PROPUESTA PEDAGÓGICA ALTERNATIVA
ENFOQUE PROBLÉMICO MÉTODO HEURÍSTICO DE POLYA
In May 2009, well equipped with theoretical knowledge, map and instructions I ventured out on a quest - my first visit to a mosque where converts held their meetings. As I walked into the building a man smiled at me asking whether I had been there before and whether I wanted to see the place. Obviously I looked either lost or in the wrong place or, possibly, both. We went to the main prayer room and my guide, Shamir, was showing me around when another person approached us. Shamir told the newcomer that it is my first visit to the mosque and there it was – my first encounter with a convert. Mustafa did not play nice, he asked me bluntly: “Have you come here because you are looking for the truth and want to convert or have you come here because you just want to write something?”58 A
question I should have been prepared for, sadly - I was not.
56 According to Clutterbuck they range from raising and couriering money, procurement of weapons and military equipment, travel arrangements, acquisition of forged and stolen documents to radicalisation efforts. Clutterbuck, L. (2010). An Overview of Violent Jihad in the UK. In M. Ranstorp (Ed.), Understanding Violent Radicalisation, London: Routlege, p. 156.
57 Bakker, E. (2010). Radicalisation and Jihadism in the Netherlands. In M. Ranstorp (Ed.), Understanding Violent Radicalisation, London: Routlege, pp. 176-177.
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Researching hidden, tight-knitted communities is an inherently difficult and challenging endeavour even in the most optimistic scenario. In the case of such research, both the frame and the scope of the study, as Murer59 observed, is more than merely a tool. It is “the mode of praxis for inquiry”
intrinsically linked to the population being researched, which reflects all the conceptual and methodological problems of investigating a social group that is somewhat invisible and hard to reach. In the case of converts the primary obstacle is gaining access, especially from the position of an outsider who has no connections with community members other than scientific interests. As an outsider I was treated with certain degree of suspicion, especially because not being Muslim myself I could not prove good intentions on religious grounds and sometimes my invitation to participate in the research was staunchly refused due to denominational reasons: “Following the sunna and fulfilling the obligations given by Allah seem to be extreme if not extremist. Hungry will never understand the satiated one, and surely a non-Muslim – kaffir will not understand a Muslim.”60 In a few instances gender issues were
invoked (I was refused an interview because I was a woman). Sometimes previous bad experiences with researchers and journalists who, converts believe, are looking for cheap sensational stories or do not comprehend the problems they are trying to investigate were expressed. In fact, the very topic of the thesis raised objections as well.
Some people had the impression that just mentioning converts and terrorism together besmirches the good name of Islam. I was frequently asked why I was not writing about the “true peaceful nature of Islam that has nothing to do with terrorism.” On the other hand those who were happy to share their stories with me had seen their involvement as doing something that will benefit the community as a whole61and often expressed their regrets that converts, who should be in the vanguard
of those battling against the stereotypes were the ones most often swayed by the clichés.62 Sometimes
the willingness to participate in the study was expressed in religious terms and described as dawah, i.e. giving a testimony of faith. In principle, the more radical the community was, the more closed and suspicious towards the outsiders its members were. There were places where no one wanted to talk to me the moment it became apparent that I was not a religious seeker and did not plan to convert.
Trust building is a time consuming exercise; it took me one year to gain trust of the group where I conducted my participant observation sessions, and even then only few people quite reluctantly agreed
59 Murer, J.S. (2009). Overcoming Mixed Feelings about Mixed Methodologies: Complex Strategies for Research among Hidden Populations, eSharp, Special Issue: Critical Issues in Researching Hidden Communities, pp. 99-130.
60 An email rejecting invitation into the research (spelling and emphasis original). Mróz, Madinah. E-mail to [email protected], December 09, 2009.
61 Author’s Fieldwork Notes. Research diary. Glasgow, UK. August 21, 2010. 62 Author’s Fieldwork Notes. Research diary. Glasgow, UK. December 10, 2009.
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for interviews. These were held in neutral places and often interviewees asked me if it was safe or whether we were being followed. Personal safety was also the main reason behind the refusal to record many conversations.63 Throughout the research I contacted various groups for New Muslims across
Europe, but sometimes social networks and snowballing effect were the only way to gain access “inside”. There were two scenarios: either after the meeting the interviewee would direct me to other people whom I might find interesting or the person would meet me for an introductory conversation and then after “validating” me and my research, such a “gate keeper” would facilitate my meeting the rest of the community. In the latter case, they would either inform other members of the group about me encouraging them to participate in the study or organise another meeting with the rest of the community. It needs to be underlined that the hospitality I received was unprecedented; I was offered accommodation, food, transportation and any other help I might need.
Internal references help but they do not always guarantee success and consequently people vouching for me were a helpful but not sufficient factor. In several cases even though someone trusted, known and respected within the community endorsed me and my research, the other members were still dubious and refused to participate. Such was the case of one female convert group in Poland. Although I was introduced by one of the members, a vehement argument erupted regarding me (i.e. my motives, attitude and capabilities) and my research (i.e. its sense, its topic and potential harmfulness).The heated discussion resulted in only four women agreeing to interviews. Furthermore, I was often subjected to test questions before the actual interview started. These were meant to verify what kind of person I was, and to probe my knowledge with respect to Islam or Muslim issues. The question varied; most often people wanted to know whether I was a religious person myself, whether I intended to convert or whether I had a Muslim in the family. Sometimes political issues, such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or Muhammad cartoons were brought forth. It was clear that I could decline to engage in a discussion of issues unrelated to the study, however a certain degree of openness hinged upon the “right” answers. These moments were especially difficult from an ethical point of view and the ethical dimension of the research is discussed in greater detail below.
The bureaucratic difficulties in cooperation with law enforcement agencies, police, and other official sources of information were equally daunting. Given the specificity of planned research one has to bear in mind two factors: the scarcity of data and the particular difficulties in obtaining them. These impediments are prevalent and several other researchers faced them, finding it excruciatingly arduous,
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as voiced by Nesser “to obtain sufficient amount of reliable sources to conduct meaningful analyses.”64
National security issues pose at times insurmountable difficulties in contacting convicted terrorists or those under trial, similar obstacles are connected with obtaining permission to interview convicted terrorists. Difficult however, does not mean impossible, and two main resources are necessary: patience and persistence. A whole year of exchanging emails, telephone conversations and meetings with various officials had passed before I have been granted research access into the Scottish Prison System (SPS) and allowed to conduct my fieldwork there. Again, in spite of the fact that I had permission to run interviews in all of the SPS’s establishments with inmates who converted to Islam, due to organisational issues (detainees are scattered and rarely does one find more that two to three converts in one prison) as well as time I was able to visit prisons in Edinburgh, Shotts and Glenochil.