The University of Western Sydney’s Religion and Society Research Centre invites you to attend a Public Lecture:
“Young Muslims and Consumer Ethics in the Asia Pacificâ€
Speaker: Kamaludeen Mohamed Nasir, Nanyan Technological University, Singapore
Date: Tuesday, 24 June 2014
Time: 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Venue: UWS Bankstown Campus, Building 1 Room 1.117
RSVP to j.fishman by Thursday, 19 June 2014
Abstract
Whilst the relationship between piety and consumer ethics has gained prominence over the last few years, the idea of a “Muslim consumer ethics†has not been broached in an academic setting. This presentation proposes some key considerations in analyzing this notion. Since 9/11, Muslim minorities living in urban, multicultural and secular settings find themselves being the subject of greater securitization. This, coupled with living in an increasingly connected and digitalized world, has ushered a new phase in patterns of Muslim consumption. The consumer ethics that young Muslims exhibit today transcend a “halal consciousness†paradigm and include a global geo-political mapping of events affecting the Muslim ummah. Contrary to popular rhetoric that the consumption patterns of youth are largely determined by the mass media, the decision to purchase a particular product is very much a rational choice and places young Muslims in a position of attempting to reconcile their piety with popular consumption trends. In conceptualizing a Muslim consumer ethic, young Muslims view the moral and humanistic dimension of living in a globalized world as an extension of their religious practice.