Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-2-2019
Department 1
Political Science
Abstract
This study examines shifts in governmental religion policy and societal discrimination against religious minorities in Muslim-Majority states after the Arab Uprisings by using the Religion and State round 3 (RAS3) dataset for the years 2009-2014 and by focusing on 49 Muslim-majority countries and territories. We build on threads of literature on religious pluralism in transitional societies to explain the changes in governmental religion policy and societal discrimination against religious minorities after the Arab Uprisings. This literature predicts a rise in all forms of discrimination in Arab Uprising states as compared to other Muslim-majority states, and an even more significant rise in societal religious discrimination since societal behavior can change more quickly than government policy, especially at times of transition. The results partially conform to these predictions. There was no significant difference in the shifts in governmental religion policy between Arab Uprising and other Muslim-Majority states, but societal religious discrimination increased substantially in Arab Uprising states as compared to non-Arab Uprising states. Understanding the nature of religion policies and religious discrimination provides further opportunities to unveil the dynamics of regional politics as well as conflict prevention in the region.
Copyright Note
This is the author's version of the work. This publication appears in Gettysburg College's institutional repository by permission of the copyright owner for personal use, not for redistribution.
DOI
10.20991/allazimuth.424929
Version
Version of Record
Recommended Citation
Akbaba, Yasemin and Jonathan Fox. (2019). Societal Rather than Governmental Change: Religious Discrimination in Muslim-Majority Countries after the Arab Uprisings. All Azimuth, 8, 5-22.
Required Publisher's Statement
This article is also available on the publisher's website: https://dergipark.org.tr/allazimuth/issue/42442/424929
Included in
Islamic Studies Commons, Near and Middle Eastern Studies Commons, Political Science Commons