Julia Newton, a graduate of Queen’s MA in Conflict Transformation and Social Justice, has won the Irish Society for the Academic Study of Religion’s 2021 Sídh (Postgraduate) Essay Prize.
Julia’s essay, which addressed the question,‘Whose Chosen Nation: An Analysis of Christian Nationalism’s Influence on Evangelical Responses to Racism’, was written for my Religion and Peacebuilding Module.
Julia, though born and raised in the US, now works with Shelter Scotland fighting housing injustice in the UK while she narrows down future PhD topics. Although her research interests stretch far and wide, Julia is particularly drawn to the interplay of religion and politics in the US, as well as the effect and healing of trauma within individuals and societies.
Julia is the third student from my Religion and Peacebuilding module to win the award, joining Elizabeth Charash (2019) and Alan McKinstry (2018).