Explaining young British Muslim men’s involvement in heroin and crack
| Date | 01 July 2018 |
| DOI | 10.1177/1748895817704024 |
| Author | Mohammed Qasim |
| Published date | 01 July 2018 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
research-article2017
Article
Criminology & Criminal Justice
2018, Vol. 18(3) 349 –363
Explaining young British
© The Author(s) 2017
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Muslim men’s involvement
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https://doi.org/10.1177/1748895817704024
DOI: 10.1177/1748895817704024
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in heroin and crack
Mohammed Qasim
Swansea University, UK and Gower College Swansea, UK
Abstract
Recent years have seen an upsurge in the numbers of British Muslim men, particularly young
British Muslim men aged from 18–35 involved in the sale of drugs. However, despite this alleged
increase, very little is known as to what motivates young British Muslim men to become involved
with drugs. This has led some commentators to deliberate whether there are perhaps cultural or
religious reasons which may motivate Muslim men to become involved with drugs. This article,
which is taken from a four-year phenomenological study (2010–2014) with a social group of
young British Pakistani Muslim men who traded in heroin and crack argues that the young men
(also known as The Boys) were not motivated by religious or cultural reasons but were instead
motivated by a number of underlying issues. Factors such as deprivation, a need for status, the
challenge of finding suitable paid employment, a reluctance to work in jobs that could affect status
were all possible factors which explained why The Boys were involved in drugs.
Keywords
Deprivation, drug dealing, heroin and crack, status, young Muslim men
Introduction
The framing of the issue of illicit drug supply and consumption in Britain involves many
stereotypes and assumptions (Manning, 2007); these include the apparently close rela-
tionship that particular ethnic minority groups have with drug dealing (Patel and
Wibberley, 2002). While ethnic minority young men and particularly black youth living
in the UK have a relatively long history of being associated with the illegal drugs trade,
British Pakistani youth up until the past two decades were absent from the drugs debate,
Corresponding author:
Mohammed Qasim, Swansea University, Singleton Park Campus, Swansea, SA28PP, UK.
Email: mohammed101@hotmail.co.uk
350
Criminology & Criminal Justice 18(3)
being seen as having a low crime rate and being less likely to be involved with drugs
(Mawby and Batta, 1980; Quraishi, 2005; Wardak, 2000). However, in recent years,
starting from the late 1990s there has been an alleged increase in the numbers of Muslim
drug dealers and particularly those of Pakistani ethnicity (see also Bolognani, 2009;
Macey, 2002; Webster, 1996).
The city of Bradford, home to the largest Pakistani population outside of London is one
of a number of places in the UK which has seen an alleged increase in the numbers of
Pakistani men involved with drug dealing. As Bolognani (2009) and other commentators
have noted, whereas in the past the drug market in Bradford was controlled by individuals
of an Afro-Caribbean origin, it has now been taken over by young men of Pakistani origin.
The area of Manningham, the neighbourhood in which the young men in the study reside
had a reputation as a being a place where substantial drug activity took place, so much so
that The Boys themselves would jokingly say, ‘if they [drugs] ain’t in Manningham then
they’re probably ain’t anywhere’. The authorities have the same perception of the area. In
sentencing a drug dealer, Judge Alistair McCallum spoke out about Manningham, claiming
that: ‘[o]ne million pounds of heroin is sold on Manningham Lane every day’ […] It is a
shocking situation and a lot of our young folk are ending up as heroin addicts’ (Loweth,
2013). Significant numbers of young Pakistani men in Bradford are understood to sell on
the streets at the bottom end of the drug dealing spectrum, and commentators such as
Macey (2002), have speculated as to the religious or cultural factors that may have influ-
enced this move into drug dealing by young British Pakistani Muslim men. However, little
research has actually been conducted with young British Pakistani men who trade in drugs.
This article therefore seeks to illuminate a little understood area of criminological
research, through hearing the voices of young British Pakistani drug dealers themselves.
This article essentially argues that religious and cultural reasons did not motivate The
Boys towards criminality but rather that there were a number of underlying factors which
could explain why the young men became involved in drugs, factors such as deprivation,
unemployment and the need for status.
