Nadya Ali: The Violence of Britishness

Pluto Press, 2023, softcover, 176 pages, 13.9 x 21.5 cm

In The Violence of Britishness, Nadya Ali examines the impact of counterterrorism and immigration policy on Muslims and other racially minoritized groups. Dissecting the Prevent strategy, she shows how Muslims have been compelled to reform their conduct to prove their ’Britishness’ or risk being labeled ’extremist’ and made vulnerable to state violence.

Situating her analysis within broader contexts such as the hostile environment, austerity, and the cost-of-living crisis, Ali shows that your rights as a citizen are conditional and dependent upon who the state counts as sufficiently ’British.’

Dr Nadya Ali is a writer and researcher currently working in policy and advocacy in the charity sector. Before this, she worked for over 10 years in Higher Education, researching, publishing, and teaching on the issues of security, borders and race, and racism.