Under the new rules, religious practices are prohibited in premises and facilities  belonging to public institutions. This means that dedicated prayer rooms at universities can no longer be used for prayer. The legislation also prevents students from using other campus spaces, such as classrooms, offices or dining areas, for religious practices.

The changes also extend restrictions on religious symbols to additional groups, including staff in subsidized private schools and subsidized childcare services. The law also establishes new rules for religious accommodations and prohibits collective religious practices on public roads and in public parks without municipal authorization.

The Quebec government presents the measures as part of its model of state secularism, emphasizing the separation of religion and the state, state neutrality and equality. Critics, however, argue that the expanded restrictions place greater limits on religious expression and practice, with particular implications for Muslim communities.

Conceptualizing Islam: Current Approaches

Edited By Frank Peter, Paula Schrode, Ricarda Stegmann

Publisher: Routledge

Publication Date: July 20, 2026

Hardcover: 322 Pages

ISBN: 9781032194738

What does it mean to study “Islam” as an academic object? Conceptualizing Islam: Current Approaches, brings together contemporary perspectives on one of the central questions in the academic study of Islam.” What does it mean to study “Islam” as an academic object?” the volume examines how scholars conceptualize Islam and how these approaches have developed within the study of religion.
Academic debates about how to conceptualize Islam have become increasingly diverse in recent decades. At the same time, Islam has acquired greater visibility in political and social debates, making questions about how it is defined, studied, and represented particularly important. The book explores these developments while encouraging readers to examine the assumptions and categories through which Islam has traditionally been understood.
The volume brings together contributions from scholars working across different disciplines and theoretical traditions. Its chapters engage with subjects including colonialism, conceptual history, postcolonial approaches, Muslim publics, Islam in Europe, sectarianism, racialization, anthropology, discourse theory, and Islamic orthodoxy.
A major concern of the book is the relationship between concepts of Islam and the historical contexts in which they emerge. Several chapters examine how colonial knowledge, European intellectual traditions, and modern political categories have shaped the ways Islam and Muslims have been studied.
The book is not limited to theoretical discussion. Its later chapters demonstrate how different conceptual approaches can be applied to concrete research, including Muslim perspectives on inheritance law in Switzerland, patterns of Islamic orthodoxy, contemporary Sufi practices, charisma and revelation, and the study of Islam through the “discursive tradition” framework. In this way, the volume connects methodological debates with actual research practices in Islamic and religious studies.

About Editors:

Frank Peter is a Research Fellow at the FAU Centre for Islam and Law in Europe in Erlangen, Germany.
His research focuses on Islam in contemporary France, with particular attention to digital Islam and secularism.
His broader interests include the anthropology of Islam, political religion, Orientalism, and Islamophobia.
He is also the author of Secularism without Religion: Islam and the Governing of Muslims in France.

Paula Schrode is Professor of the Study of Religion at the University of Bayreuth.
She specializes in contemporary Islam and the study of religious practices and processes.
Her current research explores the transnational entanglements of Turkish Islam.
She is particularly interested in the activities of Turkish religious NGOs in sub-Saharan Africa.

Ricarda Stegmann is a Lecturer and Senior Researcher in the Department of Social Sciences at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland.
Her research focuses on Islam in Europe and contemporary Sufism worldwide.
Her work also draws on discourse theory, colonial history, Orientalism, and postcolonial studies.
She is particularly interested in Islamic identity constructions in Europe and North Africa.

In late August, Marine Le Pen revived the National Rally’s proposal to penalize the wearing of the Islamic headscarf in public spaces. The proposal would go beyond France’s existing restrictions and could affect Muslim women wearing the hijab in streets and other public areas.

The proposal has faced criticism from political opponents and legal experts, who have questioned its compatibility with religious freedom and France’s constitutional framework. Even within the National Rally, there have been reservations about extending restrictions to the public sphere.

In Austria From the beginning of the 2026/27 school year, girls under the age of 14 are prohibited from wearing a headscarf that covers the head according to Islamic traditions in school. The government argues that the measure is intended to protect girls’ development, autonomy and equality.

Critics, including Austria’s main Muslim representative organization, argue that it disproportionately targets Muslim girls and interferes with fundamental rights. The Austrian Constitutional Court is expected to face renewed challenges over the legislation, particularly given its earlier decision to strike down a narrower headscarf ban in 2020.

