On the Synthesis
Marqas has some interesting thoughts on the American Muslim condition:
The current generation of Muslims could easily be labeled a generation “X”, due the fact that many are lost. Ethnic/immigrant Muslims struggle to navigate the torrid waters of the American cultural landscape – many loose themselves in the rapids, capitulating to these uncharted waters. Upon resurfacing, any vestiges of Islam have been stripped from them. In hopes of appeasing the dominant culture (and thereby gaining access to acceptance and all the fruits of being a “true American”) the immigrant/ethnic Muslim unconditionally surrenders his or her Islam, disarmed, dismantled and completely dysfunctional, both as an American and as Muslim, for the dominant culture is not so easy to accept them as equals whilst mired in a defensive stance [MORE...]
One place I see no synthesis on the horizon is on the question of American Muslim identity. At least not without a restriction in immigration from Muslim countries.
The more I look at it, I do not believe that there will ever be a single American Muslim identity. Instead, as generations pass, I tend to believe that there will be two American Muslim identities: a Blackamerican one - consisting of the children of Black American converts and another that will largely consist of the children and grandchildren of Desis, Arabs, and white and Latino converts that will tend to be more affluent. (The children of those who moved overseas will mostly melt into the population of whatever country they moved to)
These two communities will be almost completely separate with separate cultures.
Yes, everyone would love to see a complete synthesizing that includes blacks, but with the way things are going, I just don’t see it happening. The dysfunction at times is to such a level in the Blackamerican community that it is completely mindblowing. This is why some black American converts have almost written them off and consciously decided to move their family away from this and attempt to inject themselves into the immigrant community. Problem is that in order to do that, they have to generally be of higher educational status and/or SES to pull it off to any extent, otherwise they just end up becoming flunkies. Flunkies tend to be the “pet convert” at immigrant masjids.
Then of course you have ‘floaters’ who tend to be middle class and educated, but find no community and ’float’ from one community to the other within the city and never form any tight bonds with anyone. They always remain kinda on the fringes on the community, but no one really knows them well because they mostly keep to themselves. They don’t like this position because in the long term it harms their children, but have no other choice.
Whenever I visit a new city, I can almost, upon sight, look and see which one is attempting to inject himself into immigrant culture, which one is the flunky, and which one is a ‘floater’. If not upon sight, then after five minutes of conversation.
I do, however, see some kind of synthesis happening at some point (though I am not sure what form it will take) between the Muslims in WD Mohammed’s community and those Blackamericans outside of it. More and more Black American Muslims outside of WD Mohammed’s community are slowly starting to see the mistakes they have made in ”throwing out the baby with the bathwater” and unintentionally formed what has become a hodgepodge of unimaginable dysfuntion. This is starting to happen on a small level.
I believe that more and more ‘floaters’ will find themselves becoming a part of this new synthesized group and may find the answers to lingering questions like ‘who will my son/daughter marry?’ there as they meet their fellow ‘floaters’ who are of similar ilk.
Unless this synthesis takes place, the Blackamerican Muslim side of the American Muslim community will be largely dysfunctional.
Filed under: Black American Muslims, Convert Issues, The Culture of Denial and Pretense
Tariq, there are a lot of parallel social forces operating here. I do not know if an American Muslim identity can be built up out of unwilling participants. I think more institutions, mosques etc., that try to be diverse and inclusive will help make more bonds between people. Also, these things have to be driven out of a sense of Islamic sincerity and ikhlaas more than social drift and “fitting in”.
Arabs ahve become a more problematic group to identify with politically, than say African Americans, Whites, or even immigrants from India, Turkey, or Indonesia etc. The beauty-bias against black skin is pervasive in many cultures, muslim and non-muslim. The class structure of society is not going anywhere.All of these things mean that people will keep within their own groups, even if t hey are different than what their parents thought of. What I am saying is that new social groups that remain distinct from each other are going to form. Class, race, color, and cultural biases have to be attacked in the minds, rather than just words. I mean if you call me racist, xenophobic, American nativist, or backward third world immigrant whatever, you’ve called me a name, but is that going to make me feel any different on the issues?
I guess I was a ‘floater’. I mean, my manhaj is clear (to me) but as far as ummah wise I was a masjid/community floater. Espcially during Ramadan!
So Br. Tariq, which are you?
I am a ‘floater’
all ‘floaters’ unite !
