Publications
Monographs
Barras, A. (2024). Faith in Rights: Christian-Inspired NGOs at Work in the United Nations. Stanford University Press. 234 pages.
This book explores why and how Christian nongovernmental organizations conduct human rights work at the United Nations. The book interrogates the idea that the secular and the religious are distinct categories, and more specifically that human rights, understood as secular, can be neatly distinguished from religion. It argues that Christianity is deeply entangled in the texture of the United Nations and shapes the methods and areas of work of Christian NGOs.
Selby, J., Barras, A., Beaman, L. (2018). Rethinking Reasonable Accommodation: Muslims and the Navigation and Negotiation of the Everyday. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press. 179 pages.
Problems of integration, failed political participation, and requests for various kinds of accommodation seem to dominate the social scientific research on Muslims in Canada, the United States, and Western Europe. Beyond Accommodation: Everyday Narratives of Muslim Canadians offers a different perspective, showing how Muslim Canadians successfully navigate and negotiate their religiosity in the more mundane moments of their everyday lives. (Information and purchase).
Barras, A. (2014). Refashioning Secularisms in France and Turkey: The Case of the Headscarf Ban. London: Routledge. 170 pages.
Over the past few years, secularism has become an intrinsic component of discussions on religious freedom and religious governance. The question of whether states should restrict the wearing of headscarves and other religious symbols has been particularly critical in guiding this thought process.
Refashioning Secularisms in France and Turkey documents how, in both countries, devout women have contested bans on headscarves, pointing to how these are inconsistent with the ‘real’ spirit of secularism. These activists argue that it is possible to be simultaneously secular and religious; to believe in the values conveyed by secularism, while still remaining devoted to their faith. Through this examination, the book highlights how activists locate their claims within the frame of secularism, while at the same time revisiting it to craft a space for their religiosity.
Edited Collection
Barras, A; Selby, J and Adrian, M. (2022). Producing Islam (s) in Canada: On Knowledge, Positionality and Politics. University of Toronto Press.
During the last twenty years, public interest in Islam and how Muslims express their religious identity in Western societies has grown exponentially. In parallel, the study of Islam in the Canadian academy has grown in a number of fields since the 1970s, reflecting a diverse range of scholarship, positionalities, and politics. Yet, academic research on Muslims in Canada has not been systematically assessed. (Information and Purchase)
Barras, A., Nicolet, S., Dermange, F. (2016). Réguler le Religieux dans les Sociétés Libérales? (eds). Geneva : Labor et Fides. 208 pages.
How do we regulate religiosity today in public spaces, and with whom? The presence of new religions in European public spaces has proven a major challenge. This collective work takes note of this evolution and proposes to treat a certain number of pressing questions, such as what shape does religious freedom take today? How do we manage religious diversity in education and prisons? What are the impacts of globalization on the religious and its management? This edited collection brings together the voices of thirteen international researchers in ethics, sociology, political science, religious studies and law. (Information and Purchase).
Journal Articles
Barras, A. (2021). Formalizing secularism as a regime of restrictions and protections: The Case of Quebec (Canada) and Geneva (Switzerland). Canadian Journal of Law and Society. Online First.
Barras, A., Saris, A. (2020). Gazing into the World of Tattoos: An Invitation to Reconsider how we Conceptualize Religious Practices. Studies in Religion. Online.
Barras, A., Selby, J., Beaman, L., Selby, J. (2020). Analyse des processus qui structurent le Canada séculier”. Social Compass.
Barras, A. (2019). A rights based discourse to contest the boundaries of state secularism? The case of the headscarf ban in France and Turkey. In Fokas E., and Richardson, J. (Eds). In The European Court of Human Rights and Minority Religions. Routledge. 104-127.
Barras, A. (2018). Reasonable Accommodation. In Holtmann, C. (Ed.), Exploring Religion and Diversity in Canada - People, Practice and Possibility. Cham: Springer.
Dabby, D., Barras, A. (2018). Bent out of shape: fictions of yoga and religion before the courts. Religion & Human Rights 13:3.
Barras, A., Selby, J., Beaman, L. (2018). Rethinking Canadian Discourses of ‘Reasonable Accommodation’”. Social Inclusion 6:2.
Beaman, L., Barras, A. Selby, J. (2018). Le Terroriste, l’Homme éclairé et le Patriarche: les figures qui hantent le quotidien des musulmanes. Anthropologie et Société.
