Igualdad de oportunidades vs. igualdad de resultados

At this point it is important to narrow the concept of Islamism further (see section 1.4). In its broadest meaning, Islamism symbolizes, not unlike any other ideological construct, a particular socio-political outlook on (socio-)political arrangements which is inspired by a specific interpretation of Islamic religious beliefs. As such, Islamism is promoted and understood to be a self-sufficient guide to moral ascendancy within a particular society. Islamism, as defined in this study, translates into a wide spectrum of religious beliefs, practices, values, and moral commitments which are ideologically framed by social movement organizations and translated into various modes of mobilization.

Consequently, wide-ranging interpretations and practical applications of an Islamist framework produce an even wider range of strategic and operational practices. A rough distinction can be made between violent and nonviolent Islamist SMO practices. Violent strategies have been given a large amount of scholarly attention (Kepel 1993; 2006; Gerges 2007), nonviolent means less so (Wickham 2002). On the nonviolent side, an obvious focus

195 of this study, one finds organizations which mobilize their efforts both politically and socially, often simultaneously132 _{(Munson 2002; Clark 2004; Gardell 2005; IRIN 2006). This}

means that Islamists actively pursue the reformation of social and political spheres through the conscious usage of modern political instruments, but at the same time employ symbolical tools inspired by religious tradition(s) (Wiktorowicz 2004a, 2-4).

In other words and as previously noted, Islamism partly represents “political responses to today’s social challenges by imagining a future, the foundations for which rest on reappropriated, reinvented concepts borrowed from the Islamic tradition” (Hefner 2005, 6). And it is partly a set of responses to, “the failures of authoritarian nationalist governments [in the Muslim majority states], and the socio-economic divisions that have been exacerbated by neo-liberal globalization.” The failures of state regimes and the effects of predatory economic policies have amplified already existing popular grievances amongst the up-and-coming middle classes which were excluded from access to political power, and, for the most part, economic prosperity (Turner 2003, 140).

Based on such an understanding, one can argue that Islamists, such as the Muslim Brothers, are products of both socio-political circumstances and modern political concepts such as nationhood, liberalism, democracy, market economy etc. The MB represents a reaction to the middle-classes’ sense of socio-political alienation by packaging its message into a familiar expressive format and offering broadly formulated solutions to the popular grievances of the conservative masses. It therefore follows that the Islamists’ quest for authenticity begins by invoking and translating the past in order to find solutions to present grievances. This has made them an attractive alternative to the repressive regime(s) (see Kurzman 2003b; Abootalebi 2003; for contemporary development see Irfan 2011; Goldstein 2011). In this quest, Islamists are far from being unique (see Halliday 2005, 210-220), as they represent a religious dimension of modernity which continuously searches for inimitability.

Moreover, the promoters of Islamism directly challenged traditional religious authority. As argued in the section 4.4, this authority (the Mufti and Shaykh Al-Azhar) did accept

132 _{Functions which enable them to conduct social work such as providing health care, shelter and}

other assistance to the needy in a society. Being active throughout civil society, they are actively gathering popular political support as part of the mobilization process.

196 and, at the very least, passively supported the repressive regime, primarily on the grounds of religious principles. On the other hand, the MB and other Islamist SMOs (Islamic Group etc.) challenged the regime’s legitimacy on the basis of similar principles. This struggle for authority and interpretation of religious doctrines has been most clear in the case of the puritan salafis whose religious scholars had enormous influence over the trajectory of the salafi religious revivalist mobilization (see Haykel 2009).

The MB has depended on the religious scholarship of a selective number of scholars (Yusuf Al-Qaradawi being the most prominent), however, the MB never allowed the rhetoric of these scholars to dominate their socio-political agenda. Moreover, their political and administrative structure, since its inception, has never been dominated by them, or indeed any other religious leaders or imams. As demonstrated previously, the core leadership of the MB has always consisted primarily of professionals. It can thus be argued that Islamism, in the case of the MB, is a religiously inspired mobilization framework aimed at producing social change. This type of mobilization usually aspires to encouraging collective piety in the course of producing socially responsible civil servants and administrators, and in recent decades, fully fledged politicians.

The MB’s Islamism supplies its activists with a certain set of diagnostics about the socio- political challenges they have experienced. Diagnostics are, as previously described, turned into specific solutions, which are culturally recognizable, contextually informed and simplified so as to appeal to the broadest number of social agents (Buechler 1993, 222). The MB’s moral framework and moral obligations are transmitted to sympathizers and potential activists early on in the recruitment process. Similar SMO recruiting processes can be found elsewhere (see Klandermans 1984; Klandermans and Oegema 1987; Neuman 1998). Essentially, Islamist and other types of SMOs are addressing an important question; namely, how does a social agent become convinced by organizational goals and strategies?

The MB is addressing a variety of audiences with a special focus on the conservative middle-classes and in order to attract wide support, the organization employs a morally