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Episode details

Radio 4,19 Nov 2014,28 mins

Shoes - Islamic Youth Culture in Western Europe

Thinking Allowed

Available for over a year

Shoes - a journey through our lives and identities. From 'brothel creepers' to perilous stilettos, our choice of footwear changes and evolves over a life time. Laurie Taylor talks to Victoria Robinson, Reader in Sociology at the University of Sheffield, about the ways in which shoes can, variously, plunge us back into the past or inform the present. Whether worn for comfort or glamour, they are powerful indicators of taste and identity. Also, Maruta Herding, a sociologist at the German Youth Institute, discusses her Europe wide research into Muslim youth, subcultures. She's joined by Tufyal Choudhury lecturer in law at the University of Durham. Producer: Jayne Egerton.

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