- Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Departament de Sociologia
Avinguda Eix Central. Edifici B
08193 Bellaterra
- Identity (Culture), Space and Place, Urban Sociology, Collective Memory, Ethnic and Racial Studies, Sociology of Prejudice and Threat, and 12 moreExtreme and Far Right, Sociology, Religion, Multiculturalism, Identity, Citizenship, Islam, Philosophy, Immigration Status & Nationality, Urban Studies, Migration Studies, and Migrationedit
- Avi Astor is a Ramón y Cajal Fellow at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ISOR –Sociology of Religion). He has wr... moreAvi Astor is a Ramón y Cajal Fellow at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ISOR –Sociology of Religion). He has written on several topics related to religion, culture, and Islam in Spain. His recent book is entitled, Rebuilding Islam in Contemporary Spain: The Politics of Mosque Establishment, 1976–2013 (Sussex Academic Press, 2017).edit
This article builds upon Durkheim’s theorization of the “ambiguity” of the sacred to analyze dynamics surrounding religious symbols in the public square. Focusing on the revealing case of a Nativity scene displayed annually before... more
This article builds upon Durkheim’s theorization of the “ambiguity” of the sacred to analyze dynamics surrounding religious symbols in the public square. Focusing on the revealing case of a Nativity scene displayed annually before Barcelona’s City Hall since 1961, I examine the Christian icon’s metamorphosis into a display more abstract in design and ambiguous in meaning. I contend that this transformation has simultaneously diminished the crèche’s confessional symbolism and aligned it with Barcelona’s cosmopolitan image and commitment to pluralism. In explaining the visual and symbolic adaptation of the crèche, I emphasize: 1) the potentiality for adaptation linked to the “affordances” of the Catalan crèche as a cyclical, dynamic, and popular tradition; 2) the contextual pressure for adaptation emanating from socio-cultural transformations that contributed to the classic icon’s “site-specific impurification”; and 3) the agents of adaptation, or the actors whose visions and expertise have given form to the creative modifications undertaken. The theoretical framework developed provides a conceptual vocabulary for analyzing the instability and transformative potential of the sacred. My findings are based on a comprehensive review of local and national media coverage, visual analysis of the crèche’s aesthetic evolution, and interviews with key actors involved in its management and design.
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Despite the many definitions of religion offered over the years, religion as a general concept remains “essentially contested” and characterized by a multiplicity of competing definitions and applications. This, however, has not impeded... more
Despite the many definitions of religion offered over the years, religion as a general concept remains “essentially contested” and characterized by a multiplicity of competing definitions and applications. This, however, has not impeded the proliferation of new religious subcategories (e.g., new age religion, secular religion, civil religion, and cultural religion, among others) that challenge the boundaries of religion as conventionally conceived. This article examines the logics underpinning these conceptual innovations with the objective of enhancing reflexivity and clarifying the processes they aim to elucidate. Critically integrating the writings of Weber and Wittgenstein on
definition and classification, I advance a framework based on ideal typification and family resemblance which allows for the intelligibility and analytic utility of unconventional subtypes, even when premised on root conceptions of religion that lack precise boundaries and defining attributes. I show how the logics underlying these subtypes are not limited to specification, but also include looser forms of family resemblance. More generally, my analysis explores conceptual classification and innovation as analytic practices involving the identification and creative interpretation of
similarities, affinities, linkages, and other kinds of relationships within the constraints of “language-games” relevant not only to academic debate, but also to more basic and quotidian structures of meaning.
definition and classification, I advance a framework based on ideal typification and family resemblance which allows for the intelligibility and analytic utility of unconventional subtypes, even when premised on root conceptions of religion that lack precise boundaries and defining attributes. I show how the logics underlying these subtypes are not limited to specification, but also include looser forms of family resemblance. More generally, my analysis explores conceptual classification and innovation as analytic practices involving the identification and creative interpretation of
similarities, affinities, linkages, and other kinds of relationships within the constraints of “language-games” relevant not only to academic debate, but also to more basic and quotidian structures of meaning.
