ABSTRACT
This chapter is the first of two chapters that treat the conflictual relationship between the revivalist network and the British political authorities. They are engaged in a cultural and political struggle concerning perspectives, values and a way of life, as well as the authority to determine them. Chapters 5 and 6 demonstrate how this conflict has both symbolic and practical dimensions. The symbolic dimension of the conflict is evident in competing efforts to classify – and to command the authority to classify – the ‘correct’ understanding of what fundamental social values are, what counts as ‘extremism’ and what Islam is. There is also a practical dimension, which concerns the institutional and legal structures that regulate peoples’ lives. This chapter shows how these two dimensions of conflict overlap in the fields of political advocacy and local governance. It is particularly evident in revivalist groups’ efforts to undermine the government’s counter-extremism strategy both symbolically (where concepts such as ‘extremism’ are contested) and practically (where changes in government policy are sought through protest, advocacy or testimony).