The Muslim Trap: Negotiating Being and Belonging in Turbulent Times
Special Issue of Ethnic and Racial Studies
Volume 49, Issue 14 — 2026

The Muslim Trap: Negotiating Being and Belonging in Turbulent Times is a 2026 special issue of Ethnic and Racial Studies, edited by Ajmal Hussain and Alexandra Poli. Bringing together ethnographic research from France, Norway, Spain and the UK, the issue examines how Muslims navigate identity, belonging and everyday life amid growing political polarization and anti-Muslim discourse.
The editors use the idea of the “Muslim trap” to describe the ways Muslims can become reduced to fixed representations of threat, difference or resistance. These representations can make Muslims appear as exceptional or problematic citizens, while overlooking the diversity of their experiences and aspirations. The issue therefore asks what becomes invisible when Muslim life is viewed primarily through the lens of conflict and polarization.
Rather than focusing only on Islamophobia, the contributors examine the ordinary experiences of Muslims in different European cities. Their research explores aspirations, relationships, civic participation and everyday negotiations of belonging. This approach highlights that Muslim lives are not defined solely by encounters with discrimination or state restrictions, but also by creativity, adaptation and the pursuit of ordinary futures.
The special issue looks at Muslim experiences across cities including Birmingham, Boulogne-Billancourt, Ceuta, Madrid, Nice, Oslo and Paris. Cities are treated not simply as settings, but as places where identities and relationships of belonging are actively formed. The contributors examine how Muslims engage with institutions, neighborhoods and civic life while navigating the boundaries between majority and minority identities.
A central argument of the collection is that Muslim agency should not be understood only as resistance to discrimination or state policies. The contributors examine how Muslims create new forms of civic participation, negotiate relationships with institutions and sometimes accept, challenge or reshape existing structures. In doing so, the issue presents Muslim belonging as an active and evolving process rather than a fixed identity.
Taken together, the special issue challenges simplified portrayals of Muslims in contemporary Europe. Its contributors argue for a broader understanding of Muslim agency that recognises both the pressures created by polarization and the diverse ways Muslims build lives, relationships and futures within European societies. The result is a more complex picture of being Muslim and belonging in turbulent times.
What happens when Muslims are continually viewed through the lens of threat, difference or resistance?
This 2026 special issue of Ethnic and Racial Studies explores Muslim identity, belonging and everyday life across cities in France, Norway, Spain and the UK, highlighting the diversity of Muslim experiences and forms of agency.

About Editors:

Alexandra Poli is a researcher at the CNRS (Centre national de la recherche scientifique) and a member of the Centre d’Étude des Mouvements Sociaux (CEMS) at EHESS in Paris. Her research focuses on Muslims in France, Islam, migration, identity, belonging and the social construction of Muslimness. She has conducted research on Muslim communities and urban change, including work on Boulogne-Billancourt.

Dr Ajmal Hussain is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Warwick. His research focuses on urban and cultural sociology, particularly Muslim culture, migration, multiculturalism, racism, and belonging in contemporary Europe. He previously worked as a Research Fellow in Sociology at the University of Manchester and holds a PhD from the university.

The Islam-UK Centre, based in the Department of Religious & Theological Studies at Cardiff University, was launched in 2005 by Yusuf Islam (‘Cat Stevens’). Since then, the Centre has grown to become the leading academic institution for research and teaching about Islam and Muslims in Britain.

Cardiff has one of the oldest and most diverse Muslim populations in the UK. Some of the earliest mosques were founded in the city in the early 20th century. Today, there are over 45,000 Muslims in Wales, nearly half of whom live in Cardiff itself (Census 2011). This makes Cardiff an ideal location for learning more about the history and contemporary situation of Muslim communities in Britain.

The Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK has a strong and positive relationship with the local Muslim community. Local Muslims form part of the Centre’s Advisory Group. The Centre serves as an accessible, vibrant, and inclusive hub of learning about Islam in Cardiff and South Wales—for Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

The Islam-UK Centre also maintains a virtual platform featuring a range of research resources accessible beyond Cardiff, such as dissertations written by former Jameel MA and PhD Scholars, as well as recordings of many of the Centre’s annual public lectures and other events.

Research

The Islam-UK Centre has a strong track record of undertaking interdisciplinary research on a wide range of subjects connected to the lives of Muslims in Britain. In recent years, this has included work on Muslim chaplaincy, the religious nurture and education of Muslim children, Islamic environmentalism, and the intersection of religious ‘courts’ with civil family law.

The Centre is now a hub for research on Islam and Muslims within Cardiff University. It has collaborated with the School of Social Sciences, the School of Music, Cardiff Law School, and the School of Architecture, and maintains strong links with Cardiff Business School and the Cardiff Centre for Chaplaincy Studies.

The research income associated with the Islam-UK Centre to date is approximately £800,000, while its Jameel Scholarship Program (£1m) supports doctoral and postdoctoral researchers working on a wide range of subjects.

The Centre offers fully funded scholarships for PhD/Doctoral research in British Muslim Studies, supported by the Jameel Scholarship Program.