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This article analyzes the development and framing of Catalonia’s “Law on Centers of Worship”, an innovative law dedicated exclusively to the regulation of religious temples that was passed by the regional Parliament in 2009. The law was a... more
This article analyzes the development and framing of Catalonia’s “Law on Centers of Worship”, an innovative law dedicated exclusively to the regulation of religious temples that was passed by the regional Parliament in 2009. The law was a legal novelty in Spain, as well as in Europe, where regulations pertaining to places of worship are typically folded into regional or municipal laws and ordinances dealing with zoning and construction. My analysis highlights how the law aimed not only to address the challenges generated by the proliferation of places of worship serving religious minorities, but also to legally reinforce and symbolically affirm Catalonia’s political autonomy and cultural distinctiveness vis-à-vis Spain. I place particular emphasis on how the temporal confluence of heightened nationalist mobilization, on the one hand, and tensions surrounding ethno-religious diversification, on the other, contributed to the development of a legal innovation that integrated the governance of religious diversity within the broader nation-building project. This article’s findings illustrate the role of historical timing and conjunctural causality in shaping the dynamic nexus between religion, law, and politics.
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Scholars have taken a growing interest in what we call “culturalized religion”—that is, forms of religious identification, discourse, and expression that are primarily cultural in character, insofar as they are divorced from belief in... more
Scholars have taken a growing interest in what we call “culturalized religion”—that is, forms of religious identification, discourse, and expression that are primarily cultural in character, insofar as they are divorced from belief in religious dogma or participation in religious ritual. This article aims to clarify our current thinking about these phenomena so as to facilitate future theoretical and empirical work. Drawing on recent work in the sociology of culture, we distinguish between culturalized religion as a form of constituted culture, a form of pragmatic culture, and a form of identity; and theorize three principal types of relations connecting each of these modalities: reinforcing relationships, resource relationships, and destabilizing relationships. In so doing, we develop an inclusive and dynamic approach to studying culturalized religion that clears the ground for further research into its diverse modalities and manifestations, as well as their points of intersection and interaction.
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This article examines Spanish press coverage of boxing upon its entry into Spain’s ‘media space’ during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Our analysis highlights how the mix of fascination, repugnance, and admiration... more
This article examines Spanish press coverage of boxing upon its entry into Spain’s ‘media space’ during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Our analysis highlights how the mix of fascination, repugnance, and admiration displayed toward the sport were shaped by the broader context of imperial rivalry and anxieties about the purported decline of Spain and other Latin nations vis-à-vis the ascendant Anglo-Saxon nations. Criticizing boxing as brutish and barbaric provided defenders of Spanish identity and tradition with a means of challenging dominant racial and civilizational hierarchies. The bitterly ironic tone of most articles was reflective of the defensiveness engendered by the emasculating military defeats and economic struggles suffered by Spain and its Latin neighbors. Coverage of boxing, however, was not uniformly negative, as Spanish writers displayed admiration for successful French fighters, especially when they defeated Americans or Britons, as their achievements generated reassurance about the ongoing vitality of the Latin race. In this manner, media coverage of boxing served as a conduit for the articulation and transmission of understandings of identity and alterity that traversed national boundaries. Aside from having strong racial components, these understandings were deeply entwined with morally charged notions of masculine virility and cultural civility.
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Catalonia is simultaneously the most secular region in Spain and the region that places the greatest priority on actively managing religious affairs. Moreover, parties comprising the Catalan Left have been particularly assertive in... more
Catalonia is simultaneously the most secular region in Spain and the region that places the greatest priority on actively managing religious affairs. Moreover, parties comprising the Catalan Left have been particularly assertive in pushing for legislative proposals to reduce the privileges of the Catholic Church and the general presence of religion in the public sphere. This article examines the sources of Catalonia's exceptionality in religious matters, with a focus on the entanglements between religion and nationalism in the region. Drawing on survey data, legal documents, transcripts of parliamentary debates, media reports, and historical studies, the author argues that counter-state understandings of nationhood have figured centrally in the rapid secularization of Catalonia's populace, the Catalan government's proactive approach to religious governance, and the Catalan Left's insistence on church-state reform at both the regional and national levels. This analysis speaks to broader questions regarding religion, secularism, and nationalism in stateless nations.
