London Youth, Religion, and Politics: Engagement and Activism from Brixton to Brick Lane

Daniel Nilsson DeHanas

Oxford University Press, 2016

https://global.oup.com/academic/product/london-youth-religion-and-politics-9780198743675

For more than a decade the “Muslim question” on integration and alleged extremism has vexed Europe, revealing cracks in long-held certainties about the role of religion in public life. Secular assumptions are being tested not only by the growing presence of Muslims but also by other fervent new arrivals such as Pentecostal Christians. London Youth, Religion, and Politics focuses on young adults of immigrant parents in two inner-city London areas: the East End and Brixton. It paints vivid portraits of dozens of young men and women met at local cafes, on park benches, and in council estate stairwells, and provides reason for a measured hope.
In East End streets like Brick Lane, revivalist Islam has been generating more civic integration although this comes at a price that includes generational conflict and cultural amnesia. In Brixton, while the influence of Pentecostal and traditional churches can be limited to family and individual renewal, there are signs that this may be changing. This groundbreaking work offers insight into the lives of urban Muslim, Christian, and non-religious youth. In times when the politics of immigration and diversity are in flux, it offers a candid appraisal of multiculturalism in practice.

“Daniel Nilsson DeHanas’ empirically driven analysis should be read, marked, learned and inwardly digested by all those who care about our democratic future and the place of second-generation migrants in this. I commend it warmly.”

Grace Davie, Professor Emeritus in Sociology, University of Exeter

“Drawing on a much-needed comparative study, this book provides a fascinating insight into the civic integration and political participation of British Muslim, Christian and non-religious young people in a changing Britain.”

John Eade, Professor of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Roehampton

Daniel Nilsson DeHanas teaches Political Science and Religion at King’s College London. He is Co-Editor of the journal Religion, State and Society.