When I completed my PhD back in 2018 on integration, never did I think it would become such a hotly debated topic in Britain.
Of course, even back then, we had long-standing problems surrounding admittedly sensitive matters of immigration, integration, and identity – with 9/11 and the subsequent so-called ‘War on Terror’ exacerbating social tensions in certain parts of the country.
This included my hometown of Luton, which witnessed the Islamist ‘Butchers of Basra’ demonstrations and the subsequent creation of Tommy Robinson’s English Defence League (EDL).
But there was an international consensus that Britain, for all its flaws, was one of the most successful examples of an advanced, diverse democracy in the modern world.In some ways, Britain remains in a better position than many of its Western counterparts when it comes to cohesion and integration.
According to a recent analysis by the Financial Times, it is less ethnically and racially segregated than the United States, which is a relatively youthful experiment that continues to get to grips with the legacy of slave codes and racial segregation.
The former Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, recently expressed his fears that there was something “demonic” in contemporary American political culture – he has a point.
While it should be noted that the ethnic-minority populations of Western Europe are incredibly diverse, it is safe to say that migrant integration outcomes are generally stronger in the UK when compared to European peers such as France, Germany, and the Netherlands (in large part due to the UK’s dynamic education system and flexible labour market).
Indeed, the March 2021 Sewell report on race and ethnic disparities concluded that “the success of much of the ethnic-minority population in education and, to a lesser extent, the economy, should be regarded as a model for other White-majority countries”.
But all is not well in the UK – being a relatively well-integrated and cohesive society in the western world is like being one of the better sides in the Europa League, as opposed to the Champions League.
It does not carry the weight and prestige it used to, considering the difficulties that have come with rising diversity in the West.Much of the British national conversation over integration, identity, and demographic change surrounds the UK’s Muslim population, which is steadily growing as a proportion of society.
This is not a surprise, considering Islamist extremism continues to be the UK's principal terror threat and the creeping religiously-inspired regulation of the public sphere, which directly challenges the sovereignty of the British state.
There is also an ‘integration paradox’ of sorts, with UK-born British Muslims more likely to identify with their faith first and foremost, when compared with their foreign-born elders, who tend to be less economically, socially, and educationally integrated.
One of the most under-reported developments in Britain is the fact that many younger Muslims are, in many ways, very well integrated – in terms of academic performance, holding well-paid professional jobs, and owning a home.
We need to solve the integration paradox at the heart of Muslim Britain - Rakib Ehsan | Getty Images
They tend to be very politically engaged – over both domestic issues and international affairs. But it appears that many are finding their true home in their Islamic faith – both disillusioned with the liberal secular individualism of modern
British society does not necessarily have the strongest ethnic identity connected to its faraway ancestral homelands. These younger British Muslims are educated, tech-savvy, well-resourced, deeply political, and have their religion at the heart of their personal being.
Modern Britain is at a crossroads – a curious mix of becoming more secular, less Christian, and witnessing the rise of an increasingly influential Islamic conservatism which is based on ‘selective integration’.
This involves making progress in the UK’s educational, economic, social, and political systems whilst keeping a certain degree of cultural distance from the mainstream.For many British Muslims, they appreciate the opportunities, freedoms, rights, and protections afforded to them under British democracy – but I suspect that they have reached the conclusion that the argument for them to culturally assimilate in the UK is dead in the water.
And truthfully, who could blame them when living in a society where there are an estimated 300,000 abortions a year, out-of-wedlock births have been normalised, and millions of the elderly often find themselves feeling lonely?
There needs to be fresh thinking on integration. One of the greatest challenges is whether a bridge can be built between traditional British nationalists and Islamic social conservatives who may share similar social concerns over various forms of moral decay, but are largely at odds over the growing presence of Islam in the UK.