Search results

In 1989, Muslims' concern with freedom of speech and ineffective attempts to prevent the publication of Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses not only crystallised a ‘Muslim consciousness’ but also shed light on the fragmentation of Muslim mobilisation and the lack of ‘communal unity’ that prevented Muslims from having a representative national organisation to lobby the government. In 1997, the institutionalisation of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) under the auspices of a New Labour government filled this gap and empowered Muslims to participate in British governance. In this regard, the MCB has established itself as a key authoritative intermediary between Muslim communities and the British Government, playing a crucial role in the advancement of Muslims' social and religious rights while raising awareness of discrimination and socio-economic disadvantage. In light of this development, this chapter will provide an analysis of the evolution of the British state's engagement and cooperation with the MCB between its launch under New Labour in 1997 and the present. Taking a historical perspective, this chapter will first briefly explain that the implementation of the MCB was meant to overcome the fragmentation and existing divisions within Muslim communities, which were deprived of an effective national representative organisation to represent Muslim interests. It will then underline the fruitfulness of cooperation between the government and the MCB, which coincided with the heyday of multiculturalism and resulted in significant advancements for Muslims in terms of religious rights. The chapter will then depict the British state's shifting relationship with the MCB and disinclination to cooperate with this organisation following the terrorist attacks of 2005.