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This contribution examines divergent trajectories of religious govern-ance in Madrid and Barcelona, two cities that have pursued distinct approaches to accommodating religious diversity despite being located in the same national context.... more
This contribution examines divergent trajectories of religious govern-ance in Madrid and Barcelona, two cities that have pursued distinct approaches to accommodating religious diversity despite being located in the same national context. Whereas Madrid has dealt with religious diversity under the broader rubric of immigration and culture, and has been largely passive and 'hands-off' in its approach to govern-ance, Barcelona has demarcated religion from other cultural issues and developed a more proactive and 'hands-on' approach to governing religious diversity. In explaining this difference, our study builds on recent work highlighting the relative autonomy of cities vis-à-vis states in the definition and implementation of diversity policies. We trace the divergent patterns of religious governance in Madrid and Barcelona to differences in their respective political and territorial positioning. These differences have given rise to contrasting objectives, relations with national agencies, and local structures of opportunity for religious actors to enter into the governance process. ARTICLE HISTORY
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This contribution examines divergent trajectories of religious governance in Madrid and Barcelona, two cities that have pursued distinct approaches to accommodating religious diversity despite being located in the same national context.... more
This contribution examines divergent trajectories of religious governance
in Madrid and Barcelona, two cities that have pursued distinct
approaches to accommodating religious diversity despite being
located in the same national context. Whereas Madrid has dealt with
religious diversity under the broader rubric of immigration and culture,
and has been largely passive and ‘hands-off’ in its approach to governance,
Barcelona has demarcated religion from other cultural issues and
developed a more proactive and ‘hands-on’ approach to governing
religious diversity. In explaining this difference, our study builds on
recent work highlighting the relative autonomy of cities vis-à-vis states
in the definition and implementation of diversity policies.We trace the
divergent patterns of religious governance in Madrid and Barcelona to
differences in their respective political and territorial positioning. These
differences have given rise to contrasting objectives, relations with
national agencies, and local structures of opportunity for religious
actors to enter into the governance process.
in Madrid and Barcelona, two cities that have pursued distinct
approaches to accommodating religious diversity despite being
located in the same national context. Whereas Madrid has dealt with
religious diversity under the broader rubric of immigration and culture,
and has been largely passive and ‘hands-off’ in its approach to governance,
Barcelona has demarcated religion from other cultural issues and
developed a more proactive and ‘hands-on’ approach to governing
religious diversity. In explaining this difference, our study builds on
recent work highlighting the relative autonomy of cities vis-à-vis states
in the definition and implementation of diversity policies.We trace the
divergent patterns of religious governance in Madrid and Barcelona to
differences in their respective political and territorial positioning. These
differences have given rise to contrasting objectives, relations with
national agencies, and local structures of opportunity for religious
actors to enter into the governance process.
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How do cities determine who has the right to station themselves in iconic public spaces? This article explores this question by analyzing the evolution of Barcelona's approach to regulating street performance, with a particular focus on... more
How do cities determine who has the right to station themselves in iconic public spaces? This article explores this question by analyzing the evolution of Barcelona's approach to regulating street performance, with a particular focus on regulations pertaining to 'living statues'. Although most buskers have been expelled from the Ramblas, one of the city's most emblematic walkways, living statues remain permitted on the promenade. This, I argue, is due to the general embrace of statues as part of local tradition and their integration within city-branding campaigns, as well as their own organizing and boundary work. As the image Barcelona seeks to cultivate has changed, however, the right of statues to station themselves in public space has become ever more tenuous. My findings speak to broader questions regarding how cities determine the boundaries of 'urban desirability', as well as why and how such boundaries change over time. They also elucidate the strategies that groups located at the margins employ in attempting to position themselves favorably in relation to such boundaries. More generally, they highlight how current approaches to analyzing urban inclusion and exclusion may benefit from a more sustained engagement with the burgeoning social scientific literature on symbolic boundaries.
