I. Introduction
II. Post 9/11 challenges
1. Civil Rights
Defending civil rights became the single most important challenge before the American Muslims in the post-9/11 America. Arabs and Muslims were the prime targets of the post 9/11 reconfiguration of American laws, policies, and priorities.
2. Islamophobia
Campaign against Islam and Muslims - The Christian Right - Venom from the radio talk show hosts - Desecration of the Quran - Controversial cartoons – Impact of Islamophobia - Permission to build new mosques & expansion of mosques denied
3. Campaign against Muslim charities
Major charities shut down - Senate Finance Committee’s McCarthyite witch hunt of Muslim charities - Holy Land Foundation’s prosecution reveals questionable evidence - Government is trying to keep proceedings in the dark - Anti-Terrorist Financing Guidelines revised - No guarantee that a charity is clear even if it follows the Anti-Terrorist Financing Guidelines - Impact on donation collection - Muslim Groups Form National Council of American Muslim Non-Profits
4. Muslims face inquisition
No freedom of religion – surveillance of mosques – SANE project to spy on mosques - radiation tests of mosques – Muslims forced to spy on fellow Muslims - Muslims repeatedly compelled to condemn terrorism.
5. Profiling has become institutionalized
Flying While Muslim or Arab - Driving While Arab or Muslim - Interviews of 5,000 Muslims and Arabs - Detentions and Deportations - INS Registration Program
6. Stereotyping – Movies, media
Dehumanize a group first before attacking it - Muslims and Arabs have long been negatively portrayed in America - Reel Bad Arabs by Jack Shaheen – Few takes on stereotyping in movies: Children's movies – Stereotyping in News Media - Cartoons, another media of stereotype
7. Hate crimes, discrimination & harassment
Hate crimes - Attack on Hijab wearing women – Official Discrimination - Delay in citizenship - Harassment at workplaces - Bank accounts closed - Discrimination against non-citizen Muslims
8. Attempt to silence genuine Muslim voices and encourage ‘moderates’
- Campaign against major American Muslim civil right organizations such as CAIR and ISNA. - Alternate compliant groups - Progressive Muslim Union of North America - American Muslim Group on Policy Planning - Free Muslim Coalition Against Terrorism - Govt encourages so-called moderate Muslims as an alternative voice for American Muslims - Kamal Kawish founder of a newly formed group represents American Muslims at the at the Organization for Security and Cooperation Conference on Anti-Semitism and on Other Forms of Intolerance held in Cordoba, Spain.
III. American Muslim response to the Post-9/11 challenges
- Political activism – Muslims and Arabs are asserting their rights; Campaign for Islamic holidays. - Activism during the Israeli rampage on Lebanon in July/August 2006. - Participation in the national political process - Elections 2004/2006.- Outreach to ethnic and religious communities. - Interfaith outreach – Christian-Muslim dialogue – Jewish-Muslim outreach suffers a setback during the Lebanese crisis.
IV - References
V. Appendices
1. Who are American Muslims? Demographic Data
2. Muslim Immigration to US
3. Development of Muslim institutions and organizations
4. American Muslims in Politics
VI. Reports/articles
Bigotry in action: Islamophobia in US Presidential election campaign
How to tackle the rising Islamophobia in US?
SANE: An Islamophobic group seeks to banish Islam from the U.S.
A tale of three show-case trials of Muslims in America
From crusade to Islamic fascism
How the Bush administration recruits Muslim informers?
Portrait of a Post 9/11 American Muslim
New COINTELPRO campaign directed at Arabs, Muslims and South East Asians
Rand Corporationï¾’s new recipe to handle the Muslim World
Neo-Orientalists of the Rand Corporation
Transforming Islam into acceptable forms for the west is the main neocons project
New Rand study suggests exploiting Sunni, Shiite and Arab, non-Arab divides
to promote the US policy objectives in the Muslim world
Revamping of Islam in the image of neocons
