Description
Book SynopsisTrade Review"In Jaffe-Walter's skillful hands, the story inside
Coercive Concern acts as a provocative mirror for those of us living in 'liberal democracies,' revealing the cultural practice of othering in the stark language of exclusion and the soft language of concern."—Michelle Fine, The Graduate Center, CUNY
"This book shows that what appear on the surface to be benign liberal-democratic policies of integration for immigrants in Denmark are experienced by Muslim immigrant youth in their daily school life as not-so-subtle pressures toward assimilation. Jaffe-Walter's compelling narrative uncovers the inherent contradictions within the gentle discipline and punishment of culture difference."—Frederick Erickson, University of California, Los Angeles
"Jaffe-Walter insightfully sheds light on everyday enactments of bias in the educational lives of immigrant youth. This beautifully written, timely book provides important lessons for educators, practitioners, policy makers, and researchers on both sides of the Atlantic."—Carola Suárez-Orozco, co-author of
Learning a New Land: Immigrant Students in American Society"
Coercive Concern is an important book as it sheds light on how the forces of Islamophobia—which affect all those perceived as Muslims—come together to shape realities for youth in schools....
Coercive Concern is an important read for scholars, teachers, academics, and educators who want to challenge the homogenous discourses and curriculum on diversity in classrooms."—Shaireen Rasheed,
ReOrientTable of ContentsIntroduction: Ethnographic Journeys through Concern
1. Producing Liberal National Imaginaries in Relation to Muslim "Others"
2. Integration Policies and Immigration: Creating Ideal Liberal Subjects
3. "Liberalizing" Muslim Girls
4. Negotiating Relationships to Hostlands and Homelands: Portraits of Aliyah, Sara, and Dhalia
5. "I'm Somali by nature, I'm Muslim by choice, and I'm Danish by paper": Narrating Identities in the Figured World of Danes and "Others"
6. Imagining Spaces of Recognition: Teachers' Counter-Narratives and Comparative Sites of Possibility
Conclusion: Seeing Through "the Wall": Interrogating Liberal Blind Spots and Silences