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This article examines a recent controversy over the Catholic Church's registration of Cordoba's iconic Mosque-Cathedral as official Church property in 2006. In analyzing the controversy, we take up broader theoretical questions regarding... more
This article examines a recent controversy over the Catholic Church's registration of Cordoba's iconic Mosque-Cathedral as official Church property in 2006. In analyzing the controversy, we take up broader theoretical questions regarding the politicization and contestation of national cultural heritage, and the sociology of public controversy more generally. Drawing upon Alexander's work on civil discourse and practice, we focus on the importance of performative aspects of civic debate. We argue that effective performances of Bpublicness^ involving the conscientious suppression of visible signs of particularity, especially those related to Islam, have been critical to the successful politicization of the Mosque-Cathedral's ownership and management. Politicization, however, has not produced any significant movement toward consensual resolution. In explaining this failure, we offer a more nuanced account of the conditions that limit the potential for consensus and Bcivil repair^ as an outcome of public controversy in deeply divided societies. Our findings also have implications for understanding the growing role of international institutions and declarations in shaping the contours of localized controversies surrounding national cultural heritage.
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Scholars have written extensively on the emergence of mass sports in modern industrial societies, and the factors that have facilitated the development of ‘hegemonic sports cultures’. Less has been written on how the structure and content... more
Scholars have written extensively on the emergence of mass sports in modern industrial societies, and the factors that have facilitated the development of ‘hegemonic sports cultures’. Less has been written on how the structure and content of ‘national sport spaces’ change over time, and the reasons that certain sports cultures have failed to sustain their popular appeal amid processes of political, social and cultural transformation. This article analyses the sharp decline in the popularity of Spanish boxing during the 1970s and 1980s. In explaining this decline, we draw attention to a series of developments that disrupted rituals of spectatorship that were key to sustaining the sport’s fan base. Our findings highlight the importance of ritual to the reproduction of hegemonic sports cultures and identify ‘ritual disruption’ as a mechanism through which broad societal changes may alter the configuration of national sport spaces.
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This article contributes to sociological theorizations of religion as heritage through analyzing the politics of religious heritage in Spain since its transition to democracy during the late 1970s. Our analysis is organized around three... more
This article contributes to sociological theorizations of religion as heritage through analyzing the politics of religious heritage in Spain since its transition to democracy during the late 1970s. Our analysis is organized around three historical sequences of critical importance for understanding the political and legal significance of discourses that frame religion as cultural heritage in Spain: (1) negotiations that took place during Spain's democratic transition between 1977 and 1980; (2) discussions that surfaced in the context of the state's decision to recognize Islam, Protestantism, and Judaism in 1992; and (3) more recent debates regarding the incorporation of religious minorities in the context of increasing religious diversity, especially concerning places of worship. We show how framing “religion” using the language of cultural heritage has provided religious actors with a means of defending the connection between religion and national identity—and of protecting the privileges of majoritarian religious institutions without violating core tenets of secularism or pluralism. This scenario has created space for certain religious minorities to claim a place within Spain's evolving socioreligious landscape by invoking alternative heritages from Spain's multicultural past.
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This article examines the structural conditions and cultural narratives underlying the high frequency and intensity of anti-mosque campaigns in the Spanish region of Catalonia. Drawing on Blumers theory of prejudice as a sense of group... more
This article examines the structural conditions and cultural narratives underlying the high frequency and intensity of anti-mosque campaigns in the Spanish region of Catalonia. Drawing on Blumers theory of prejudice as a sense of group position, as it has been elaborated and extended to multi-ethnic settings by subsequent scholarship, I contend that local reactions to mosques in Catalonia have been shaped by context-specific configurations of identity and urban space. I show how longstanding socio-economic and cultural divisions within Catalonias native population, as well as the inscription of these divisions within the spatial ordering of the region, have heightened feelings of threat elicited by the large-scale arrival of Muslim immigrants to working-class neighborhoods in recent years. In advancing this argument, I build on the insights of geographers and urban sociologists to develop a spatially sensitive understanding of social position and perceived group threat that considers the importance of place identities and the interaction between distinct registers of territorial belonging.This article examines the structural conditions and cultural narratives underlying the high frequency and intensity of anti-mosque campaigns in the Spanish region of Catalonia. Drawing on Blumers theory of prejudice as a sense of group position, as it has been elaborated and extended to multi-ethnic settings by subsequent scholarship, I contend that local reactions to mosques in Catalonia have been shaped by context-specific configurations of identity and urban space. I show how longstanding socio-economic and cultural divisions within Catalonias native population, as well as the inscription of these divisions within the spatial ordering of the region, have heightened feelings of threat elicited by the large-scale arrival of Muslim immigrants to working-class neighborhoods in recent years. In advancing this argument, I build on the insights of geographers and urban sociologists to develop a spatially sensitive understanding of social position and perceived group threat that considers the importance of place identities and the interaction between distinct registers of territorial belonging.
