Project Overview
Overview
It is my hope that this work can contribute to a growing literature highlighting the agency of Muslim women in Indonesia and elsewhere as well as diversity within the global umma. More specifically, I discuss the experiences of women musicians as they relate to gender constructs surrounding career and family, and place these experiences in dialogue with the more prevalent discussion of dangdut singers.
For overviews of the four case studies I pursued in August 2018, visit my case studies page.
The Researcher: Rebecca Selin
I am a second year master's student in Southeast Asian Studies and 2018 CWPS Fellow at the University of Michigan. My interest in Indonesia began when studying Javanese gamelan as an undergraduate geology student at Oberlin College. Living in Bandar Lampung (Sumatra) as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in 2015-2016, I was struck by the disconnect between international portrayals of Indonesia and lived experiences of Indonesians, especially as Indonesian Islamic practice quickly adapts to globalization. While Indonesia is overwhelming Muslim, most foreigners equate tourist destination Hindu Bali with the Indonesian nation. Understanding the diversity of global Islam, and the agency of practicing Muslim women, is tantamount to overcoming present international issues of agoraphobia.