Burning Schools/Building Bridges: Ethnographical Touchdowns in the Civil Sphere

This article demonstrates what ethnography can do for cultural sociology by investigating the struggles of Muslim immigrants for multicultural integration in Sweden, and native Swedish resistance to it. The discussion is based on the presupposition that data can speak to us, even “surprise” us, due to the theoretical attentiveness the ethnographer can bring to them. Such notion makes it possible for the reader to see that all possible aspects of encounters in everyday life “carry a meaning other than the simple fact of their existence.” The article considers the position of “cultural autonomy” in what less culturally musical sociologists take to be merely divisive material conflicts over boundary position. It shows that many Muslim immigrants, despite their anger and resentment, still yearn for recognition and for the success of Sweden’s social democratic ideals.