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Introduction:
Islam in America
History of Islam
and Muslims in North America is not new. Muslims have come to the
American shores several times. There is documentation of their journey
to America prior to Columbus. Muslims sailed from Spain and Africa,
hence reaching central and south America. It appears that Columbus
also made use of the Muslim expertise on his voyage. In the 19th
century, Muslims emigrated from the colonized Middle East and with
Bolshevik revolution from Central Asia. However, the effect of these
early arrivals did not last long. Muslims also came in the hulls of
slave ships from Africa. They were deprived of their religion,
language and civilization and all else that gave them their distinct
identity. Perhaps it is due to this historical past, that African
Americans in an effort to re-establish their identity are drawn to
Islam more than any other faith or ideology.
After World War
II, particularly with the easing of immigration restrictions, a
substantial number of Muslims came to North America from the
developing countries either for higher education or in search of
better job opportunities. Initially coming and intending to return,
they have now called this New World as their home. The estimate of the
Muslim population in the U.S.A. and Canada vary from 6 to 8 million.
Thus, they have or will soon surpass the Jews, the second religious
majority in these countries. Their exact proportions are not known.
Still, it appears that African-Americans now constitute over 40% of
American Muslims. And the immigrants as a whole constitute the largest
group; about 25% of them, are South Asians and approximately 20% from
the Arab descent. More than 50% of the Muslims were born in the U.S.
or Canada.
There are about
4,000 mosques and Islamic centers, and the Islamic religious schools
are opening in most urban areas of the U.S. and Canada. Due to the
importance that Islam and the Muslim world is gaining in international
affairs, most major American universities now offer specialized
courses in graduate and post-graduate studies on Islam and Muslims.
The American Muslims are also establishing their own colleges and
universities and a post-graduate school associated with the
prestigious Institute of International Islamic Thought in Virginia
offers advanced courses in Islamic social sciences.
Islam is the
fastest growing religion in North America. Islam's appeal lies in its
centrality of transcendence and the simplicity of its principles. It
advocates a harmonious interplay of faith with reason and its vision
coordinates the sacred and the secular into a comprehensive whole. Due
to Islam's stress on equality and brotherhood of its community, it has
special appeal for the historically oppressed. Its egalitarian
principles and relevance to human life also draw converts from the
middle class America. Thus, mosques, Islamic centers and schools truly
represent a melting pot for the Muslims all over America.
Prospects and
Problems of the American Muslim Community:
There is much that
Muslim Americans can impart to the American Society. Muslims
constitute a value-driven community sharing a faith that is
pro-family, pro-education, anti-racist, law-abiding and anti-crime.
Thus, they have a lot to contribute to a society where families are
breaking apart and is ridden with crime, violence, drugs and racial
tension. Among Muslims, there are no Arab, Pakistani, Somalian,
Senegalese or Indonesian ghettos in America. The African-American
community has been brought to their present level by the prevailing
injustices and societal inequities. Still the Muslims living in
disadvantaged communities are often the lights for these areas as they
stand for family, education, cleanliness, chastity, self-sufficiency
and zero tolerance towards drug infestation and the mental slavery
that blights others. Muslims are among the best educated in the whole
country and have the lowest crime rate. In their commitment to serve
God and humankind, Muslims doctors, lawyers, teachers, accountants and
businessmen are serving the inner city as well as rural areas --
localities that are not attractive to any one else.
It is essential
that the local and immigrant Muslim Americans live in close harmony
and brotherly fellowship and cooperation. The immigrant Muslims are
predominantly professional or businessmen. In the last two decades
particularly, they have organized themselves into a number of
associations. It is important that they continue involving the local
community, not only in their membership but also at the top echelons
of these associations. In their dealings with the locals, they should
have special regard for them, especially the African-Americans, giving
them due respect and understanding. In cases where they are
represented by different organizations, these organizations need to
develop closer collaboration, partnership and unity to demonstrate the
great fraternity of Islam.
For Islam to
prevail in North America, it is essential that a substantial number of
Muslims are committed to Islam and the community must produce its own
local leaders. For this to happen, now that they are enthusiastically
developing Islamic schools, it is important that the parents along
with children are involved into the activities of the community. The
parents must become cognizant of their role in the upbringing of
committed Muslims; that will happen only when they are themselves
committed. While maintaining their distinct identity, the Muslims must
also break away from being on the fringes, and involve themselves
thoroughly with the mainstream American-Canadian societies. It is also
their responsibility to bring about a change in the common perception
that Islam in Western lands is an alien religion; a perception that is
promoted by the constant negative stereotyping by the media.
Therefore, they should utilize all their resources and abilities to
correct this misconception because as long as this perception
prevails, it would make it difficult for their children to grow up as
Muslim Americans -- they might either distance themselves from their
community, or down play the role Islam plays in their lives. Whether
Islam is established in America depends on the coming generations of
Muslims who could bring to it the Islamic vision.