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Este artículo analiza la evolución de la gestión de la diversidad religiosa en España desde la transición democrática hasta hoy. La tesis principal es que se ha producido un cambio relevante en la forma de gestionar esta diversidad en los... more
Este artículo analiza la evolución de la gestión de la diversidad religiosa en España desde la transición democrática hasta hoy. La tesis principal es que se ha producido un cambio relevante en la forma de gestionar esta diversidad en los últimos años. Se ha pasado de un modelo estructurado, principalmente, a través de una lógica vertical, jerárquica y centralizada, a una aproximación más horizontal, plural y multinivel. Ello ha sido consecuencia de la emergencia de nuevos retos y sucesos críticos que han politizado la diversidad religiosa y generado presión para una implicación más explícita de las administraciones públicas en esta cuestión. Esta nueva forma de gestión favorece una aproximación más democrática e inclusiva hacia este fenómeno, pero a su vez conlleva también una intensificación de la monitorización, la regulación y el control de las organizaciones religiosas.
This chapter analyses the evolution of the management of religious diversity in Spain from the transition to democracy to the present day. The main thesis is that an important change has taken place in the management of this diversity over recent years. There has been a
shift away from a predominantly vertical, hierarchical, centralised model towards a more horizontal, plural, multi-level approach. This change is the result of the emergence of new challenges and critical events that
have politicised religious diversity and produced pressure for the deeper and more active involvement of public agencies in this issue. This new form of management favours a more democratic, inclusive approach to
religious diversity, but it has also intensified the surveillance, regulation and control of religious organisations.
This chapter analyses the evolution of the management of religious diversity in Spain from the transition to democracy to the present day. The main thesis is that an important change has taken place in the management of this diversity over recent years. There has been a
shift away from a predominantly vertical, hierarchical, centralised model towards a more horizontal, plural, multi-level approach. This change is the result of the emergence of new challenges and critical events that
have politicised religious diversity and produced pressure for the deeper and more active involvement of public agencies in this issue. This new form of management favours a more democratic, inclusive approach to
religious diversity, but it has also intensified the surveillance, regulation and control of religious organisations.
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Este artículo analiza la evolución de la gestión de la diversidad religiosa en España desde la transición democrática hasta hoy. La tesis principal es que se ha producido un cambio relevante en la forma de gestionar esta diversidad... more
Este artículo analiza la evolución de la gestión de la diversidad religiosa en España desde la transición democrática hasta hoy. La tesis principal es que se ha producido un cambio relevante en la forma de gestionar esta diversidad en los últimos años. Se ha pasado de un modelo estructurado, principalmente, a través de una lógica vertical, jerárquica y centralizada, a una aproximación más horizontal, plural y multinivel. Ello ha sido consecuencia de la emergencia de nuevos retos y sucesos críticos que han politizado la diversidad religiosa y generado presión para una implicación más explícita de las administraciones públicas en esta cuestión. Esta nueva forma de gestión favorece una aproximación más democrática e inclusiva hacia este fenómeno, pero a su vez conlleva también una intensificación de la monitorización, la regulación y el control de las organizaciones religiosas.
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The Mediterranean has long been a space of encounter between different nations, religions, and cultures. The fusion of national and religious identity in the region has added complexity to current debates regarding the recognition and... more
The Mediterranean has long been a space of encounter between different nations, religions, and cultures. The fusion of national and religious identity in the region has added complexity to current debates regarding the recognition and accommodation of religious minorities. In this introduction, we outline recent scholarship on religious nationalism and the governance of religious diversity in the Mediterranean. We draw upon the articles included in this special issue to highlight the distinctive modalities of the religion-national identity link that exist in the region, and the manner in which these modalities have influenced policies of
religious accommodation and strategies of political mobilization among religious minorities.
