The Image of Islam in Russia

Book excerpt: This book covers the developing and important issue of the role and place of Islam in the increasingly complex dynamics of Russian politics. It is achieved by examining various aspects of Islam and Muslims in Russia from a multidisciplinary perspective. Islam and Muslims are currently at the forefront of popular culture, mass media and political imaginations in the age of the 'Global War on Terrorism'. Frequently, these are for the 'wrong' reasons as they are not well understood, but rather stereotypically misrepresented, often for various political reasons. Russia is also highly stereotyped; the diverse and mysterious country is often misunderstood in terms of the communicated cultural, social and political images. This book is an attempt to expose and analyse the wealth in diversity of Islam and Muslims in Russia, a country where different religions have occupied the same political spaces, for better and worse, for many centuries. The content of this book is focused upon the contemporary social, political, cultural and identity contexts of Russia in terms of the interrelated dynamics and forces that are shaping the relations and place of Islam and Muslims in Russia today. The chapters in this book were originally published in the journal Religion, State & Society.