Islam presents a
coherent all-inclusive divine guidance that satisfies the rational
while nourishing sublime spiritual needs of millions of people
irrespective of race, color or culture. It has lost little of its
original appeal because its pristine sources are available in the
original - intact without any tempering, whatsoever. Its primary
source of vitality are the revelations of the Qur'an. With its
capacity for reinterpreting the revelation through human intellection,
the Qur'an provides a core of immutable standards along with the
mechanisms that make it dynamic to meet the challenges of changing
times. Thus, Islam is very much suited to the Western genre, if the
prevailing disinformation is overcome.
But Muslims
themselves stand in its way, by misrepresenting the Islamic message.
They often misinterpret it by confusing their customs and cultures
with the requirements of Islam. Thus, the revelation i.e., divine
communication which is valid for all times, is up against a personal
understanding of it by individual Muslims (those who are not in a
position to critically verify the sources and lack in their overall
Islamic understanding); this restricts and limits the divine message.
Therefore, it is important that they separate the essential and
fundamental from secondary and non-essential, and to prioritize and
emphasize the fundamental essentials. They should also learn to
communicate rationally, whether discussing with the American public or
imparting Islamic precepts to their younger succeeding generation. The
best hope for America would be the upcoming generations of Muslim
Americans who understand the American mind set and also can
communicate effectively without carrying the cultural baggage of the
first generation Muslims. The crucial element that the parents could
impart these generations is a coherent, rational and cogent perception
of Islam with patience, courage and understanding.
American Muslims
value the freedom of statement and, therefore, they should invite the
reputed scholars of the Ummah and interact with them to foster
original, critical research on issues that are of value to the Ummah.
Along with this, they also need to learn tolerance - to listen to
divergent and contending views -- as a check and balance in the grand
scheme that Islam provides. This is part of the Islamic principles of
Shura (mutual consultation) and Ijma (consensus), the two fundamentals
of Islamic decision making. Offering alternatives would broaden their
focus and develop a balanced, moderate community with a worldwide
vision. While freely expressing themselves, Muslims must also show
respect for the majority viewpoint; and while retaining their right to
differ, they must learn to abide by the decisions reached through
consensus.
Therefore, in
practice, they should submit to the decisions arrived at by their
national organizations that they have reposed their confidence in.
There should not be any voices of discord and contention after they
have joined hands with their representative organizations and
thoroughly discussed the issues; at the end of discussions, they must
submit to the collective will. A minor yet glaring example, is the
confusion at the start and end of Ramadan, which seems to be settled
but the celebration of the festival of sacrifice (Eid al-Adha), in the
tradition of the great Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) is still problematic
at some localities.
This is
distressing, since - especially after September 11 attacks by some
miscreants, American Muslims are faced with major issues that would
determine the survival of Islam and Muslim community in North America.
They must tackle these issues with a collective stand in determining
the hierarchy of issues so that they could concentrate upon them and
utilize their energies more efficiently. and effectively. Above all
else, Muslims must commit themselves to their community obligations (Furud
al Kifaya) and care for the well being of their community as a
microcosm of the Ummah. It is a pre-requisite, second only to the
concept of belief in One God (Tawhid): both the Qur'an and Sunnah
severely reprimand against any division within the Ummah.
Concluding
Remarks
American Muslims
are truly pluralistic because their make-up comes from many
nationalities and their community, therefore, is composed of diverse
cultural and ethnic backgrounds. They could thus demonstrate the value
of diversity to the American society, as well as engage in valuable
work for their universal Ummah. The drastic change in the world order
with the collapse of the Soviet Union and emergence of the U.S. as the
dominant world power and its increasing entanglement in Muslim lands
have transformed the American Muslims from an exotic to a noteworthy
community which is on rapid expansion. The Muslim Americans have the
moral sensitivity; they must now provide the moral leadership to the
American society. They should utilize their position to sensitize the
American public opinion to the Muslim history and their problems, and
that it would be in the larger interest of the U.S. to adopt a more
enlightened and equitable approach towards the 1.3 billion Muslims of
the world, who inhabit strategically important countries that are also
rich in resources.
In order to
survive as Muslims and preserve their Islamic identity, a new
generation of Muslim intelligentsia must emerge which would
reinterpret the Islamic tradition in this new situation and in order
to coexist, respecting and respected, with other communities in the
American milieu -- thus evolving a global paradigm. The American
Muslims through alliances with other faith groups should formulate new
concepts to express their unique identity in interaction with them.
Thus, by opening up to a diversity of views and understandings through
Dawa, i.e. Islamic outreach and peacefully reciprocating conflicts and
antagonisms, they could take a lead in resolving the critical issues
of living globally, with a theistic outlook and a framework that would
not only further the good of America but also, indeed, of all
humankind.
Therefore, Muslims
in America, adopting a more pro-active approach, must learn how to
leverage their increased numbers and in cooperation with others get
involved, directly or indirectly, in policy discussions and shaping
policy through impacting the American public opinion - and thus
becoming an influential constituency.
It is an arduous and cumbersome task, but one that is necessary
for their Islamic mission of "enjoining good and avoiding
evil" and their objective of serving God, and man as His trustee
and a responsible representative on earth.
June
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July 2002
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