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Islam in the United States

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This article focuses on Islam in the United States . For information on Islam in other parts of the world, please see Islam by country. To learn more about Islam as a religion, please visit Islam.

Muslim History in the US

As with many religious communities in the United States, the history of Islam begins with immigration. Two of the most well-known Muslim slaves were Abdn ar-Rahman Ibrahim Ibn Suri and 'Umar Ibn Said. In 1888, Alexander Russell Webb was one of the first Anglo-Americans to embrace Islam. Today, many African-American Muslims have joined the fold of Islam through their conversion from the Nation of Islam to Sunni Islam.

Small scale migration to the U.S. of Muslims began in 1893. The immigrants included Syrian, Lebanese, Jordanian, and Palestinian Muslims. As the Muslim population grew, they began to establish Islamic institutions, such as mosques and Islamic schools.

  • 1907 Immigrants from Poland, Russia, and Lithuania founded the first Muslim organization in New York City.
  • 1915 First mosque was built by Albanian Muslims.
  • 1935 The first building built specifically to be a masjid was established in in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Although the first mosque was built in the US in 1915, relatively few mosques were built before the 1960s. 87% of the US mosques were founded within the last three decades, according to the Faith Communities Today (FACT) survey.

In June 2003 some analysts have claimed in a report to the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary that there is a growing radical Islamist Wahhabi influence in US Mosques, financed by Islamic extremist groups.[1]

Demography and Ethnic Background

According to the FACT survey, regular mosque attendees come from the following backgrounds: South Asian (33%), African-American (30%), Arab (25%), African (3.4%), European (2.1%), White American (1.6%), Southeast Asian (1.3%), Caribbean (1.2%), Turkish (1.1%), Iranian (0.7%), and Hispanic/Latino (0.6%).

The FACT survey also states that converts make up 30% of the U.S. mosque participants. Of those converts, 64% are African-American, 27% are White, 6% are Hispanic, and 3% are classified as Other. Most mosques (80%) are located in a metropolitan area.

American Muslim Assimilation and Social Change

Unlike Muslims in Europe, Muslims in the U.S. are in general more educated and affluent than the national average [2].

Conflicts within the American community generally occur between moderate and conservative Muslims. Issues include:

  • Permissibility of attendance at school dances
  • Consumption of meat not slaughtered by Islamic means (non-halal meat)
  • Patronage of non-Islamic banks (which use interest).

The majority of American Muslims take a moderate stance on these issues: their families eat non-halal meat, their children go to school dances, and they take out non-Islamic mortgages.

There are also groups of progressive Muslims who press for even more accomodations to the surrounding society.

Muslim Population in the US

Since the US Census Bureau does not collect data on religious identification, the actual number of Muslims in the United States is unknown. Various institutions and organizations have given widely varying estimates about how many Muslims live in the USA. The following are a few recent estimates:

  • 1.2 million (2000) National Opinion Research Center [0.4% of the national population]
  • 1.6 million (2000) Glenmary Research Center [0.5% of national population]
  • 1.8 million (2001) City University of New York - American Religious Identification Survey [0.6% of national population] [3]
  • 1.9 million (2002) University of Chicago - Public Opinion Quarterly, 66, 404-417, 2002
  • 1.9 million (2001) American Jewish Committee [0.6% of national population]
  • 2.0 million (2000) Hartford Institute for Religious Research [0.7% of national population]
  • 2.8 million (2001) American Jewish Committee (revised figure) [0.9% of national population]
  • 4.1 million (2001) Britannica book of the Year[4] [1.4% of national population]
  • 5.8 million (2001) The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2001, Page 689 [2% of national population]
  • 6.0 million (2001) Council on American-Islamic Relations [2% of national population]
  • 6.7 million (1997) J. Ilyas Ba-Yunus [5] [2.2% of national population]
  • 7.0 million (2004) Council on American-Islamic Relations and three other US Muslim groups [2.3% of national population]

Population estimates have been a source of controversy, with a number of academic researchers, including Tom Smith, responsible for the University of Chicago study, being explicitly critical of the survey methodologies that have led to "high end" estimates. Some journalists have alleged that numbers have have been inflated for political purposes [6]. See the CAIR article for a more detailed account of one particular controversy, over the seven million estimate by that organization.

