This item is available on the Militant Islam Monitor website, at http://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/1793
Muslims in America set the groundwork for a United States of Allah
March 27, 2006
MIM: What part of Islamic Society of North America and Muslim American Society didn't you understand?
In 2003 'faux moderate' Muqtedar Khan lamented that 9/11 had been a setback for the Muslims to change America into the United States of Allah.
The 'mission statement' of the Muslim American Society is in it's name .(see below)
The Muslim American Society merged with the Islamic Circle of North America and promotes Islamisation of the United States through Da'wa. (see below).
After all, in the decade before the events of
Sept. 11, Islam was one of the fastest-growing religions in North America.
Mosques and Islamic schools were going up in every major city. Groups like
the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the American Muslim Alliance
established chapters in nearly every area with a Muslim population.
Muslim leaders, once a frustrated and marginal group, found themselves being
courted by politicians, the news media and foreign governments seeking their
support and influence. Indeed, many Muslims believe it was their votes that
made the difference in Florida, making them primarily responsible for
placing President Bush in the White House.
At the time, the word that best summed up the Muslim sense of self was
"fateh" - a conqueror. Many religious and community leaders were convinced
that Islam would not only manifest itself in its truest form in this
country, but would also make America - already a great power - into a great
society. Some even proclaimed that one day America would be an Islamic
state.
On Sept. 11, of course, that dream evaporated.
"...Just like
other ethnic groups before us, we have to pay our dues to this nation before
we demand that they change themselves and the world for us..."
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At the Islamic Society of Greater Charlotte, North Carolina, members of a Muslim Girl Scout troop recite the scout pledge as well as a Muslim prayer after their meeting
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To listen to an audio version of this article click here.
ASHINGTON - Muslims in America. American Muslims. The difference between
these two labels may seem a matter of semantics, but making the transition
from the first to the second represents a profound, if somewhat silent,
revolution that many of us in the Muslim community have been undergoing in
the two years since Sept. 11.
On its face, this shift would seem to threaten the very core of Muslim
identity and empowerment. After all, in the decade before the events of
Sept. 11, Islam was one of the fastest-growing religions in North America.
Mosques and Islamic schools were going up in every major city. Groups like
the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the American Muslim Alliance
established chapters in nearly every area with a Muslim population.
Muslim leaders, once a frustrated and marginal group, found themselves being
courted by politicians, the news media and foreign governments seeking their
support and influence. Indeed, many Muslims believe it was their votes that
made the difference in Florida, making them primarily responsible for
placing President Bush in the White House.
At the time, the word that best summed up the Muslim sense of self was
"fateh" - a conqueror. Many religious and community leaders were convinced
that Islam would not only manifest itself in its truest form in this
country, but would also make America - already a great power - into a great
society. Some even proclaimed that one day America would be an Islamic
state.
On Sept. 11, of course, that dream evaporated. Today, the civil rights
environment has declined drastically with the passage of the USA Patriot Act
and other antiterrorism measures. Both sources of Islam's growth -
immigration and conversion - are now in jeopardy, and we continue to face
hostility and prejudice in many corners of society. There is no more talk of
making America an Islamic state. Any reminder of this pre-9/11 vision
generates sheepish giggles and snorts from Muslim audiences.
Yet adjusting to the new political and social realities of life in the
United States these past two years has also had unexpected and positive
effects for many Muslims. We have been compelled to transform ourselves to
connect more intimately with American mainstream society.
Today, many Muslims realize that it is not their Islamic identity but their
American citizenship that is fragile. Before Sept. 11, Muslims in America
focused primarily on changing United States policy toward Palestine, Kashmir
and Iraq. Since Sept. 11, the attempt to reconstitute our identity as
American Muslims is making domestic relations - and civil rights and
interfaith relations - more important.
Much of this is playing out at the local level. In Miami, for example,
efforts are underway by a group of progressive Muslims to endow chairs in
Islamic studies at American universities. In the Muslim community in Duluth,
Minn., fund-raising has begun to support social services, including housing
and health care initiatives for the poor. In Indianapolis, Muslim residents
are opening soup kitchens. And think of the familiar advertising campaign by
the Council on American-Islamic Relations in which Muslims announce, "We are
American and we are Muslims." It is not without design that "American" is
stated first.
