Six years after the attacks that claimed the lives of 51 who were taking part in Friday prayers, researcher Dr Hussain Raissi has found young Muslim New Zealanders still feel a sense of belonging to the wider New Zealand society.
Dr Raissi said there was heightened fear and discrimination for the Muslim community in New Zealand after the 2019 Christchurch mosque attacks.
He said a lot of Muslims felt unsafe going to their mosques after the attack.
However, the response from the public and leaders like Jacinda Ardern, led to a significant increase in trust for the justice system and government from the Muslim community.
"For many, it created a fragile but ongoing sense of belonging to the wider New Zealand society.
"That sense of belonging depended a lot on how much they saw support from the rest of the community and the wider New Zealand society."
For his PhD thesis, Dr Raissi surveyed 258 young muslims between 16 and 29 years old in the main urban areas of New Zealand; Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.
Dr Raissi said common stereotypes often painted religious Muslim youth as outsiders and labelled them as "untrustworthy or radicalised" for wearing traditional dress and observing Islamic customs.
But he found there was a strong relationship between being a good muslim and a proud New Zealander.
"If you have a strong sense of belonging to the Muslim community, it doesn’t mean that you are less Kiwi.
"The findings show that religious commitment can actually strengthen a sense of belonging to the wider New Zealand society."
Dr Raissi said a Muslim woman told him she felt more Muslim in New Zealand than in her home nation Pakistan.
She said she was safe here and there were no barriers for her to practise her faith.
Places like the University of Otago’s prayer room enabled her to keep up with her practice as a Muslim.
He said the tolerance and diversity in New Zealand helped Muslims feel more at ease.
The study, from the university’s centre for peace and conflict studies, recommended policies that strengthened collaborative partnerships with communities of faith.
Today marks six years since the mosque attack.