In concluding, we draw attention to the need for more studies that help to connect recent analyses of ethno-religious and political transformations in the Mediterranean with the work
of historians and social scientists on the historical constitution and evolution of the region as an interconnected space in which core socio-political and cultural dynamics are shaped by
cross-border flows, engagements, and exchanges.
religious accommodation and strategies of political mobilization among religious minorities.
In concluding, we draw attention to the need for more studies that help to connect recent analyses of ethno-religious and political transformations in the Mediterranean with the work
of historians and social scientists on the historical constitution and evolution of the region as an interconnected space in which core socio-political and cultural dynamics are shaped by
cross-border flows, engagements, and exchanges.
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This article analyses the governance of Islam in contemporary Spain. Rather than presuming the existence of a singular and all-encompassing ‘Spanish model’ of religious governance, I focus on the critical role of actual practices of... more
This article analyses the governance of Islam in contemporary Spain. Rather than presuming the existence of a singular and all-encompassing ‘Spanish model’ of religious governance, I focus on the critical role of actual practices of modelling in shaping the institutions and organisations implicated in the regulation of Islam, as well as the concrete strategies that have guided policies of Muslim accommodation. Modelling practices, I argue, have been particularly significant in Spain due to its late transition to democracy and the absence of viable frameworks for regulating religious diversity from within its own past. In determining which frameworks to use as models for religious governance, public actors have been influenced by a variety of factors, including (i) their respective political and social agendas; (ii) the professional networks, organisational fields and other means of knowledge circulation through which they have gained exposure to exogenous models; and (iii) religious, cultural, linguistic and historical factors that have made certain models more accessible or attractive than others. Given that these factors have varied at different levels of government, so too have practices of modelling influential in the development of national and sub-national approaches to governing Islam.
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A number of recent studies have examined the sources of conflict surrounding the presence of Muslim minorities in Western contexts. This article builds upon, and challenges, some of the principal findings of this literature through... more
A number of recent studies have examined the sources of conflict surrounding the presence of Muslim minorities in Western contexts. This article builds upon, and challenges, some of the principal findings of this literature through analyzing popular opposition to mosques in Badalona, a historically industrial city in Catalonia where several of the most vigorous anti-mosque campaigns in Spain have occurred. Drawing upon 46 semi-structured interviews and ethnographic observation conducted over a two-year period, I argue that opposition to mosques in Badalona is not reducible to anti-Muslim prejudice or fears of Islamic extremism. Rather, it is rooted in powerful associations drawn between Islam, immigration, and a series of social problems affecting the character of communal life and the quality of cherished public spaces in the city. These associations are expressed through local narratives that emphasize a sharp rupture between a glorified ethnically homogeneous past of community and solidarity, and a troublesome multicultural present fraught with social insecurity and disintegration. I show how the construction of these “rupture narratives” has entailed active memory work that minimizes the significance of prior social cleavages and conflicts, and selectively focuses on disjuncture over continuity with the past. I also highlight how these narratives have been reinforced by strong socio-spatial divisions, which have intensified contestations over public space and led to the integration of mosque disputes into broader struggles over social justice and public recognition.
This paper integrates Agamben’s concept of ‘‘bare life’’ with the Copenhagen School’s concept of ‘‘securitization’’ to develop a framework for analyzing the elevation of immigration out of the realm of ordinary politics and into the realm... more
This paper integrates Agamben’s concept of ‘‘bare life’’ with the Copenhagen School’s concept of ‘‘securitization’’ to develop a framework for analyzing the elevation of immigration out of the realm of ordinary politics and into the realm of security during the 1950s. I argue that immigrants’ extreme invisibility in daily life and visibility in security-obsessed media venues made them an easy outlet for fears about subversive activity. The success with which state and civil society actors deployed securitizing rhetoric constituted a key precondition for the implementation of Operation Wetback. This paper emphasizes the role of unions and Hispanic civic organizations in legitimating this rhetoric. In the concluding section, current developments brought about by the ‘‘War on Terror’’ are compared with those that took place during the years preceding Operation Wetback.
