Professor Fethi Mansouri was the Keynote Speaker at the Interdisciplinary Research Symposium on Religion and Migration in Australia and the Pacific on 7 March 2024.
The keynote title was ‘Religion, Intercultural relations and Prejudice in Multicultural Cities’
Whitley College University of Divinity hosted the Interdisciplinary Research Symposium with Action Research Centre Ltd.
Professor Mansouri spoke about how migrants’ daily lived experiences of religion impact their journey of social integration.
He noted that discourses about the intersection between religion and migration tend to perceive there is a risk or incompatibility.
“There’s an overarching argument in the literature, at two levels really. One level…says excess religiosity equals…a risk for society. In particular…amongst groups which are not perceived to be compatible with that particular society. There’s an even bigger argument that has really shaped sociological research in Europe. That the more diversity we have in those societies…the more weakened social cohesion will be.”
Based on research, Mansouri discussed three different policy approaches to religion, using the examples of Australia, the US and France. Specifically, he outlined the findings of a three-year research project called ‘Islamic Religiosity in the West.’
The project findings show that, in reality, there is no clash between living a spiritual Islamic life and being an active citizen. On the contrary, people said their faith encouraged them to actively participate in community life.
Negative media representation of Islam and Muslims fuelled misconceptions about their faith, and in more extreme cases, led to racist encounters. This posed a significant barrier to participants’ feeling social connection and belonging.
Many experts came from diverse fields to share their insights and expertise at the Symposium. Fellow UNESCO Team member Dr. Enqi Weng also spoke at the Symposium.
