Muslim Immigrants in The United States after 9/11

When we talk about the effects of 9/11, an Al-Qaeda terrorist attack carried out on American soil, we usually discuss what happened to one side of the spectrum. We talk about the deaths that occured within the attacks, the agony felt by the families of the deceased after the terror. We never look at the other side of the coin, the side of Muslim immigrants and Muslim Americans who are not related to these terrorist organizations. This effect affected them in a political, educational and economical sense, but it especially affected them culturally. In this paper, 9/11’s impact on Muslim immigrants in a cultural lense will be analyzed in depth. Specifically, the divide among religious American citizens and Musliam immigrants before and after 9/11, the condemnation of Muslims by the American media, and the Muslim community coming together.

Americans, especially strict Christian Americans, are openly hostile towards Muslims.

While Hala Darwish was growing up in the mid 20th century, she experienced her fair share of exclusion. Her family had moved from Palestine in the early 50s, about a decade before she was born in the mid-60s. Darwish was alienated by her peers due to her race and religion. Reflecting back on her upbringing, she says “I always looked different… I was called ‘camel jockey’ a lot. It took people a while to catch up to me because I was fair skinned, but once they saw the name… Then the racial jokes set in.” She then goes on to discuss how she had to transfer high schools due to “mischief and social difficulties”. At one point, Darwish had attended a catholic high school. She wasn’t outwardly teased, but she and a Latina student were ostracized on what Darwish calls “a racial exclusion.”

Islam and Christianity have had a complicated relationship a complicated relationship ever since the Crusades. When the issue of immigration came up, Protestant leader Franklin Graham wrote “We are under attack by Muslims at home and abroad. We should stop all immigration of Muslims to the U.S. until this threat with Islam has been settled.” Two researchers, Darren E. Sherkat and Derek Lehman, published a study on how religious factors impacted opinions toward Muslim Immigrants. Exploring the study reveals that region and level of Chrisitanity influence these beliefs more than just being a believer of Jesus Christ. Southern, biblical literalist/ born again Chritstians were more likely to hold hostile sentiments toward immigrants.

The media generalizes Muslisms, resulting in everyone sharing the blame instead of the actual perpetrators.

After 9/11, someone had to be blamed for the tragedy. Instead of turning their focus on the Islamic extremist groups that carried out these attacks, the media, which includes television, print articles, digital mediums, and radio shows, targeted Muslims as a whole. Chris Matthews remarked on MSNBC “They hate us because our culture teaches us to respect women.” Muslims were left scratching their heads at this statement. Months earlier, on March 20th, 2001, Afghan women and American feminists picketed in Washington in order to draw attention to the mistreatment of women by the Taliban. Taliban officials had come to America to have a discussion with the Bush Administration. There was almost zero press coverage of this protest.

Hassan and Samia, a husband and wife, hold a more personal viewpoint. Samia points towards the media for the negative experiences she has had Chicago, including the time she and Hassan were harassed at a bowling alley by the employees. She says “It is the media. It is the effect of the media on other people. There is always a negative association with Islam on the news. That is what has affected our life the most. Imagine you’re somewhere where there is a television, and they are all over the place, and something comes up about Islam, and then all the eyes are on you. You feel so exposed.”

The first amendment right of free press was made for citizens to inform each other, not to pit themselves against one another. Samia and Hassan are not the only muslims who experience this prejudice. All five oral stories included in Louise Canitar’s publication, Homeland Insecurity, included anecdotes about how the media affected their lives, not all for the better.

One interviewee, Usama Alshaibi, is trying to promote a more open minded take on Chicago radio show, Vocalo. Rather than having an American viewpoint on every issue, they take everyone’s view point. Alshaibi says “We are sort of a user-generated radio. This means we play anyone and everyone can upload their audio on our website, and we’ll play it on the air.”

Muslims came together as a community in order to support each other after 9/11.

With other Americans and the media on their backs, there was only one thing Muslim immigrants could turn towards: other Muslims. After 9/11, 2nd generation Muslim young adults have began to embrace the hijab. Second generation citizens, in the aftermath of 9/11, proudly wear the traditional head covering instead of hiding it. These young women see the hijab as “an iconic symbol of the refusal to be defined by the Western media and war propaganda since 9/11, and of affirming authentic Muslim and American identity.”

Another unexpected bonding experience is through music. Specifically, rap. Islamic hip hop artist, Mos Def, has harnessed both arguably the most persecuted religion and arguably the most persecuted music genre into an opportunity for his community to become closer. He’s not the first nor will he be the last, but that doesn’t make his purpose any less worthwhile. Tyson, an artist, says ” '[you] have this ability, you want to do something with it, now, for the right reasons, you know, to teach people about Allah and his Messenger . . .' The author of this piece, Khabeer, remarks “Indeed, the hope of Islamic hip hop is its ability to further ground an American Muslim identity and simultaneously perform this lived American Muslim experience to a non-Muslim audience that is encouraged to be skeptical of Islam and Muslims in a post-9/11 world.”

Some may say that music, especially rap, isn’t powerful enough to bring a broken community together. However, when we look at the amazing things these artists have done, such as bridging the gap between generations by adopting a style that appeals to the young and living a lifestyle that older generations approve of, the impact is not something to be scoffed at.

In a post 9/11 world, Muslims have managed to adapt to the onslaught of struggles that come with being on the other side of a tragedy. Muslims acknowledge the extremist groups and even denounce the organizations, yet they are still treated as if they were a part of the attacks. Despite the negative effects other Americans and media may cause, Muslims acknowledge that they have each other as a community.