Barras, A. (2018). Travelogue of secularism: Longing to find a place to call home. European Journal of Women’s Studies. 1-16.
Barras, A. (2017). French Laïcité. In Zuckerman, P., and Shook, J. (Eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Secularism. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 142-155.
Barras, A. (2017). France citizenship in the aftermath of 2015: officializing a two-tier system? Citizenship Studies. 21:8. 918-936.
Barras, A. (2016). Exploring the intricacies and dissonances of religious governance: The case of Quebec and the discourse of request. Critical Research on Religion. 4.1. 57-71
Beaman, L., Selby, J., and Barras, A. (2016). No Mosque, No Refugees: Some Reflections on Syrian Refugees and the Construction of Religion in Canada. In Mavelli, L., and Wilson, E. (Eds.), The Refugee Crisis and Religion: Secularism, Security and Hospitality. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.
Barras, A., and Nicolet, S. (2016). Introduction: Réguler le religieux dans les sociétés libérales? In Barras, A., Dermange, F., and Nicolet, S. (Eds.), Réguler le Religieux dans les Sociétés Libérales. Geneva: Labor et Fides. 9-19.
Barras, A., Selby, J., and Beaman, L. (2016). Religion as Visible and Invisible in Public Institutions: Canadian Muslims Public Servants. In Berger, B., and Moon, R. (Eds.), Religion and the Exercise of Public Authority. Portland: Hart Publishing 2016. 95-111.
Barras, A., and Dabby, D. (2014). Only Skin Deep: Revising the Secular Narrative through Circumcision? A study of recent case-law. In Shipley, H. (Ed.), Globalized Religion and Sexuality. Leiden: Brill. 86- 109.
Barras, A. (2013). Considering the gender dimension of debates on the Muslim ‘other’. In Behloul, S., Tunger-Zanetti, A., and Leuenberger, S. (Eds.), Debating Islam. Bielefeld: Transcript Publishing House. 81-99.
Barras, A. (2013). Sacred laïcité and the politics of religious resurgence in France: wither religious freedom? Mediterranean Politics 18. 2. 276 -293.
Barras, A., Guillaume, X. (2013). The Safety of Authenticity: Ali Kebap and the Swiss political imaginary of foreignness. European Journal of Cultural Studies 16.3. 310-328.
Barras, A. (2012). Transnational understandings of secularism and the right to religious freedom – exploring UN and ECHR cases. Journal of Human Rights 11.2. 263-279.
Barras, A. (2010). A rights based discourse to contest the boundaries of state secularism? The case of the headscarf ban in France and Turkey. In Haynes, J. (Ed.), Religion and Democractizations. London: Routledge. 197-221.
Barras, A. (2009). A rights based discourse to contest the boundaries of state secularism? The case of the headscarf ban in France and Turkey. Democratization 16.6. 1237 – 1260.
Book Chapters
Barras, A. (forthcoming). Gender and religion playing hide and seek at the United Nations? A reflection on the place of the secular and the post-secular at the Human Rights Council. In Pasche Guignard, F., and Larouche, C. Corps in/visibles: genre, religion et politique. Presses de l’Université Laval.
Selby, J., Barras, A., and Adrian, M. (2022). Introduction: Producing Islam(s) and Muslims in Canada. In Barras, A., Selby, J; and Melanie, A.. (Eds.) In Producing Islam(s) in Canada. Toronto University Press. 31 pages.
Selby, J.; Barras, A., and Beaman, L. (2022). Who are “Muslims in Canada?’ Analysis of the Qualitative Literature from 1997-2017. In Barras, A., Selby, J and Melanie, A. (Eds.) In Producing Islam(s) in Canada. Toronto University Press. 44 pages.
Barras, A. (2019). “A rights based discourse to contest the boundaries of state secularism? The case of the headscarf ban in France and Turkey.” In Fokas E., Richardson, J. (Eds). In The European Court of Human Rights and Minority Religions. Routledge. 104-127.
Barras, A. (2018). Reasonable Accommodation. In Holtmann, C. (Ed.), Exploring Religion and Diversity in Canada - People, Practice and Possibility. Cham: Springer.
Barras, A. (2017). French Laïcité. In Zuckerman, P., Shook, J. (Eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Secularism. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 142-155.
