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Aim: Focusing on drinking and partying among young Muslim women in Denmark, our aim was to examine how the drinking practices of young Muslim women are influenced by belonging, understood as sentiments of (national) belonging as well as the broader (politicised) discourse on Muslims in Denmark. Methods and data: Based on 32 qualitative in-depth interviews with young Muslim women, this paper explores their drinking practices as situated in a national youth culture highly influenced by alcohol intoxication. We draw on Nira Yuval-Davies’ (2006) distinction between belonging (as emotional attachment) and the politics of belonging. Findings: We found that the young women attempt to avoid negative comments based on stereotypes of Muslims and their drinking, by toning down being a Muslim. In addition, we showed how the difficulties of drinking alcohol while being both Muslim and Danish leads to several of the young women experiencing an ‘identity crisis’. Lastly, we found that a way for the studied women to reconcile Muslim and Danish identities is through faith, namely through actively choosing what kind of Muslim they want to be. Conclusion: Being part of a national youth culture of alcohol intoxication is inevitably dilemma-filled for the study's participants and they are challenged in their belonging. We argue that these dilemmas do not stand alone, but rather point to the broader predicaments of these women in Danish society.

Purpose This paper aims to explore the existence of drinking stories among young Muslim women in Denmark. More specifically, the author investigates the significance of having a double audience (one Muslim, one Danish) for the construction of narratives about alcohol and intoxication. Design/methodology/approach The paper draws on qualitative data from semi-structured in-depth interviews with 32 young Muslim women (average age 23 years) and uses the analytical concept of storytelling. Findings Firstly, the narratives are qualitatively different from majority narratives, revealing distinct Muslim minority experiences. Secondly, the stories are disrupted in more serious ways than majority drinking stories. Lastly, for some young women, there is no wriggle room, and rather than being part of stories of intoxication, they subvert the drinking story into sober narratives to uphold respectable norms around alcohol while being both Muslim and Danish. Originality/value This research is unique in its focus on alcohol and parties among Muslim minority youth in a white-majority country. The narratives would usually be overlooked in a drinking story context because of the association between Muslims and abstinence and because the drinking story literature originates from a narrower focus on young white men’s experiences. Including more ethnic, religious and gender-diverse minorities in future research on drinking stories will challenge our knowledge in the field and add much-needed nuances.

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