The final chapter of the book opens with the following bold statement
participating in sport in predominantly Muslim countries explain how they have
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participating in sport in predominantly Muslim countries explain how they have the support of men, e.g., ‘[I had the] support of my family, my brothers, and later on from my husband, who believed in the woman’s role in society and her ability to make a difference... he understands and supports the careers in sport of myself and my daughter’ (p. 151). It is this support which makes their partici- pation possible and which, given the broader context in each case, would also presumably make them untypical in most of the societies they are writing about. Most chapters state that there is nothing within the Quran that should make women’s participation in sport problematic, in fact quite the reverse, but the dif- ficulty is that ‘religious principles became confused and intertwined with cultural overlays’ (p. 29). Surely it is these cultural overlays which need to be identified and where necessary challenged, and applying serious feminist critique is perhaps one way this could be achieved. The best chapters are those written by the editors; chapter two provides useful background information, and the conclusion pulls together key themes and identi- fies important differences (e.g., which Muslim countries demand that Muslim women engaging in sport must or must not wear the Hijab). The differences are particularly interesting as they emerge precisely because of cultural overlay, and provide women with examples different from their own experience and a way for- wards that need not be about adopting non-Muslim values. I sensed some walking on egg shells in the way the editors use the words of others to make political points, for example: Waljee (2008, p. 99) discusses gender relations, identifying how they come about by an Islam ‘interpreted for them by men’, and Amara (2007, p. 534) who stresses the distinction between ‘Islam as a belief system and Islam as a cultural form, interpreted, conceived and manipulated by nation states, political movements and different interest groups to legitimate their political agenda, social conduct and (sometimes pre-Islamic) practices’ (p. 28). Book reviews 889 Perhaps the most uplifting chapter is chapter 10, authored by two women and two men, all Europe-based, which perhaps explains why it appears more ‘brave’ than other chapters. This chapter includes empirical data (as does chapter 5) and is therefore able to make the argument through the voices of the Christian and Muslim women’s football team in Palestine. Unlike the situation in some other chapters, where being Muslim tends to be privileged over anything else, in this context ‘the glue that bound all the players together was their common Palestinian identity’ (p. 176). Privileging the common part of their identity allowed for Christians to have drinks breaks in matches during Ramadan, and for stops during bus trips so Muslims could pray, and sometimes for everyone to join in the Rama- dan dinner. This accepting of difference and finding solutions rather than identify- ing problems seems the most humane way forwards, and perhaps worth making the first point of the ‘Accept and Respect’ declaration (p. 5) which led into the conception of the book, and the recommendations of the editors in the concluding chapter (p. 268). Many women, Muslim and other, will be able to identify with particular aspects of the book: A large number of women in B&H [Bosnia and Herzegovina] are university-educated, holding MAs and PhDs in all fields — professor, lawyers/barristers, medical doctors, physicists, engineers, experts, writers, poets and many more. Yet their number is insignificant when it comes to positions of leadership. Men still dominate, even if they are less competent than many women. B&H remains a patriarchal society in many ways. (p. 235) And of course this is not only true in predominantly Muslim countries. In spite of this reviewer’s wish for a more critical edge to have been applied in some of the chapters, this is still an interesting book, the first of its kind and, though variable, clearly good and informative. I conclude with the words of Nour El-Houda Karfoul, writing from a Syrian context (but again applicable to others): ‘The greatest challenge is for the woman herself, her liberation from fear and the influence of some traditions, behaviours and ways of thinking, sometimes imposed in the name of religion’ (p. 152). In the current political climate (as I write there are tanks on the streets of Syrian cities), facing up to this particular challenge will be no mean feat! References Amara, M. (2007) An introduction to the study of sport in the Muslim world, in: B. Houlihan (Ed) Sport and society: A student introduction (2nd edn) (London, Sage), 532–553. Waljee, A. (2008) Researching transitions: Gendered education, marketisation and Islam in Tajikistan, in: S. Fennell & M. Arnot (Eds) Gender education and equality in a global context (London, Routledge), 87–101. Heather Piper Manchester Metropolitan University, UK Ó 2011, Heather Piper DOI: 10.1080/01411926.2011.590879 890 Book reviews Download 29.73 Kb. Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: |
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