hence, the reason I made it analogous to the black plight here in America....

historically, we used to feel embarassed and apologetic for what some numbnuts did.... now we're moving away from that....

People simply have to understand that a few do not represent the masses...

[QUOTE=docwitchy;289261]Perhaps the thought process that makes one think of themself as a Muslim American instead of an American who happens to be Muslim is an issue.

I'm an American woman, wife, mother, physician, reserve army officer, and by the way, my religion is Islam.

I don't run into Islamaphobia.

Neither does my husband who is an American man, surgeon, husband, father, reserve army officer, who happens to be Muslim.

Islamist extremists, this vile and vicious minority of our faith who embarrass all of us, are as alien to me as aliens from another galaxy. I have nothing in common with them, I detest them, I want them to be destroyed, I despise everything they stand for, I hate what they do to Islam, and I'll do whatever I can to help find them and get rid of them. And that I believe is being both a good American and good Muslim.

I don't run into Islamaphobia!

Salaam,

Mariah[/QUOTE]



lol.....I dont run into it either....but sure as heck runs into me!

MashAllah there is some good suggestion about how to fight Islamaphobia in America, but whatever Muslims do, they mustn't stop being "the strangers":

http://youtube.com/watch?v=KUIyrwr0Oq8

Salaam.

GracieMae76 wrote:

"Don't you think it is a good idea for Muslims to speak out against terrorism."

I think Muslims continuously speaking out against other Muslims is sort of a trap.... No one Muslim or group of Muslims should feel responsible for other extremist Muslims in the world who take it upon themselves to execute terrorist acts...

It would be akin to a black person issuing apologies for all the thefts, black on black crimes, etc that are committed by other blacks....I dont want to apologize for other people's acts, and I dont think Muslims want to either...

Its a NEVER-ENDING cycle....

But for the fact that virtually all of the terrorism in the world is conducted by Muslims and in the name of some Islamic Vision of justice, I might agree with you.

Aslo, I cannot imagine Christians being quiet and not codemning EVERY ACT of terrorism conducted by a Christian group anywhere in the world.

By being quiet, as they are, one MUST conclude that Muslims are less than united in combatting the FACT of Islamic Terrorism around the world.

If you are concerned about "Islamaphobia" consider how any human would react to the daily carnage of Islamic Terrorism around the world. There have been many thwared attacks on the Untied states since 2005. We are only human to be concerned about the threat to our country of Islamic Terrorism.

docwitchyPerhaps the thought process that makes one think of themself as a Muslim American instead of an American who happens to be Muslim is an issue.

I'm an American woman, wife, mother, physician, reserve army officer, and by the way, my religion is Islam.

I don't run into Islamaphobia.

Neither does my husband who is an American man, surgeon, husband, father, reserve army officer, who happens to be Muslim.

Islamist extremists, this vile and vicious minority of our faith who embarrass all of us, are as alien to me as aliens from another galaxy. I have nothing in common with them, I detest them, I want them to be destroyed, I despise everything they stand for, I hate what they do to Islam, and I'll do whatever I can to help find them and get rid of them. And that I believe is being both a good American and good Muslim.

I don't run into Islamaphobia!

Salaam,

Mariah


Salam Mariah and God Bless you and your husband.

I am proud to know you are an American and proud to have a granddaughter share your name, and a daughter share your profession.

Your comments are exactly what I am driving at. If more Muslims spoke as you do, there would not be any fear of Islamophobia. And good luck at "getting rid of them."

America is a place where people of all faiths can find refuge and tolerance and the freedoms that are part of our constitution and our life. The actions of Islamic Terrorists around the world, and the relative silence of Muslims here in the US cannot be allowed to destroy this wonderful part of America.

Salam and God bless

hmm...and interesting, timely, and important topic for someone like me.

I'm American, non-muslim, not particularly religious (although i guess I identify closest with Christianity)...and married to a muslim. I got the Obama forward (complete, ridiculous hysteria) and heard his response, which I thought was okay.  I've heard a boss of mine complain about people who wanted to take off work to go on "some made-up religious trip to somewhere in Saudi Arabia"

On the other hand, I've also watched my husband (who isn't a U.S. citizen yet and has the most muslim  and arabic of names) get through airport security with a jumbo-size bottle of cologne that was waaaay over 3 oz. and a screwdriver that was almost 11 inches long (how they ended up in his bag is a long story and was essentially my fault).  no kidding. He's never been pulled out for extra screening either, although I have 3 different times.

So do I think there's islamophobia exists in the U.S.?  yes, there definitely is...but there's also a politeness backlash after 9/11 that has made most americans more aware of Islam in general, and  more afraid of being called prejudiced if they question certain aspects of muslim culture or being accused of unfairly targeting muslims for extra security measures...It's an interesting dichotomy in american society right now.

Like someone has already mentioned, I don't think it's helpful if we expect all muslims to apologize for every incident that happens around the world. It's also important to note that there is plenty of terrorism happening in the world that doesn't involve muslims at all.  Suicide bombings as we know it began in Sri Lanka (the hindu Tamil tigers v. the buddhist).  A terrorist is a person or nongovernmental organization that plans and executes acts of violence against civilian or noncombatant targets, so Timothy McVeigh was also a terrorist.

Oh the other hand, we have to admit that certain aspects of muslim CULTURE do go directly against what the average american (and european) sees as basic inalienable rights, like equal rights for women, freedom to date whom you please, freedom to choose a different religious path than your parents, and freedom for all people to dress in a way widely accepted in this culture as acceptable, if they choose. 

So when a typical american reads about daughters being killed by their fathers for acting "westernized" (having a boyfriend, or dressing like everyone else), they feel as though these people represent a larger problem of all muslims being unwilling to assimilate to the culture here, and they find that threatening. Is that fair? no! But is it valid? maybe. I think muslims in Pakistan or Saudi Arabia would be equally alarmed and upset if I immigrated there and insisted on wearing tank tops and mini-skirts in public, while publicly making out with my boyfriend. I'd probably be thrown in jail, but at the very least, people would say, "go back home! we don't want people with those values here!".  And some americans here feel the same way when presented with people whose values so directly contradict their own. The problem is that muslims come in a wide spectrum of beliefs; some very liberal and some very conservative with everything in-between.

I'm not saying this is fair or that I condone it, but it really makes me wonder a few things:

1) Can a person live in harmony here  (without being oppressed) in the U.S. if they keep their religion, but have assimilated to the culture here?
2) Can a person live in harmony here in the U.S. if have a very conservative interpretation of their religion, or do they experience more "islamophobia?"
3) And then: Should a person have to assimilate to a particular culture as a stipilation for immigration?

I'm curious about what you all think. 

I'm also curious about the definition of islamophobia...my husband has been reading over my shoulder, and is shouting at me to write that, so how do you all define islamophobia? For the record, he also says that he thinks it exists, but he's never really experienced any of it himself...and that the best way to combat islamophobia is to live a life that shows that muslims aren't all chauvenistic extremists who care more about what their wives are wearing than if their wives are happy and healthy.