| What is the relationship between Islam and democracy? Scholars (and policymakers) have often treated this question as if there is an absolute, correct answer---as though both are stable concepts with universally applicable meanings for people with very different faiths in very different circumstances. This project, which explores the connection between discourse on sharia (Islamic law) implementation and democracy in contemporary Nigeria, posits that the relationship between Islam and democracy is made not by theology but by practice---by the use of Islamic (and democratic) cultural content for debate and persuasion in the public sphere. There is no stable "relationship" between Islam (or culture) and political outcomes. Instead, research into the construction of public discourse can reveal how cultural content shapes beliefs about and expectations of democracy.;I find that public discourse, often dominated by elites, plays a key role in shaping the symbolic relationship between Islam and democracy in practice, and thus in public opinion. By "framing" public discourse---by emphasizing certain aspects or interpretations of shared values or symbols---elites perform the work of making meaning by providing "shortcuts" between cultural values and political issues. I use a mixed methods approach---including discourse analysis of more than 1,000 newspaper stories on sharia implementation and 14 focus group interviews--- to understand how attempts by elites to "frame" the relationship between Islam and democracy has shaped mass opinion. While sharia conjures up images of illiberal justice in the West (stoning, the oppression of women, theocracy), in Northern Nigeria, political elites eager for political support presented sharia as compatible with democracy---a means of ensuring rights, economic development, and accountability in government. This framing has in turn shaped mass expectations and evaluations of the current Nigerian regime, which is perceived as democratic in as much as it provides a means of obtaining Islamic social goods, and which has endured in spite of the failure of most sharia policies to achieve their promised policy goals. |
