Metacolonialism, Neoliberalism and the Commodification of the Muslim Psyche

Metacolonialism, Neoliberalism and the Commodification of the Muslim Psyche

Tuesday 14 April 2026 | 7:00–8:15pm

Join the Muslim Researchers Network Psychology and Islam community for an exploratory interdisciplinary conversation:

🎙 Presenter: Dr William Barylo Sociologist, Visual artist, and Author of Young Muslim Change-Makers and Muslims in the Neoliberal Empire.
🎧 Hosted by: Dr Aaliyah Shaikh Academic Research Psychologist, Trauma-Informed Systems Thinker, Educator, and Lead of the Psychology & Islam Community at MRN.

In this session, we will explore themes of metacolonialism, neoliberalism, and their impact on the Muslim psyche. Together, we will open up conversation around questions such as:

• Metacolonialism and neoliberalism: what they are and how they quietly shape the Muslim experience.
• How are colonial ideals of 'mental health' reproduced in contemporary healing spaces?
• What happens when healing becomes commercialised and commodified?
• How do lucrative courses, retreats, and programmes sometimes risk reproducing exclusion, harm, or inaccessibility under the guise of care / healing?
• Where might we be going wrong, often subtly, in the way Muslim mental health and healing are being framed?
• How can we become more aware, critical, and ethically grounded in how we move forward?

This session is intended as an exploratory conversation starter, especially for those interested in psychology, sociology, Islam, critical thinking, decolonial thought, and community healing.

Open to Muslim women and men, practitioners, and allies in healthcare, education and research.
Time: 7–8:15pm (UK time)
Format: live webinar + interactive Q&A
Please note: This is a live-only session, not a recorded event. This is a safe, warm space for you to attend. You’ll receive joining details the day of the event.
Educational session only; not personalised clinical or medical advice.

Ticket & Access Policy

Please read carefully

As part of our commitment to transparency, we share here our current way of pricing events and our reason (we are always exploring better ways to do things that are also sustainable of our work as we evolve so this may change in future):

🎟️ Standard ticket: £10 We ask for a nominal fee to honour the voluntary work of our organisers, sustain the MRN's work, and ensure commitment to attendance. If you are in a position to give more, donations to MRN are warmly welcomed.

🤲 Free spaces: Up to 5 available We have offered free tickets in the past and have been saddened by the impact of non-attendance on our community, speakers and organisers who spend a lot of time preparing. As part of our commitment to transparency, we now ask for a nominal fee from all attendees. However, we do not want cost to be a barrier. If you are in genuine financial need, you may request a free place – to ensure commitment we request a nominal £5 fee which will be returned to you (minus any fees charged by ticket tailor) upon attending the full session. To request a free space, please email psychologymrn@gmail.com to let us know. Limited to the first 5 email requests received. Please allow a minimum of 7 days post event to process. 

We trust our community to honour this with integrity.

If there are any organisations or individuals that would like to sponsor our events please get in touch at muslimresearchersnetwork@gmail.com

---------------------

Speaker Bio

Dr. William Barylo is a Sociologist and visual artist whose work sits at the intersection of academia, community organising and creative practice. Committed to diverting power from the ivory tower, he co-creates documentaries, fictions and experimental works with artists and community organisers. He is the director of the documentary Polish Muslims and his latest book, Muslims in the Neoliberal Empire, was published by Oxford University Press in 2025.

_________

We look forward to welcoming you!