There has been much debate recently about several issues related to the migration of physicians from developing to developed countries. However, few studies have been conducted to address these issues in a systematic fashion. In an... more
There has been much debate recently about several issues related to the migration of physicians from developing to developed countries. However, few studies have been conducted to address these issues in a systematic fashion. In an attempt to begin the process of generating systematic data, we designed and distributed a questionnaire addressing several core issues surrounding physician migration to respondents selected on the basis of their special expertise or experience in India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Colombia, and the Philippines. The issues addressed relate to the reasons physicians migrate to developed countries, how migration is related to the structure of medical education, the effect that migration has on the health care infrastructure of developing countries, and various policy options for dealing with physician migration. Though responses varied somewhat by country, a desire for increased income, greater access to enhanced technology, an atmosphere of general security and stability, and improved prospects for one’s children were the primary motivating factors for physician migration. A majority of respondents believed that physicians in developing counties are provided with highly specialized skills that they can better utilize in developed countries, but respondents were ambivalent with respect to the utility of educational reform. Responses varied significantly by country with regard to whether physician migration results in physician shortages, but there was widespread agreement that it exacerbates shortages in rural and public settings. With respect to policy options, increasing physician income, improving working conditions, requiring physicians to work in their home countries for a period following graduation from medical school, and creating increased collaboration between health ministries in developed and developing countries found the most favor with respondents.
Following Spain’s democratic transition during the late 1970s, political and business elites strategically exploited Spain’s rich Islamic heritage in order to further projects of national redefinition, tourist promotion, and urban... more
Following Spain’s democratic transition during the late 1970s, political and business elites strategically exploited Spain’s rich Islamic heritage in order to further projects of national redefinition, tourist promotion, and urban revitalization. Large and ornate mosques were built in several Spanish regions, and the State granted Muslim communities an extensive array of rights and privileges that was arguably without parallel in Europe. Toward the onset of the 21st century, however, tensions surrounding Islam’s growing presence in Spain became increasingly common, especially in the northeastern region of Catalonia. These tensions centered largely around the presence, or proposed establishment, of mosques in Barcelona and its greater metropolitan area. This book examines how Islam went from being an aspect of Spain’s national heritage to be recovered and commemorated to a pressing social problem to be managed and controlled. It traces the events and developments that gave rise to this transformation, the diverse actors involved in the process, and the manner in which disputes over Muslim incorporation have become entangled with deeply-divisive debates over church-state relations and territorial autonomy. The core of Rebuilding Islam in Contemporary Spain centers on the shifting political and social dynamics surrounding the establishment of mosques, and the question of why anti-mosque mobilizations have been more prevalent and intense in Catalonia than other Spanish regions.
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Esta contribución aborda el vínculo entre pluralismo religioso e inmigración en la sociedad española contemporánea, apuntando sin embargo que la diversificación del paisaje religioso y espiritual no es única y exclusivamente resultado de... more
Esta contribución aborda el vínculo entre pluralismo religioso e inmigración en la sociedad española contemporánea, apuntando sin embargo que la diversificación del paisaje religioso y espiritual no es única y exclusivamente resultado de la llegada de personas provenientes de otros países. El artículo analiza la creciente visibilidad de diferentes minorías religiosas en un contexto en el que la religión históricamente mayoritaria, el catolicismo, ha perdido parte del peso social que antes tenía. Asimismo, el texto presenta los dispositivos legales que configuran el marco jurídico para el acomodo del pluralismo religioso a nivel estatal, pero también las iniciativas puestas en marcha por las administraciones autonómicas y locales. Este análisis se complementa con una mirada específica sobre el papel del tejido asociativo y, especialmente, sobre las estrategias que buscan promover el diálogo interreligioso y la convivencia ciudadana. En este sentido, el artículo señala algunos retos presentes en este ámbito, como el crecimiento de la extrema derecha y la difusión de discursos de odio.
