Hybrid identities: American Muslim women speak

Drawing upon postcolonial theorizing on diasporic positionalities and Homi Bhabha's theorization on ‘third space’ and hybridity, this study shows how young American Muslim women engage in their own interpretations of Islam based on their individual needs and situations. Individual in-depth interviews were conducted with 26 respondents in Ohio and Texas in order to gain insights into the identities of American Muslim women with immigrant backgrounds. Respondents emphasized their own ‘research’ on Islam as an important foundation of their faith. The narratives of the American Muslim women showed that they subverted and transgressed dominant meanings, while negotiating new ones through their everyday lived experiences. However, without indulging in an uncritical celebration of interstitial spaces, this study also strives to highlight the power relations implicit in the performances of complex, hybrid identities in the post-9/11 American context.