March
3, 2007
Islam is the fastest-growing religion in the United States,
particularly among African Americans, who are undeterred by
the government's increased scrutiny of Muslims since the
September 11, 2001 attacks, according to a Reuters article.
Muslim converts from the American black community say they
embraced the Islamic religion because of the disciplines of
its prayers, its emphasis on worshippers' submission to
Allah (SWT) and its affinity with people who are oppressed.
Some black Muslim converts are also suspicious of the U.S.
government's warnings about the emergence of new enemies
since the 9/11 attacks because of memories of how authorities
demonized civil rights leaders Martin Luther King and Malcolm
X. As a result, they are willing to embrace Islam as a
legitimate alternative to Christianity, the majority religion
among U.S. blacks.
A new black Muslim convert in Atlanta told Reuters he embraced
Islam when he visited Africa for the first time. After reading
the holy Qur'an, Mark King says he realized that its blessed
teachings were similar to his own beliefs, not least in
fighting injustice.
"For young African Americans, there is some attraction to
learning about traditions that have been associated with
resistance to European imperialism," said King, who has
adopted the name Bilal Mansa since his conversion.
The history of Islam in the United States dates back to the
18th century, with the first Muslim inhabitants. The sizeable
Muslim community in the U.S. has increased greatly over the
past one hundred years, mainly due to the increase in the
number of Muslim immigrants, and the high rate of Americans
who convert to Islam.
According to Reuters, many black Americans converted to Islam
during the civil rights era, when Malcolm X helped popularize
the Nation of Islam, attracting many prominent blacks such as
boxer Muhammad Ali. Islam still attracts many well known black
Americans such as rapper Scarface, who recently embraced the
noble religion.
But the influence of the Nation of Islam has declined with the
emergence of an association of mosques led by Warith Deen
Muhammad, the son of Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad,
who died in 1975.
"Fastest-growing religion"
"Islam is one of the fastest-growing religions among
black Americans", said Lawrence Mamiya, professor of
religion at Vassar College.
There are more than 2 million black Muslims in the United
States, he said while acknowledging that there are no exact
figures.
According to wikipedia, up to one-third of American Muslims
are African Americans who converted to Islam during the last
seventy years.
The growing number of Muslim converts "is not viewed (by
authorities) as a threat because the figures are small and
once we get past the war on terror and all the negative images
then it will continue to spread," Mamiya added.
Aminah McCloud, religious studies professor at DePaul
University in Chicago, says black Americans usually attend
mosques not frequented by Muslims from immigrant backgrounds
despite sharing common beliefs.
Imams in Atlanta, a U.S. center for black Muslims, said they
were subjected to less scrutiny than Muslims from the Middle
East and the Indian sub-continent.
Islam's history among black American was recently discussed
by imam Nadim Ali during a Friday sermon at the Community
Masjid of Atlanta.
Imam Ali recounted several stories of Muslim slaves brought to
the U.S. from Africa who struggled to hold on to their faith
in the face of slaveholders' opposition.
If Muslims could remain true to Islam under slavery, we should
follow their example, he said.
"You are talking about people who were cut off from their
roots .... Islam reconnects you with Africa and with other
parts of the world," Imam Ali added.
Those who attend the Masjid of Atlanta told Reuters that its
clerics teach them that there is no distinction between Sunni
and Shia Islam. The imams also urge Muslims to find work, stay
free from crime and drugs and maintain stable family lives.
But Imam Ali suspects the mosque is bugged and infiltrated by
informers, in part because its clerics are skeptical about
U.S. policies since September 11.
"They (the government) unplug black people and plug in
Arabs or Muslims. They unplug Arabs and plug in communists.
America needs war to maintain its economic status," he
said.
African American find
roots in Islam despite US Islamophobic policies
Unfazed by growing Islamophobia and
increasing discrimination against Muslims in post-9/11
America, an increasing number of African Americans is finding
solace, and roots in Islam. "Islam reconnects you with
Africa and with other parts of the world so your peoplehood
transcends race," Nadim Ali, the imam of the Community
Masjid in one of Atlanta's oldest and poorest neighborhoods,
told Reuters on Sunday, February 25.
During a recent Friday sermon in the street-corner mosque, Ali
recounted stories from history of Muslim slaves brought from
Africa who struggled to uphold their faith in the face of
slaveholders' opposition.
If Muslims could remain true to Islam under slavery, you
should follow their example, he told a tentative congregation
of men and women who sat separately on the mosque floor.
Some blacks are also suspicious of the US government warnings
about the emergence of new enemies since 9/11 because of
memories of how the establishment demonized civil rights
leaders Martin Luther King and Malcolm X.
Ali told Reuters he assumed the mosque was bugged and
infiltrated by informers.
"They (the government) unplug black people and plug in
Arabs or Muslims. They unplug Arabs and plug in communists.
America needs war to maintain its economic status," he
said.
But imams in Atlanta, a US center for black Muslims, said they
were subjected to less scrutiny than Muslims from the Middle
East and Indian sub-continent.
Since the 9/11 attacks, American Muslims have become
sensitized to an erosion of their civil rights, with a
prevailing belief that America was targeting their faith.
There is no scientific number of American Muslims but the
largely used figure is seven million.
An estimated 20,000 people in the United States embrace to
Islam every year.
Fasting Growing
Mark King, who wears his hair in dreadlocks, embraced Islam
after visiting Africa for the first time.
He read the holy Qur'an in Gambia and realized its teaching
chimed with his own beliefs, not least in fighting injustice.
"For young African Americans, there is some attraction to
learning about traditions that have been associated with
resistance to European imperialism," said King, who has
adopted the name Bilal Mansa since his reversion.
African Americans are taking the full brunt of racism in the
US, with estimates showing the community has the worst
unemployment and housing crises in the country.
Reverts within the black community say they are attracted to
the disciplines of prayer, the emphasis within Islam on
submission to God and the religion's affinity with people who
are oppressed.
They view Islam as a legitimate alternative to Christianity,
the majority religion among US blacks.
"It is one of the fastest-growing religions in
America," said Lawrence Mamiya, professor of religion at
Vassar College.
He said there were up to 2 million black US Muslims but
acknowledged there are no precise figures.
There are up to 37 million African Americans in the US,
representing 12.3% of the population.
"It's not viewed (by authorities) as a threat because the
numbers are small and once we get past the war on terror and
all the negative images then it will continue to spread,"
said Mamiya.
Democrat Keith Ellison, an African-American, recently made
history becoming the first American Muslim elected to Congress
after defeating his two contenders in Minneapolis and securing
a seat in the 435-member House of Representatives.
Jack Ellis, the mayor of Macon in Georgia state, has recently
revealed embracing Islam after years of soul-searching.
Ellis said he studied the Qur'an for years and found his
destination in Islam following a trip to the African country
of Senegal, noting that Islam was practiced by his ancestors
before they were brought to North America as slaves.
awqafafrica.com +
Agencies
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