We are floaters too. So what do you guys do about your kids? I try to get together with other families with children of simalar age. But I do wonder if it would be better to be at one masjid for the sense of community at least for the kids.
i think i went from being pet convert my first year being muslim to a floater now.
Check out Umm Ali’s broadcast about Muslims in America.
http://muslimstreet.wordpress.com/
Um Abdillah:
I live in a neighborhood and building with a lot of Muslims, so my children socialize with them and participate at the local masjid. I have a network of ‘floaters’ across the country I am friends with including in the local area
I think it’s a shame that reverts are thought of (and think of themselves) as “floaters” and “flunkies”, as if immigrants rightfully own Islam. Lest we forget, the sahaba were reverts!!
I support the idea of being a floater, and sometimes think that we should relegate the Masjid to acts of worship alone, letting social, political, and cultural intitiatives take place elsewhere, otherwise we might continue in this vicious cycle of the Minbar being usurped in a constant control struggle for one of those three things, to the exclusion of spirituality and connection to God.
oh I forgot to end with, indeed
Hood
I’ve often thought along the same lines myself about the masjid being for worship alone and establishing other insitutions for other things
Well in the West they are usually known as Islamic Centers with a musalla inside. In the Muslim world the Masajid are used only as a place to worship, with an occasional Iftar in Ramadan. The Islamic Centers are very much needed in the West. I know many immigrant Muslim women who would have remained ignorant of the deen and isolated if it were not for the Islamic Centers (and many of them remain ignorant and use it as a social club).
The power struggles are depressing…indeed!
The biggest problen with the Islamic center idea is that the control struggles will continue without end (there is no real power in those positions).
If we get away from that model of a community, more meaningful grassroots work can be done for both brothers and sisters, support groups and halaqahs, etc. without the infighting that ensues when one groups wants to usurp the others rights to pray in the masjid and use it as a minbar for politics, deviance, or any other agenda.
For sisters specifically this will help them take initiative in the commnity, instead of them thinking that a sisters based class/activity MUST be done in the masjid, with masjid approval, or with the involvement of men.
Hood wrote: The biggest problen with the Islamic center idea is that the control struggles will continue without end (there is no real power in those positions)
I don’t see how struggle for control (over the minbar) will end if we stopped having Islamic Centers.
If we get away from that model of a community, more meaningful grassroots work can be done for both brothers and sisters, support groups and halaqahs, etc. without the infighting that ensues when one groups wants to usurp the others rights to pray in the masjid and use it as a minbar for politics, deviance, or any other agenda.
As I said, I’ve often thought along these same lines, but I’m not sure how workable it is. With no central authority to make sure the above does not happen, how does one make it work?
On the other hand, in larger communities/larger cities, I think a lot of these grassroots efforts are being done in spite of the masjids/Islamic Centers and ultimately communities as they grow, will grow into what you speak of. I see that happening here in the DC area to an extent.
Sometimes I think that the highly centralized Islamic Centers with everything in it (bookstore, snackshop, etc) may stunt the growth of Muslim businesses immediately surrounding it. (Who wants to open a bookstore or restaurant after the masjid has one?)
Br. Tariq, do you know what the attitude in the Muslim world is when you ask, “how can all of these stores selling the same thing in the same areas be good for buisness?” They say and believe that our rizq is from Allah. In Saudi they have majr zoning restrictions, so all of the car workshops are in one area, womens clothes, mens clothes, etc etc etc.
Br. Tariq, do you know what the attitude in the Muslim world is when you ask, “how can all of these stores selling the same thing in the same areas be good for buisness?” They say and believe that our rizq is from Allah. In Saudi they have majr zoning restrictions, so all of the car workshops are in one area, womens clothes, mens clothes, etc etc etc.
Yes I saw that when I was overseas (also I think ISNA’s sooq is set up that way) so I understand that, but I am talking about competing with the masjid. I don’t think many people that support the masjid are willing to open a meat market (for example) near to the masjid if that masjid has one. They will see it as hurting the masjid and would rather open it in another part of town.
If the admin of a masjid is encouraging the community to support the masjid owned businesses (I don’t see anything wrong with this btw, just point out the potential downside) then how would it look (to the people) if someone opened competition?
That is why (although I am a little back and forth on it) I lean more toward the opinion that the admin should encourage Muslim businessmen to open places near the masjid instead of opening the businesses itself. I’m not saying that either way is wrong.
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