Welcome! I'm an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Queen's University. My research is focused on understanding how Muslim communities navigate mechanisms of exclusion, such as stigma, and how they forge connection and cultivate belonging at work and in the sphere of sex and intimacy. My research has been supported by the Social Science Research Council (SSHRC), National Science Foundation, the American Association of University Women and a Fulbright Scholarship. Listen to the latest podcast from Contemporary Sociology 
"This is an impressive, gorgeously written book that tackles a question of vital importance. Fauzia Husain situates stigma as a force that reaches from the historical colonial past, across decades of neoliberal global forces, and renders its micro-contextual consequences starkly in the intimate daily lives of women tasked with enacting the will of the state under incredibly difficult conditions."
—Erin McDonnell, Author of Patchwork Leviathan "This remarkable and richly detailed ethnography explores how frontline women workers in Pakistan navigate the colliding norms of purdah and neoliberal economic policies. With a keen analytical eye, Fauzia Husain shows how cultural stigma is shaped, while also providing a novel and multifaceted account of women's agency. The Stigma Matrix is mandatory reading for anyone interested in gender and work in global contexts." —Rachel Rinaldo, Author of Mobilizing Piety |
Reviews of The Stigma Matrix:
“This rich and eloquent discussion will leave readers at once unnerved by the endless mistreatment women frontline workers are subject to and also moved by their creative courage.” —Selina Gallo-Cruz, American Journal of Sociology “The Stigma Matrix is an important contribution to the scholarship on gender, globalization, and stigma. Husain provides a new perspective for understanding the complex relationship between women’s work, neoliberal global forces, and cultural norms shaped by a colonial past.” —Heidi E. Rademacher, Contemporary Sociology “Husain masterfully describes the multi-dimensionality of agency and what it means for Muslim women, particularly in Global South spaces as in the case of her interviewees.” —Sarah Ahmed, Gender & Society “A compelling exploration of the layered challenges facing Pakistani women in public service sectors, particularly in health, law enforcement and aviation, Husain’s book combines theoretical rigour with narrative-driven fieldwork to examine how Pakistani women navigate social stigmas intertwined with local, colonial and global forces.” —Livia Holden, South Asia Research “The Stigma Matrix is an elegantly written and critical contribution to the growing scholarly literature on gender in Pakistan. It beautifully explicates how women navigate stigma while maintaining their dignity and integrity as frontline public workers in a deeply patriarchal context.”—Ayesha Khan, Pacific Affairs "this is a compelling and necessary book. Written clearly without jargon and care even when critical, the book is a welcome contribution to studying women whose work brings them into public space and visibility in the majority world, situated at intersections of colonial legacies and a transnationally articulating imperial present." - Sahana Ghosh, The American Ethnologist. "The Stigma Matrix is written in an accessible manner and provides a compelling mix of ethnographic narratives and complex theoretical work. Husain provides a contemporary perspective on canonical topics such as stigma and agency and offers portable frameworks that scholars may apply in other contexts." —Sidra Kamran, Journal of Development Studies "An important contribution to the scholarship on gender, neoliberalism, and the public space, The Stigma Matrix is a meticulously crafted book that explores the experiences of the 'so-called dirty women' in Pakistan's public service.... The book convincingly attends to how political economic structures and colonial histories generate stigma for women and work in particular globalized contexts."—Maria Rashid, The Developing Economies Book Reviews: Gender & Society Contemporary Sociology American Ethnologist Pacific Affairs Journal of Development Studies South Asia Research |
