Distinguished Professor Ali Riaz has recently published two new book chapters. In the chapter titled Construction and Reconstruction of the identity of the Bangladeshi diaspora in the U.K. and the U.S. Riaz argues that the Bangladeshi community has undergone perceptual shifts in their identification with the ‘home’ and the ‘host’ countries. These perceptual shifts have contributed to the construction and reconstruction of various identities. He argues that in the case of the Bangladeshi diaspora, the transformation, especially as the marker of identity, has followed a particular trajectory. In the early stage of their migration, the group identity was based on their culture, that is common language, heritage, rituals, practices, and solidarity groupings. As is the case with any migrant community, culture served as the context of and gave rise to a particular identity. However, the expansion of community and generational variation brings changes to culture and paves the way for identities to diverge from cultural contexts. The diasporic identity has given rise to a hyphenated identity of the community—and this was palpable among the Bangladeshi diaspora with the rise of Bangladeshi-American/British-Bangladeshi identities. Subsequently, a sizable segment of the community not only transcended the ‘traditional’ cultural identity, but their marker of identity transcended their host country’s ‘geography-bound’ national identity as well. They embraced a globalized identity based on religion. The chapter is included in the book Bangladesh on a New Journey: Moving Beyond the Regional Identity, edited by Sreeradha Datta and published by Bloomsbury.
In his chapter on Bangladeshi politics, in the edited volume titled An Introduction to South Asian Politics, Riaz has periodized Bangladesh’s political history into six eras. The chapter discusses the chronological political developments since 1972 and examines the economic growth experienced by the country, especially since the 1990s, its relationships with the countries in the region, and its capacity to manage internal conflicts. The chapter underscores the potential of the country owing to its geostrategic location, homogeneity of its citizens, and resilience of the people, but warns that unless the current political course is reversed, the country which was established with a promise of inclusive democracy and egalitarianism, will fail to reach its potential. The book is edited by Neil DeVotta and published by Routledge.