Methods
This article is drawn from a qualitative phenomenological study of the lives of a social
group of 19 young Bradford-born Pakistani men who traded in drugs. The Boys were
aged from 18–31 years and lived in a close knit Pakistani community of Bradford.
Fieldwork for this research was conducted over a relatively lengthy period – starting
from December 2010 to November 2014. Data for this study were collated principally
through participant observation and through in-depth interviews with The Boys.
Why Phenomenology?
Phenomenology, based on the work of the philosopher, Edmund Husserl, attempts to get
to the truth of matters in the broadest sense. It attempts to understand the lived experi-
ences of the people involved (Greene, 1997; Holloway, 1997; Robinson and Reed, 1998).
Moustakas (1994) notes phenomenology helps determine what an experience means for
the persons who have had the experience and as Finlay (2009: 9) concisely illustrates this
Qasim
351
is because the role of the phenomenological researcher is ‘to go beyond surface expres-
sions or explicit meanings to read between the lines so as to access implicit dimensions
and intuitions’.
It is important to note that while other qualitative approaches such as ethnography
would have helped understand the life worlds of the young British Pakistani Muslim
men, these alone would not have allowed the researcher to understand the essence of the
phenomenon – which was to understand life as it was lived by young British Pakistani
Muslim men who traded drugs. Other research methods, as Maxwell (2005: 22) notes,
would have focused on behaviour and events, whereas phenomenology focuses on their
meanings, ‘including cognition, affect and intentions’. However, specific issues arise
from the adoption of a phenomenological approach when studying the lives of those who
offend (Creswell, 2008; Lincoln and Guba, 1985; Moustakas, 1990). These issues – as
discussed below – relate to the nature of the individuals being studied.
Challenges Conducting Phenomenological Studies with
Offenders
One of the foremost challenges when attempting to conduct phenomenological studies of
the lives of those who offend is trying to find suitable participants. This task is made even
more difficult when attempting to locate ethnic minority offenders and in this case young
British Pakistani Muslim men dealing in drugs. It is mentioned that not only can lan-
guage and literacy issues affect access among ethnic minority groups (see Feldman et al.,
2008; Lloyd et al., 2008; McLean and Campbell, 2003), but a lack of trust of outsiders
can make access difficult within Muslim neighbourhoods. It is reported that there are
some Muslims who even question whether qualitative studies on them or their communi-
ties are underhand methods to paint them in negative ways (Ryan et al., 2011). Spalek
(2005) notes how, after 9/11, Muslims were subjected to harassment, and how this made
conducting research on them much more difficult.
One way to address such challenges is to employ researchers who themselves are
Muslims and who can overcome such issues (Quraishi, 2005). Nevertheless, some
Muslim researchers have themselves experienced some of the same difficulties in the
past as those who are non-Muslims. Khan (2013: 98) highlights that ‘the dilemmas are
not any less if you are a Muslim researching Muslims: in many cases they are more’.
Previous studies have shown that there are advantages if the researcher is someone who
is not a stranger to the target population or to the area in which the target group lives
(Parker, 1974). Thus, before embarking on this research the researcher knew the area in
which the young men lived well, and familiarity with the area and acquaintance with the
young men were identified as distinct advantages in approaching the research group and
in gaining their trust.
Reflexivity Was Significant to This Study
Since the target population was criminal and intensely wary of outsiders, the issue of
reflexivity was a dominant methodological concern. The researcher himself is of
Pakistani ethnicity and of Muslim faith and consequently such commonalities helped to
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overcome barriers and gain insights into their lives. The researcher had also once lived
in the city of Bradford; in fact it was while living there that he came to know of The
Boys. The researcher had attended some of the same schools as some of The Boys.
Familiarity with the young men and the area in which they lived were principal explana-
tions for why the researcher decided to make contact with this group. It is important to
note, however, that a researcher who was not known by the target population would have
struggled to gain access and, more importantly, struggled to have understood their lives.
Although he or she may...
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