Intersectionality and Muslim Women in Belgium. In Fernandez, N. & Nelson, K. (Eds.). Gendered Lives: Global Issues.

This chapter addresses the intersectional discrimination affecting Muslim women or those perceived as such. Muslim women constitute a diverse group and are often the target of multiple forms of discrimination and subordination. As members of minority groups in Western society, and as migrants or people with a foreign background in most cases, they face difficulties in finding their place in a society that, in spite of its multiculturalism, still places obstacles in the path to the fulfilment of their desired professional and social status. The discrimination of Muslims operates in numerous domains and it targets their religious and racialized belonging. In particular, laws and policies that limit the wearing of religious and cultural symbols and clothing result in the exclusion from employment of those Muslim women who decide to visibly express their religious or cultural belonging. The aim of this chapter is to analyze these facts through recalling concrete life experiences of women and through approaching the discrimination that they live with an intersectional lens.