Quintan Wiktorowicz - Böcker

" . . . [Will] have an impact on two important fields of scholarship: social movement theory and the study of Islamic activist movements." —John Voll, Georgetown UniversityThis volume represents the first comprehensive attempt to incorporate the study of Islamic activism into social movement theory. It argues that the dynamics, processes, and organization of Islamic activism can be understood as important elements of contention that transcend the specificity of "Islam" as a system of meaning and identity and a basis for collective action. Drawing on extensive fieldwork, the contributors show how social movement theory can be utilized to address a wide range of questions about the mobilization of contention in support of Muslim causes. The book covers myriad examples of Islamic activism (Sunni and Shi'a) in eight countries (Arab and non-Arab), including case studies of violence and contention, networks and alliances, and culture and framing.

Shows how the laws governing civil society are used to regulate Islamic activism in Jordan.The Management of Islamic Activism examines the relationship between the changing nature of state power and patterns of Islamic activism in Jordan. Using extensive fieldwork, the author demonstrates how regimes continue to constrain the organization of Islamic opposition even after the advent of political liberalization. In the case of the Jordanian regime, control has been maintained through the "management of collective action"-the regulation of opposition through a complex array of bureaucratic and legal mechanisms. More specifically, laws governing civil society organizations are manipulated to encourage the formation of moderate Islamic groups while disempowering more radical activists. As a result, the radical activists have formed informal social networks that operate outside the state's control. Composed of like-minded Islamists, these networks evade attempts to manage Islamic activism through a loose web of personal relationships, small group interactions, and informal meetings. A comparison of the Salafis and the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan demonstrates how state management strategies shape these patterns of social movement mobilization.