The Centre currently offers one international PhD Jameel Scholarship and two UK PhD Jameel Scholarships in British Muslim Studies for suitably qualified students with innovative and significant PhD proposals.

The PhD programme is based in the School of History, Archaeology and Religion and supervised by the Islam-UK Centre at Cardiff University.

While many of the Centre’s researchers are based in the UK, the Centre has also welcomed visiting international scholars from Italy, the USA, and Poland.

The Islam-UK Centre at Cardiff University is at the cutting edge of research in the emerging field of ‘British Muslim Studies’, and now has an international reputation as the leading center of excellence for the study of Islam and Muslims in Britain.

Projects

In recent years the Centre’s research has included work on:

• Muslim chaplaincy
• The religious nurture and education of Muslim children
• Islamic environmentalism
• The intersection of religious ‘courts’ with civil family law

Staff

• Professor Sophie Gilliat-Ray – Professor in Religious and Theological Studies, Head of Islam UK Centre
• Dr Michael Munnik – Senior Lecturer in Social Science Theories and Methods, Director of Learning and Teaching
• Mark Bryant – Development Officer for the Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK (Islam-UK)
• Lucy Wilkinson – Project Director
• Professor Matthew Wilkinson – Professor of Religion in Public Life
• Dr Mansur Ali – Senior Lecturer in Islamic Studies & Director of Postgraduate Research
• Dr Abdul-Azim Ahmed – Lecturer in British Muslim Studies
• Dr Asma Khan – Honorary Research Fellow
• Dr Saira Malik – Reader in Islamic Philosophy, History & Culture
• Dr Sarah Marusek – Social Media and Impact Officer (Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK)
• Dr Haroon Sidat – Research Associate
• Dr Riyaz Timol – Research Fellow in British Muslim Studies

Contacts

• Address: Islam-UK Centre, School of History, Archaeology and Religion, John Percival Building, Colum Drive, Cardiff CF10 3EU, UK
• Phone: +44 29 2087 0121
• Email: islam-uk@cardiff.ac.uk
• Website: http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/islamukcentre

The Institute of Islamic Studies (IIS) at the University of Toronto develops research projects that improve society’s understanding of Islam and Muslims. By centering Islam and Muslims, the IIS offers a critical viewpoint from which we can better understand our world.

The Center exists to transform the study of Islam and Muslims into an enriching, panoramic view of human society and the world we inhabit.

The center’s research produces enriching perspectives about Islam and Muslims across four broad areas:

• Academia: Research that questions, expands, and diversifies the production of knowledge on Islam and Muslims.
• Policy: Research that critically looks at global governance, regulation, and policies through the Muslim experience.
• Community: Research that integrates the lived experience of Canada’s diverse Muslims to support democracy and inclusion.
• Culture: Research and programming that weaves Islamic and Muslim modes of cultural production as part of our shared, rich tapestry.

IIS Projects

The IIS has a proven history of developing high-quality research projects that are calibrated to the issues facing Muslims in Canada.

• Structural Islamophobia Research Lab (SIRL)
  The IIS’ “Structural Islamophobia Research Lab (SiRL)” supports and produces high-quality research on structural Islamophobia in Canada. It sponsors scholarship examining the formation and operation of Islamophobia in the form of institutional policy or bureaucratic practice, and explore them using creative research methodologies. It’s current project examines Muslim families’ experiences with child welfare services in Ontario.

• Islamic Art & Material Culture Collaborative (IAMCC)
  The Islamic Art and Material Culture Collaborative is a Toronto-based research collaboration between the IIS, the Aga Khan Museum (AKM), and the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). IAMCC curates public events and fosters interdisciplinary research on Islamic art and material culture.

• Muslims in Canada Data Initiative (MiCDI)
  MiCDI is a research initiative focused on creating and analyzing large data on Muslims in Canada. It undertakes projects that are developed by the research team or in collaboration with external partners. MiCDI produces data-informed studies to improve the visibility of Muslims across Canada. MiCDI is led by a team of experienced sociologists and quantitative specialists from across Canada’s research universities.

• Muslims in Canada Archives (MiCA)
  The Muslims in Canada Archives (MiCA) is a community-calibrated, professional quality archive service to uniquely document the rich heritage of Muslims in Canada. MiCA fills in a gap of Muslim history amongst Canada’s memory institutions. It acquires, organizes, preserves, and makes accessible records of and about Canadian Muslim individuals and organizations that possess enduring value for the preservation of the history and documentary heritage of Muslims in Canada.

• Reading Muslims
  Reading Muslims is an interdisciplinary research endeavor involving local and international scholars, and centers on textuality in Islamic studies. Reading Muslims features four research hubs that interrogate textuality and its place in the formation of community identities in dynamic societies, both past and present.

