Subaltern and Hybrid Identities: A Socio Political Discourse of British Muslim Identity

Contemporary British Muslim identity finds itself situated between the legacy of historical colonialism, securitised state policy making, and emergent forms of civic resistance. Through an examination of the production of the concept of “British Muslim-ness” using theories of subalternity, hybridity, and the “Third Space”, a major ontological transformation can be seen to take place. By conducting a Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) on a body of thirty-eight sources, including both primary and secondary texts published between 1990 and 2025, the process of transforming from the “suspect population” under the regime of the “regime of pre-emptive suspicion” to digital counterpublics emerges clearly. It is evident from the findings that state-driven efforts, such as the Prevent Strategy, have traditionally enforced a binary division of “Good Muslim/Bad Muslim”, required compulsory performative liberalism, but ignored subaltern subjectivities. However, contemporary British Muslims tend to circumvent the traditional role of media gatekeeping through digital channels and subaltern bricolage, merging their understanding of Islamic ethics with British civil rights discourses. This process is called “agency switching”, which is exemplified in recent grassroots activism after the Grenfell Tower tragedy and the advent of “Ummah-Nationalism”, a model that integrates global citizenship with spirituality and nationality. In conclusion, British Muslim identity serves as a “Third Space” of hybridity, where resistance against hegemonic surveillance facilitates transcending mere inclusion into constructing an alternative Britishness.