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This chapter investigates the histories, memories and projected futures of interreligious encounters attached to emblematic multi-religious buildings and the subsequent framing processes of political representation, deliberation in civil... more
This chapter investigates the histories, memories and projected futures of interreligious encounters attached to emblematic multi-religious buildings and the subsequent framing processes of political representation, deliberation in civil society and tourist consumption. Empirically, the paper focuses on two buildings: the Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba and the Berlin House of One. Both projects are of a very different nature: while the Mosque-cathedral is several centuries old, the Berlin House of One is still an architectural project in its early stages; while the mosque-cathedral of Cordoba was originally a Visigoth church, then a mosque and is currently a Catholic church, the House of One pretends to be a church-mosque-synagogue simultaneously, and in fact claims to be the first one in the world; while the Mosque-Cathedral is a building filled with the power of the past, the House of One gains its power from the future it promises. Nonetheless, despite their differences, they share distinct commonalities.
Both buildings can be described as global architectural icons that become symbolic expressions of plural religious heritages, and are presented as models for “political pedagogy” (Mukerji, 2012) that conjure up particular versions of the past but also offer a specific imaginary of possible interreligious futures. However, both projects are also highly controversial. In both settings, several actors have raised serious concerns about the framings, meanings and practices that define these locations as serving to foster interreligious dialogue and coexistence. Thus, the paper examines how notions of religious diversity and multi-religious coexistence are materially represented, shaped and contested around controversies on multi-religious iconic buildings.
Both buildings can be described as global architectural icons that become symbolic expressions of plural religious heritages, and are presented as models for “political pedagogy” (Mukerji, 2012) that conjure up particular versions of the past but also offer a specific imaginary of possible interreligious futures. However, both projects are also highly controversial. In both settings, several actors have raised serious concerns about the framings, meanings and practices that define these locations as serving to foster interreligious dialogue and coexistence. Thus, the paper examines how notions of religious diversity and multi-religious coexistence are materially represented, shaped and contested around controversies on multi-religious iconic buildings.
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As part of Europe’s southern frontier, Spain’s geographic proximity to North Africa and historical engagements with Islam have played a formative role in its national development. The deep ambivalence and multivocality characteristic of... more
As part of Europe’s southern frontier, Spain’s geographic proximity to North Africa and historical engagements with Islam have played a formative role in its national development. The deep ambivalence and multivocality characteristic of Spain’s relationship with its Moorish heritage make it an illuminating site for studying how complex and variegated historical entanglements with Islam in Europe may influence contemporary dynamics surrounding Muslim incorporation. This chapter examines the legal and spatio-material recognition of Islam as part of Spanish cultural heritage in the aftermath of Spain’s democratic transition. During the 1980s and 1990s, political elites, urban planners, and business entrepreneurs strategically exploited Spain’s rich Islamic patrimony to further projects of national redefinition, tourist promotion and urban revitalisation. The absence of significant political and social concerns regarding Spain’s then modest Muslim population enabled the ‘Muslim question’ to be treated as a purely symbolic matter, divorced from problems of integration that were beginning to materialise in other European countries. Nevertheless, since the various forms of legal and spatio-material recognition granted to Muslims during the post-transition period were primarily the result of top-down initiatives rather than grassroots struggle, they did little to protect emergent Muslim communities from discrimination and were limited as to their efficacy for promoting generalised reflexivity regarding Spain’s approach to dealing with its Islamic past or its increasingly multicultural present.
Research Interests:
Research Interests: History, Politics, Islam, Activismo, Brill, and 3 moreEstudios islámicos, Islamofobia, and RELIGIOSIDAD
Research Interests:
This article analyzes the development and framing of Catalonia’s “Law on Centers of Worship”, an innovative law dedicated exclusively to the regulation of religious temples that was passed by the regional parliament in 2009. The law was a... more
This article analyzes the development and framing of Catalonia’s “Law on Centers of Worship”, an innovative law dedicated exclusively to the regulation of religious temples that was passed by the regional parliament in 2009. The law was a legal novelty in Spain, as well as in Europe, where regulations pertaining to places of worship are typically folded into regional or municipal laws and ordinances dealing with zoning and construction. This analysis highlights how the law aimed not only to address the challenges generated by the proliferation of places of worship serving religious minorities, but also to legally reinforce and symbolically affirm Catalonia’s political autonomy and cultural distinctiveness vis-a-vis Spain. I place particular emphasis on how the temporal confluence of heightened nationalist mobilization, on the one hand, and tensions surrounding ethno-religious diversification, on the other, contributed to the development of a legal innovation that integrated the gove...