Islamist movements draw recruits from specific oppressed classes, not a monolithic bloc
Evidence
In the 1980s and 1990s, the Islamists made headway among yet another class—the very poor. This category includes declassed refugees and urban slum-dwellers, as well as those historically oppressed and exploited due to their religion. For instance, Hamas has recruited heavily from the refugee camps created by Israel, and while it has the support of businesspeople, the middle class, merchants, and the wealthy, its leadership and cadre are largely drawn from the refugee camps. This is true too of Hezbollah, whose mainstay is the Shi’a poor in the outskirts of big cities like Beirut, in what is known as the “belt of misery.” Similarly, the Sadrists in Iraq, both in the 1990s and today, draw much of their support and muscle from the slums of Sadr City. — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 345
Categorization
- XREF: Directly connects to the reader’s Palestine question — Hamas’s class base is the refugee camps created by Israel. — connects to: Islamism spans violent and peaceful movements rather than one uniform threat. — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 249; Class position determines whether Islamists adopt moderate or radical tactics — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 346; Islamist groups arise from local conditions, not from anti-American plots — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 376 (+2 more)
Broader Connections
- Common oppression does not necessarily unify the oppressed
#complicates(0.78) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 335 - Class position determines whether Islamists adopt moderate or radical tactics
#expands(0.70) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 346 - Islamist groups arise from local conditions, not from anti-American plots
#corroborates(0.60) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 376 - Ideological signs carry opposing class accents and become sites of struggle
#expands(0.50)