While this narrative might be partially true for some segments of the broader revivalist constituency, it is less convincing in regards to the members of revivalist organizations. Indeed, empirical inquiries tend to indicate that the Islamic revival in Europe is led by middle and upper-middle class Muslims, whose motivations are not based on social distress. Through an historically-informed narrative, this paper explores the class dynamics attached to the trajectory of the Union des organisations islamiques de France (UOIF), one of the most important Muslim organizations in the French Islamic landscape, drawing its ideological and organizational inspiration from the Muslim Brotherhood. The middle-class identity of UOIF’s members has important implications in terms of strategical orientations, since the organization aims at producing a ‘Muslim elite’ through specific educational institutions and close relations with local political establishments.
This paper is based on a three-year ethnographic study of the UOIF and builds on observations in mosques, Islamic centers, educational institutions, meetings, etc. as well as interviews with activists, archive work and analysis of an original database of the organization’s membership.
