Reconstructing the narratives around young Muslim men in the GTA

Abstract

This research explores the narratives of young Muslim men and challenges social work practitioners to be more critical about their own implicit biases towards them. Existing literature on young Muslim men have not focused on the positive narratives that I personally and professionally know of them. This research examined the harmful impact the historical and current master narrative has on young Muslim men. This was a qualitative study examining Canadian Muslim men. Participants were interviewed through open-ended questions to examine how they continued to thrive regardless of the problematic notions that surround them, the strategies they used to navigate to be successful and their self-perception. The findings present a compelling case for rethinking about the way young Muslim men are perceived, using orientalism in reconstructing how we perceive them. In conclusion, although themes were common amongst both participants, the experiences of young Muslim men cannot be generalized. Key words: Young Muslim men, anti-Muslim racism, orientalism, narrative resistance, social work