Over the past few years, Islamophobia has been the term that completely defines the perspective of most Americans on Muslims and anything that has to do with Islam. On the contrary, there are also cases of some Americans who have opposite opinions towards Islam. This is because the interests and goals of the two groups differ by a great margin and so do their customs. This research paper intends to look into how people in America perceive Islam as a religion. This will be done by presenting the responses given by the respondents in an interview that was conducted on the same topic. The respondents consisted of one Muslim and two Non-Muslims. The following are the questions that were submitted to the respondents:
- Are you comfortable with your state as a Muslim or would you be one if given a chance?
- What is your take on the Islamic Law in general?
- What do you have to say on the rights that Sharia (Islamic law) has set aside for Islamic women? What, if given an opportunity to do so, would you add as a right for the Muslim women?
- What do you have to say on the present perspective of Islam by the Americans?
- What do you think the Americans don’t know about Muslims?
The first to be interviewed was a middle-aged Muslim woman called Fatima from Hawaii. The following are the responses she gave on the questions identified above.
She is happy that she is a Muslim and doesn’t think she would have been anything better without the Islamic religion. Her view of Islam as a religion is that it is the only religion that cares for the total welfare of all the individuals that fall under it. She says that unlike other many religions in the world, Islam is not only concerned with the spiritual development of a person but takes into consideration his or her physical needs as well. She is proud that hers is a doing religion as opposed to the common religions whose members more often than not do not practise what is taught in their places of worship.
Asked about her take on the Islamic law as a whole, she responded that the law is perfect in each and every aspect and that it was an important tool in her day to day life. Fatima confesses that except for a few slips here and there, it is the Islamic Law that has seen through life the far that she has reached. She goes on to say that Islamic Law has played a major role in the reduction of risky behavior and terrorism acts among Muslim youths. She also adds that the Law has contributed to the extremely low population of Muslims in prisons worldwide.
Fatima was fully satisfied with the original rights that the Quran (The Holy book) and the Hadith (Sayings of Muhammad, the prophet) initially specified for the Islamic women. The various rights that were set aside for women on issues such as education, civil and military work, dress codes, equality in the mosque and prayer, sexuality and marriage, property, marriage and other rights were accurate and fair to both the sexes. However, Fatima was bitter that modern Islamists comprising mostly of men have had the guts to alter the holy words of the Quran and the prophet and distort the women rights in a bid to make them fit into the modern world. For instance, a survey carried out in the year 2000 by the Council on American Islamic relations revealed that in every three Islamic mosques, two required that the Islamic women conduct their prayers in separate rooms from where the men conduct their prayers (McCarus 13). Fatima would like to see this modernism in Islam brought to an ultimate end and the previous rights of the Islam woman fully restored. Therefore, if given a good chance, this would be the first step on her agenda.
Fatima agrees with the writer of this article that most Americans who are not Muslims treat Muslims with fear, suspicion or contempt. She was also very emotional when she added that this generalization was a big stumbling block to the daily running of affairs of the American Muslims. This is because it is hard to retain their culture in a country that regards its very aspect with disdain (McCarus 13). She thinks that the American people are totally mistaken to associate each and every Islamic individual with the acts of terrorism that are caused by few wayward Islamic individuals across the globe.
The next respondent is a Non-Muslim American in his mid-twenties. This particular youth called Frank, was frank enough to confess that he was a heathen and that he wouldn’t get converted into Islam no matter the costs. He is of the opinion that the Islamic religion was inferior to the other religions because of the minority of its converts worldwide. I have every reason to believe that Frank’s stance on Islam is a nearly accurate representation of the entire Non-Muslim American population.
On the Islamic Law, frank had this to say. The whole Islamic Law was inappropriate because it enclosed an individual into traditional cocoons and hampered any efforts by the modern world to change this person internally and externally. The Islamic law in this case deters successful transformation of an individual so that he can or she can keep up with the modern trends and fashions of the world.
Frank says that the rights specified by the Islamic law for the Islamic women are not enough and will tend to imprison the modern woman. He thinks that there is need to moderate the laws so that there is more room for creation of more rights for the Islamic women. Frank doesn’t like the idea of Islamic women covering every part of their bodies except the eyes when in public for it denies the women their freedom of choosing what they want to wear. In fact, for most American Non-Muslim women, it is very destructive (Rouse 12). He says that he would change this as the first thing if given an opportunity to do so.
Frank thinks the Americans are justified in the way they regard the Muslims. He is of the idea that Islamophobia is necessary for personal security. He says that the Americans are prudent people and would not ignore anything, no matter how trivial, that would comprise their security. He however acknowledges that there are a few Muslims who can be trusted but after critical analysis of the individual.
The last respondent was an old Non-Muslim woman called Kari Thompson from Morgantown. Kari admits that she wouldn’t refuse to get converted into Islam if talked to by a good Muslim. She recognizes Islam as any other religion and doesn’t see a good reason for discrimination against the Muslims.
Kari says that even though Islamic Law may appear incorrect to non-Muslims, she is sure that it is alright in the eyes of the Muslims and should therefore be left upon them. She also doesn’t see any problem with the women’s rights in Islam especially if they are comfortable with them and sees nothing to add on them. “why should we complain over what the person under it is not complaining, I lean why should we be the ones to complain when women in Islam are comfortable?” this is what Kari had to say.
Lastly, Kari thinks the Americans have got it all wrong to think that all the Muslims have got something creepy up their sleeves. She calls upon all the Americans to treat all the Muslims as fellow citizens. According to her, Islamophobia should be cast out of every American’s mind.
From the, it is observable that there are diverse perceptions of Islam in America. After conducting this study, I realized that not every American has feelings of Islamophobia towards Islam. The truth is that most Muslims are nice people and can be as lovable as any other American. The American media should stop treating them as aliens (Waugh, Abu-Laban & Qureshi 7) and instead regard them as any other American.
Works Cited
McCarus, Ernest. The Development of Arab-American Identity. Michigan: University of Michigan Press, 1994.
Rouse, Carolyn. Engaged Surrender: African American Women and Islam. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2004.
Waugh, Earle. Sharon M. Abu-Laban, and Regula Qureshi, eds. Muslim Families in North America. Edmonton: the University of Alberta Press, 1991.