What do you think are the best strategies for fighting the misconceptions about Muslims and Islam in America?

First of all, is it a real phenomena – or are we just all paranoid?

If you think it is a reality, then please discuss things we can do collectively, and on an individual basis.

Give examples of things that work or are working.

This essay will count for half your final grade! ;)

Well as a new student of Islam who came to know god first through through a dream then by Christian faith the abve statement by Magi is a start. I am not a non muslim but I am not a non Christian (let me expalin in short I believe The Torrah, New Testament and Qu'ran all hold truth as pertained to Allah, God, I am that I am, The father of Abraham, Issac and Jacob.) Holding public forums in christain churches to break the ignorance of what the media has put out to the western world would be great. I am sure there are pastors who believe like me. I am sure they would be more than willing to accept a speaker to come in and clarify the diffrence between true Islam and those who have been mislead. As in Judiaism, Christainity, and Islam there are false teachers and doctrines that have very much so distorted the Word of God for mans own selfish, greedy, vain, desires. Misconceptions and misinterpretations as well. Offer a open religious teaching inviting churces of other faiths that believe in the same god as a study of true Islam. Those who seek Gods truth well come. Those who seek understanding so they may love their brothers in Islam and sisters as well, they well come. A book, publications that allow such topics to be discussed readily available for the publics view. Any T.V. program that would allow such a topic not in a debate forum but as an educational forum. I personally would be interest in any class like that. I love God and seek him period. I love people and prefer to love and come to understand what I do not know. I'd rather understand than to tolerate. We all love and seek the same Creators acceptance and those who feel the same ears well be open to learn.

What do you think are the best strategies for fighting the misconceptions about Muslims and Islam in America?

Priority number one is getting our communities in order. Once that is done then we need, on both and organizational and personal level, to show people who we are and what we believe. Misconceptions of Islam are almost exclusively based on either sheer ignorance or there being true in some cases. We fuel a lot of the negative press on ourselves. It's like when someone offensively states that all muslims are angry and violent and then muslims go out and riot and prove their accusers correct.

First of all, is it a real phenomena – or are we just all paranoid?

It's real and we're paranoid. Turn on some far-right radio and you will know its real. We are paranoid in that we over-exaggerate in our minds the scale of the problem. It is a few extremists trying to cause trouble, not some grand conspiracy. Secondly, I would mention again that we fuel our being perceived as backwards and irrational by our backwards and irrational responses to this problem.

I can only speak from my own experience.  I don't know if I was ever truly Islamophobic, but I did once have an extremely biased opinion of Islam based on images of women dressed in black, books like Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia and movies like "Not Without My Daughter".   

I read more detailed books later about all the do's and don'ts muslims were suppossed to follow, but it all just sounded like a bunch of controlling restrictive rules to me.  It wasn't until my ideals about the life I wanted to live and the person I wanted to be became more clear, and defining my own understanding of God and how I wanted to maintain that connection, where a deeper meaning of Islam was revealed to me.   

The other thing that helped was actually getting to know some muslim people.  Practicing, imperfect mulsims.   Not just hearing about them in the news or reading about them in the paper or books about someones bad experience.   

What mstcomewithwsdm mentioned about having public forums in churches is something that is happening here.  There is a Catholic church near me that holds some kind of interfaith type thing.  This was where an Episcopal priest from our area was exposed to and subsequently embraced Islam.  Not advocating going to churches to convert people here, just pointing out that if people are exposed to Islam oustide of the context of war and terrorism, they will become less fearful. 
 
SDA

Aw, don't worry Lee.  Americans are ready!  Didn't you see Jesus Camp?