• Under Layered Suspicion
  The IIS’ publication “Under Layered Suspicion” examined potential biases and prejudicial practices of CRA audits of Muslim-led charities. This work led to a series of of examinations to better improve relations and understanding between Muslim-led charity sector and the Charities Directorate.

• Hearing Palestine
• Islam in the City

The IIS also hosts and participates in a variety of events related to the study of Islam and Muslims.

Staff

• Anver Emon – Director, Institute of Islamic Studies
• Mitra Fakhrashrafi – Archivist, Muslims in Canada Archives
• Aly Rattansi – Archivist, Muslims in Canada Archives
• Zainab Yusofi – Administrative, Outreach, and Communications Officer
• Dilyara Agisheva – Postdoctoral Fellow
• Sara Hamed – Postdoctoral Fellow
• Sharifa Patel – Postdoctoral Fellow
• Fahad Ahmad – Advisor, Structural Islamophobia Research Lab
• Abdie Kazemipur – Data Team, Muslims in Canada Data Initiative

Contacts

• Address: 170 St. George Street, Suite 530, Toronto, ON, Canada M5R 2M8
• Email: islamicstudies@utoronto.ca
• Website: https://islamicstudies.artsci.utoronto.ca/

Justice in Islam: New Ethical Perspectives

Edited by Ramon Harvey and Daniel Tutt

Publisher: International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT)

Publication Date: July 1, 2023

Hardcover: 153 Pages

ISBN: 9781642056563

From its roots in the Qur’an and the life of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to its branches in contemporary political and social movements, Islam has always been concerned with the question of social justice. The promise of a just order on earth has motivated both the reflections of the community of scholars and the actions of Muslims who have striven to realize it within their societies. Despite the disappointments that history has often delivered, the hope for justice remains undimmed as does the struggle to achieve it today.

This concise volume focuses on some of the ways that the theme of justice is explored in emerging currents of Islamic thought. Chapters discuss new theological and ethical proposals in the light of contemporary philosophical developments; ideas of gender justice that provoke a reformist challenge to the received tradition; and regional contexts, such as Turkey, Iran and Japan, in which the question of Islam’s relationship to justice is sharpened by the particularities of history and locale. The contributions to this collection raise the prospect that if justice can be imagined more perfectly as an Islamic ideal, perhaps it can be brought into reality.

Table of Contents

Mapping Justice in Islamic Thought: From the Premodern to the Postmodern
Ramon Harvey and Daniel Tutt

Part 1: Theologies, Ethics and Politics

1. Taha Abderrahmane’s Ethics of Ihsān: A Lopsided Conception of Justice and Citizenship
   Monir Birouk
2. Whose Justice? When Māturīdī Meets MacIntyre
   Ramon Harvey

Part 2: Regional Discourses of Feminism and Hermeneutics

3. The Hermeneutics of Justice: Hidayet Şefkatli Tuksal and the Artistry of the Qur’an
   Philip Dorroll
4. Islamic Jurisprudence in Iran: Traditionalism, Reformism and Gender Justice
   Samaneh Oladi
5. Okawa Shumei’s and Toshihiko Izutsu’s Islamic Studies and its Implications for Understanding Justice
   Xiaofei Tu

About Editors

Ramon Harvey (Aziz Foundation Lecturer in Islamic Studies, Cambridge Muslim College) works in the fields of Qur’anic studies, theology, and ethics, both as an intellectual historian and theologian. He is the author of The Qur’an and the Just Society (2018) and Transcendent God, Rational World: A Māturīdī Theology (2021), which are published by Edinburgh University Press. He is also the editor of the monograph series Edinburgh Studies in Islamic Scripture and Theology. He earned his doctorate from SOAS, University of London.

Daniel Tutt (Lecturer in Philosophy, George Washington University) works on continental philosophy, contemporary social and political movements, Islamic thought and psychoanalysis. His forthcoming book is entitled Psychoanalysis and the Politics of the Family: The Crisis of Initiation and will be published in the Palgrave Lacan Series in 2022. His writing has been published in Philosophy Now, The Islamic Monthly and Crisis and Critique, among other publications. He teaches philosophy at George Washington University, and Marymount University and has taught inmates through the Georgetown University Prisons and Justice Initiative.

Download the full text HERE.

Source: Amazon

To address this, a local organization called DE23 Active was created. Based in the Normanton area (postcode DE23), the group provides inclusive opportunities for women to exercise together. Today, more than 300 women take part in activities like women-only classes, walking groups, and chair-based sessions, DE23 Active makes physical activity accessible to people of all ages and abilities. The benefits go beyond health. Participants have found new confidence, friendships, and a sense of belonging. Many who were once hesitant now enjoy regular exercise in a setting where they feel safe and respected. This has helped strengthen bonds across the community.

Source: BBC