The Bosnian Muslim Subaltern in Modern Europe: From Myth to Genocide

Balorda, Jasna (2017) The Bosnian Muslim Subaltern in Modern Europe: From Myth to Genocide. In: Unsettling Colonial Modernity in Islamicate Contexts. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, pp. 151-167. ISBN 9781443873178

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Abstract

In this paper, I will apply the theory of Orientalism onto the Bosnian setting by looking at its history in the context of European modernity and argue that being a part of this hegemonic enterprise, first as a part of Austria-Hungary and later as a part of Yugoslavia, has resulted in both legal and more subtle forms of identity oppression of Bosnian Muslims, within which, they are continuously seen as traitors of Europe and collaborators of the Islamic enemy. Moreover, I will present results from my doctoral thesis, which show, based on a discourse analysis of the various local media, that even the anti-Muslim genocide propaganda of the 90-ies uses largely 19th century European stereotypes of Muslims, as defined by Michael Sells, which portray this population as a foreign body in Europe, that needs to be ethnically cleansed. In conclusion, I argue that Bosnian Muslim identity in modern Europe contains conflicting elements, partially understanding itself as pro-European, loyal subaltern, enthusiastically awaiting Bosnia’s accession to the European union and another, darker, sarcastic awareness of the harmful consequences of European modernity, it’s hypocritical policies, capitalist
greed and finally even the idea that the Bosnian genocide itself is a result of a larger, long lasting European attempt to cleanse itself from Islamic contaminants.

Item Type:	Book Section
Faculty / Department:	Faculty of Education and Social Sciences > School of Social Sciences
Depositing User:	Jasna Balorda
Date Deposited:	20 Jan 2025 16:31
Last Modified:	20 Jan 2025 16:31
URI:	https://hira.hope.ac.uk/id/eprint/4555

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