Nasar Meer - Multiculturalism, racialisation & nationhood in contemporary Scottishness

Описание: This talk, featuring Professor Nasar Meer (University of Glasgow, United Kingdom), was convened by the Loughborough University Nationalism Network (LUNN) on 22 May 2025

Abstract: This talk draws on qualitative inquiry with politicians, civil servants, and civil society stakeholders in Scotland, to explore how the administrative state grapples with processes of racialization. It is especially interested in the notion that actors report of re-making the idea of ‘Scottishness’, and examines in what ways Scotland's self-image as a civic and inclusive nation is reflected in its public philosophies, political discourse, and policy frameworks. This talk traces these concerns with examples and discussion of institutional racism, religious pluralism, and the perceived limits of multicultural accommodation. This talk reflects on these contradictions and their role in constituting Scotland's evolving national story.

About the speaker:
Nasar Meer is Professor of Social & Political Sciences at the University of Glasgow, Chair of the Academic Committee of The Stuart Hall Foundation (SHF) and Principal Investigator of The Governance and Local Integration of Migrants and Europe's Refugees (GLIMER) (JPI ERA Net). He is the author of
'The Cruel Optimism of Racial Justice' (2022), editor of the four-volume
'Islam and Modernity' (2017) and 'Whiteness and Nationalism' (2020),
and co-editor (with Sealy & Uberoi) of 'The Resilience of Multiculturalism: Ideas Politics and Practice' (2024). He is a Fellow of the British Academy (FBA), the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) and the Academy of Social Sciences (FAcSS), and was previously Professor of Sociology and Director of RACE.ED at the University of Edinburgh, and Professor of Comparative Social Policy at the University of Strathclyde.