Muslim groups have countered that all of the recent independent studies and surveys have undercounted the Muslim population for a variety of reasons (e.g., because of possible anti-Muslim sentiment, some Muslims might be wary of responding truthfully in a survey, and many Muslims do not attend mosques), and that their own estimates are thus more accurate. [7]

In 2006 only 20,000 Muslims made the Haj to Mecca from the United States. A very small number compared to the high estimates given by some sources for the size of the Muslim population in the United States.

A nationwide survey conducted in 2003 by the Pew Research Center and the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life reported that the percentage of Americans with an unfavorable view of Islam increased to 37 percent, up from 33 percent in 2002. The percentage responding that Islam was more likely than other religions to encourage violence nearly doubled, from 25 percent in March 2002 to 46 percent in July 2004. In July 2005, showed that the percentage of Americans holding an unfavorable view of Islam rose to 39% since 2003 that 59% of American adults view Islam as "very different from their religion". 55% had a favorable opinion of Muslim Americans down from 59 % post 911. [8]

Commentators in the Wall Street Journal have noted [9] that "America's Muslims tend to be role models both as Americans and as Muslims." They are highly educated (59% have at least an undergraduate degree). 82% of Muslim American citizens are registered to vote. 21% of Muslim-Americans intermarry with spouses of another religion (in line with the national average of 22%).

Cultural Clash

A number of counter-terrorism analysts such as Daniel Pipes[10], Steven Emerson[11] and Robert Spencer[12] have suggested that a segment of the US muslim population exhibit hate and a wish for violence towards the US. In June 2003, journalist Stephen Schwartz reported to the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary a growing radical Islamist Wahhabi influence in US Mosques, financed by extremist groups.[13]

The public displays of fringe Muslim groups like the Islamic Thinkers Society in New York City have served to project negative images of disaffection of the wider Muslim community in the eyes of witnesses Video of Muslims in the US pledging disloyalty and desecrating of the US Flag

Other scholars, such as Karen Armstrong[14] have emphasized that while these viewpoints exist, they are in the minority. Peter Bergen, while on the Daily Show, described how during the course of his research for his book The Osama bin Laden I Know, he discovered that the "vast majority of American Muslims have totally rejected te Islamist Ideology of Osama Bin Laden".[15].

Muslim Organizations in the US

There are many Islamic orgainizations in the U.S. They include:

  • The largest of these groups is the American Society of Muslims (ASM), the successor organization to the Nation of Islam, once better-known as the Black Muslims. The American Society Of Muslims identifies with the leadership of the Honorable Warith Deen Muhammad. This group has evolved from the Black separatist Nation (or Temples) of Islam (1930-1975). This has been a twenty-three year process of religious reorientation and organizational decentralization, in the course of which the group was known by other names, such as the American Muslim Mission. The number of ASM adherents. Estimates have placed its numbers between the hundreds of thousands and 1-2 million. The vast majority of ASM adherents are African Americans.
  • The second largest group is the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA). ISNA is an association of Muslim organizations and individuals that provides a common platform for presenting Islam. It is mostly comprised of immigrants as well as some Caucasian, African American, and Hispanic converts. Its membership may have recently exceeded ASM as many independent mosques throughout the United States are choosing to affiliate with it. ISNA's annual convention is the largest gathering of Muslims within the United States. Their official site can be found at [16].
  • The third largest group is the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA). ICNA describes itself as a non-ethnic, open to all, independent, North America-wide, grass-roots organization. It is mostly comprised of immigrants and some Caucasian, African American, and Hispanic converts. It also is growing as various independent mosques throughout the United States join. It also may be larger than ASM at the present moment. Their official site is [17].
  • The Islamic Supreme Council of America (ISCA) represents many Muslims. Its stated aims include providing practical solutions for American Muslims, based on the traditional Islamic legal rulings of an international advisory board, many of whom are recognized as the highest ranking Islamic scholars in the world. ISCA strives to integrate traditional scholarship in resolving contemporary issues affecting the maintenance of Islamic beliefs in a modern, secular society. Their official site is [18].
  • The Islamic Assembly of North America (IANA) is a leading Muslim organization in the United States. According to its website, among the goals of IANA is to "unify and coordinate the efforts of the different dawah oriented organizations in North America and guide or direct the Muslims of this land to adhere to the proper Islamic methodology." In order to achieve its goals, IANA uses a number of means and methods including conventions, general meetings, dawah-oriented institutions and academies, etc. See [19].
  • The Muslim Student Association (MSA) is a Sunni group dedicated, by its own description, to Islamic societies on college campuses in Canada and the United States for the good of Muslim students. The MSA is involved in providing Muslims on various campuses the opportunity to practice their religion and to ease and facilitate such activities. MSA is also involved in social activities, such as fund raisers for the homeless during Ramadan. The founders of MSA would later establish the Islamic Society of North America and Islamic Circle of North America. It is described by some as a fundamentalist organization. See [20].

