showing a decline of students declaring a religion or belief. I like how you have positioned your teaching to have greater understanding and sensitivity to the different beliefs your students display (if they reveal it to you?) through their work. To create that safe teaching space for confident students to interact with your teaching.
Thank you for sharing your blog.
Many thanks
Michael
Hi Michelle,
It was really good to read your blog post.
I’m interested in the point you raise about ‘dominant voices such as white Christian Nationalism acting as obstacles to knowledge and influencing religious and non-religious communities to disempower and discredit other voices’, here marginalisation is enacted by those who possess a dominant perspective even though that perspective is a religious one, which has the potential to be marginalised itself. The point you raise from ‘Rekis about ‘granting credibility’ to other’s beliefs as a means of offering integrity to other ways of being’ seems important where engaging with others in a way that is inclusive of all aspects of their identities. You point out that, ‘Singh’s academic approach contradicts Rekis’s assertion that the secularism of academic environments fosters negative prejudices, real or anticipated’, yet Singh, as an assumed religious lecturer of colour is in a position and role that enables him to be inclusive of others’ religious identities and adopt practices that exclude negative prejudices. By saying that ‘Students’ faith is often revealed through their [practical creative] work’ this aligns creative making with a form of personal revealing at the level of identity that may override verbal claims or statements that articulate personal perspectives on intersecting inequalities.
Best wishes,
Sid