Muslim women perform their behavior and dress as self-discipline enacted by surveillance

Evidence

In an attempt to escape the gaze and control the narrative about Islam, Muslim American women were purposeful in how they navigated public spaces. Muslim American women altered their dress, made attempts to smile more and appear assertive, and tried to perform what they saw as American values to the public. Many women told me they felt it was their duty as Muslims to represent Islam in a positive light and in order to counter the stereotypes that have racialized them. Monitoring one’s behavior and actions like this is a form of self-­discipline enacted by the threat of surveillance. — , Selod, Saher - Forever Suspect_…, 486

Categorization

• DEFINE: Concretely defines self-discipline as self-monitoring behavior enacted under the threat of surveillance.
• XREF: connects to: The Muslim woman functions as a fixed stereotype absorbing cross-discourse readings; American-born Muslim women are assaulted for being recognizably Muslim; Media coverage of Muslim women collapses them into an oppressed-or-dangerous binary — Arsalan Iftikhar, Fear of a Muslim Planet_ Global…, 407 (+23 more)

Broader Connections

• Racialized surveillance gets internalized by Muslim American children as self-discipline #corroborates (0.80) — , Selod, Saher - Forever Suspect_…, 546
• The hijab rather than skin tone triggers racializing surveillance of Muslim women #corroborates (0.70) — Saher Selod, Forever Suspect_ Racialized…, 292
• Some hijab-wearing women resist surveillance by reclaiming public space #complicates (0.70) — , Selod, Saher - Forever Suspect_…, 500