Locating Black Muslim Life: Critical Race, Intersectional & Transnational Feminist Approaches to Securitization

This literature review will draw from Black feminist scholars (Crenshaw, 1991; Browne, 2015) to explore how the imagined migrant-as-threat narrative, is a racist discourse which influences Canadian and U.S. policies and legislation such as the Travel Ban, War on Terror and Anti-Terrorism Act (Bill C-51) and constitutes a form of securitization that targets certain migrants. Specifically, securitization is the process of placing certain individuals into an identity-based profile built on racist constructs such as the “terrorist”; these individuals are categorized as criminals engaging in harmful behaviour that is allegedly threatening to society, national security, and the state. However, there are research gaps within the field of securitization. I argue that the securitization process does not encompass the intersections of Islam, gender and Blackness. I propose to integrate a critical race, intersectional and transnational feminist approach to understand how laws and policies such as Bill C-51 targets Black Muslims. Thus, these perspectives can provide a more nuanced approach to understanding the experiences of Black migrants globally undergoing the securitization process which limits their ability to travel, migrate, and navigate spaces.