Political

Muslim political organizations lobby on behalf of various Muslim political interests. Organizations such as the American Muslim Council are actively engaged in upholding human and civil rights for all Americans.

  • The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is a non-profit pro-Islam organization, established to promote a positive image of Islam and Muslims in America. CAIR portrays itself as the voice of mainstream, moderate Islam on Capitol Hill and in political arenas throughout the United States. However, critics of CAIR accuse it of being essentially an Islamist propaganda group that supports extremists, pointing to CAIR's public support for terrorist groups[21] such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad. A CAIR spokesman has claimed that these allegations are not true, he said, "We condemned suicide bombings in a number of statements. This is a straw man...In our 10 years of existence we have not used the word Hamas other than to refute these scurrilous accusations" [22]. In addition to its non-Muslim critics, CAIR is also criticized by moderate Muslim organizations such as the Islamic Supreme Council of America.
  • The Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) is an American Muslim public service & policy organization headquartered in Los Angeles and with offices in Washington D.C. MPAC was founded in 1988. The mission of MPAC "encompasses promoting an American Muslim identity, fostering an effective grassroots organization, and training a future generation of men and women to share our vision. MPAC also works to promote an accurate portrayal of Islam and Muslims in mass media and popular culture, educating the American public (both Muslim and non-Muslim) about Islam, building alliances with diverse communities and cultivating relationships with opinion- and decision-makers." Their website can be found at [23].
  • The American Islamic Congress is a small but growing moderate Muslim organization that promotes religious pluralism. Their official Statement of Principles states that "Muslims have been profoundly influenced by their encounter with America. American Muslims are a minority group, largely comprising African-Americans, immigrants, and children of immigrants, who have prospered in America's climate of religious tolerance and civil rights. The lessons of our unprecedented experience of acceptance and success must be carefully considered by our community." Their Statement of Principles describes their full agenda.

Charity

In addition to the organizations just listed, other Muslim organizations in the United States serve more specific needs. For example, some organizations focus almost exclusively on charity work. As a response to a crackdown on Muslim charity organizations working overseas such as the Holy Land Foundation, more Muslims have begun to focus their charity efforts within the United States.

  • Inner-City Muslim Action Network (IMAN) is one of the leading Muslim charity organizations in the United States. According to the Inner-City Muslim Action Network, IMAN seeks "to utilize the tremendous possibilities and opportunities that are present in the community to build a dynamic and vibrant alternative to the difficult conditions of inner city life." IMAN sees understanding Islam as part of a larger process to empower individuals and communities to work for the betterment of humanity. Their official site is found at [24].

Other

With the growth of Islam within the United States, Muslims with similar interests and ideas have organized for various purposes. Among the types of Muslim organizations that exist are those for entertainment purposes as well as for professionals, such as doctors and engineers. The most well-known organization for Muslims within the medical profession is the Islamic Medical Association of North America (IMANA). Among the Muslim organizations for women include the Muslim Women's League. Latino Muslims have also developed organizations, such as the Latino American Dawah Organization and Alianza Islámica.

Influential Muslims in the US

American Muslims can be found in all professions in the United States. Muslim doctors, lawyers, teachers, and businessmen serve large and small communities. Muslims have made contributions to the cultural, scientific, political, and economic life of the United States. For more information on American Muslims and their contribution within the United States, see List of American Muslims or Western Muslims.

Government/Politics

Media

Religious Leaders

Others

Islamic traditions in the US

Within the Muslim community in the United States there exist a number of different traditions. As in the rest of the world, the Sunni Muslims are in majority. The Shi'ah Muslims, especially those of the Iranian immigrant community, are also active in community affairs. All four major schools of Islamic Jurisprudence fiqh are found among the Sunni community. Some Muslims in the US are also adherents of certain global movements within Islam such as the Salafiyyah, the Muslim Brotherhood, and the Tablighi Jamaat.

References

See also

Organizations

Other

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