 | Navigating the Everyday as Middle-Class British-Pakistani Women This ethnographic study of middle-class British-Pakistani women in Manchester explores the sense of belonging they create through recognition and social status. Belonging in these communities is enacted through the performance of different identities--class, ethnicity, nationality, generation, age, religion, and gender--that earn them social power and status among family and friends. To prove they are "model migrants," worthy of respect and recognition, these women perform various and intersecting identities to maximize status and social capital in diverse situations. Far from being passive victims of racial, religious, or cultural discrimination, middle-class British-Pakistani women challenge prejudice against Muslims and British-Pakistanis through certain practices, objects, performances, and relationships, serving as ambassadors for their religious and ethnic identity through their conduct and interaction with others in daily life. Noreen Mirza received her PhD in Social Anthropology from University of Manchester, UK, in 2017, where she is currently a teaching assistant in the School of Social Sciences and at the Alliance Manchester Business School. |
