THEORETICAL-METHODOLOGICAL REFLECTIONS FOR A DECOLONIAL RESEARCH IN TIMES OF SECURITIZATION OF ISLAM

In this article, I present a theoretical-methodological reflection derived from my research on the securitization policies and processes concerning Muslim individuals in Spain, in the post-9/11 era. I argue for the urgency of decolonizing research on Islam and Muslim communities for two main reasons: the prevalence of the securitization paradigm in their study and intervention, and the legitimization of policies of criminalization, stigmatization, and precarization through academic-institutional collaboration and the influence of security agents. From a decolonial feminist perspective, I highlight the importance of using the decolonizing horizon as a guide, the need to adapt methodologies to the researcher's positionality in relation to Muslim communities, and the imperative to focus attention on institutional practices of domination.