Beaman, L., Selby, J., Barras, A. (2016). No Mosque, No Refugees: Some Reflections on Syrian Refugees and the Construction of Religion in Canada. In Mavelli, L., Wilson, E. (Eds.), The Refugee Crisis and Religion: Secularism, Security and Hospitality. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.
Barras, A., Nicolet, S. (2016). Introduction: Réguler le religieux dans les sociétés libérales? In Barras, A., Dermange, F., Nicolet, S. (Eds.), Réguler le Religieux dans les Sociétés Libérales? Geneva: Labor et Fides. 9-19.
Barras, A., Selby, J., Beaman, L. (2016). Religion as Visible and Invisible in Public Institutions: Canadian Muslims Public Servants. In Berger, B., Moon, R. (Eds.), Religion and the Exercise of Public Authority. Portland: Hart Publishing 2016. 95-111.
Barras, A., Dabby, D. (2014). Only Skin Deep: Revising the Secular Narrative through Circumcision? A study of recent case-law. In Shipley, H. (Ed.), Globalized Religion and Sexuality. Leiden: Brill. 86- 109.
Barras, A. (2013). Considering the gender dimension of debates on the Muslim ‘other’. In Behloul, S., Tunger-Zanetti, A., Leuenberger, S. (Eds.), Debating Islam. Bielefeld: Transcript Publishing House. 81-99.
Barras, A. (2010). A rights based discourse to contest the boundaries of state secularism? The case of the headscarf ban in France and Turkey. In Haynes, J. (Ed.), Religion and Democractizations. London: Routledge. 197-221.
Book Reviews and Review Essays
Barras, A. (2017). Excavating the political laden within the texture of religious freedom. [Review of the essay Politics of Religious Freedom by ?] Journal of Religious and Political Practice (JRPP) 3 .1. 75-79.
Barras, A. (2015). Review of Religion and politics in the European Union. [Review of the book The Secular Canopy by François Foret]. Politics and Religion 9. 208-211.
Barras, A. (2013). [Review of the book After Secularism: Rethinking Religion in Global Politics, by Erin K. Wilson]. Politics and Religion 6.2 (2013): 453-455.
Barras, A. (2010). [Review of the book Casting Out. The Eviction of Muslims from Western Law & Politics, by Sherene Razack]. Muslim World Journal of Human Rights 6.1 (2010).
Barras, A. (2008). [Review of the book Why French Don’t Like Headscarves? Islam, the State, and Public Space, by John Bowen]. European Journal of Development Research 20.1 (2008): 158-165.
Barras, A. (2007). [Review of Keepers of the Flame: Understanding Amnesty International, by Stephen Hopgood]. European Journal of Development Research 19.3. 498-500.
Barras, A. (2006). [Review of Out of Place, by Edward Said]. Naked Punch Brave New Discourse on Philosophy and Art 6, March.
Barras, A. (2004). On Irshad Manji. Canadian Journal of Feminist Spirituality, Vox Feminarum 3.3, April.
Policy Reports, Essays, Blog entries and working papers:
Barras, A., Adrian, M., Selby, J. (2018, April 18). Digital project in the classrooms [Blog post]. The Immanent Frame.
Barras, A., Dabby, D. (2018, March 29). Circumscribing the Body Politic: Circumcision, Religious Freedom and Identity in Europe [Blog post]. ReligionFactor.
Barras, A., Nicolet, S. (2017). Régulation du religieux et tolérance religieuse – de faux amis? Revue des Cèdres (2017).
Barras, A. (2015). Contemporary Laïcité: the Crafting of a New Invented Tradition. Migration and Citizenship Newsletter 3.2: American Political Science Association. 24-29.
Barras, A. (2015, February 24). Values and violence: Thoughts on Charlie Hebdo [Blog post]. The Immanent Frame: Off the Cuff.
Barras, A. (2012, Spring). Devout Turkish Women Struggle for Full Citizenship. Middle East Report 262. 32-35.
Barras, A. (2009, January). Religion and Human Rights: a Rights & Democracy Roundtable Report: Emerging Human Rights Issues (Report). Rights & Democracy.
Barras, A. (2008, June). Reinventing secularism in France and Turkey. European Institute Working Papers: Mediterranean Programme Series RSCAS 2008/20.
Work Under-Review or in Progress
Barras, A. (In Progress). Faith in Rights: Christian-inspired NGOs at work in the United Nations. Monograph, contract with Stanford University Press.
Barras, A. (In Progress). Exploring the translation work of faith-based actors at the Human Rights Council.