Even more vital, many Muslims in this country have come to acutely
understand the vulnerabilities of minorities and the importance of democracy
and civil rights. Because we took our American citizenship for granted, we
did not acknowledge its value and virtues. But now that it is imperiled, the
overwhelming desire of many Muslims is that America remain true to its
democratic and secular values.
This summer I addressed the National Imams' Conference in Washington and
spent a week in the Sierras with 400 American Muslims. I had extended
conversations with participants. Both leaders and ordinary Muslims seem to
be possessed with a strong desire for change and self-transformation. These
were some of the frequent sentiments that I heard:
"America is our home, we will not become foreigners in our own homeland."
"Islam is about invitation and peace, not conflict." "We have to take back
Islam and also win back the hearts and minds of Americans."
It is unfortunate that American Muslim identity is being reconstructed under
duress. But it can still be a meaningful and transcendent experience. The
aftermath of Sept. 11 may have shattered some dreams, but it has also forced
us to reconnect with reality and empower ourselves.
There is still much progress to be made. We need to continue to demonstrate
that Muslims in this country constitute an ethical and philanthropic
community that cares about humanitarian causes, about America and Americans
and stands for justice and rights as embodied in the Constitution. Just like
other ethnic groups before us, we have to pay our dues to this nation before
we demand that they change themselves and the world for us.
But Americans, too, must play a role. They cannot allow events overseas to
foster anti-Muslim sentiments and Islamophobia at home. They must recognize
the insecurities and fears of their Muslim neighbors and extend a hand of
friendship and support. The choices we face are tough, but Muslims must
realize that the interests of our sons and daughters, who are American, must
come before the interests of our brothers and sisters, whether they are
Palestinian, Kashmiri or Iraqi. Only then will Muslims in America become
American Muslims.
Muqtedar Khan, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution, is author of
"American Muslims: Bridging Faith and Freedom."
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MIM: Qutb's book milestones is regarded as one of the leading radical Islamist idealogues.
Khan's gushing admiration recalls his mawkish eulogy for Arafat.
"...Qutb, true to his preachings died for the values he
espoused. He was sentenced to death and hanged by a military court
established by Nasser. I think, and Qutb would agree, writing
Milestones was his jihad against the jahiliyya that he saw all around
him....
A Fresh look at Sayyid Qutb's Milestones
By Muqtedar Khan
Sayyid Qutb is easily one of the major architects and "strategists" of
contemporary Islamic revival. Along with Maulana Maududi, the founder
of Jamaat-e-Islami, the revivalist movement in South Asia, and Imam
Khomeini, the leader of Iran's Islamic revolution, he gave shape to
the ideas and the worldview that has mobilized and motivated millions
of Muslims from Malaysia to Michigan to strive to reintroduce Islamic
practices in their lives and alter social and political institutions
so that they reflect Islamic principles. Milestones was written to
educate and motivate the potential vanguard of the re-Islamization
movement.
Qutb, like most contemporary mujaddids, Islamic revivalists, was
distressed with the growing distance between Islamic values,
institutions and practices and the emerging postcolonial Muslim
societies, specially in his native Egypt. In Milestones, he sought to
answer some of the fundamental questions such as why Islam needs to be
revived? why no other way of life is adequate? What is the true
essence of an Islamic identity and an Islamic existence (he uses the
term "concept" to signify these two elements)? How was Islam
established by the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and his companions? Can the
same method, which was undoubtedly divine in its conception be
replicated again? Qutb is particularly concerned with this issue of
"Islamic methodology". He believes that Islamic values and the manner
in which they are to be realized (read as were realized by Prophet
Muhammad (pbuh) and his glorious companions) both together constitute
the faith of Islam.
Relying entirely on the Quran, Qutb uses the concepts of jahiliyya,
Islamic concept, Islamic methodology, jihad and Allah's sovereignty,
to dilineate the strategy by which Muslims would:
1. realize the true significance and implications of
La-ilaha-illallah, having faith in the exclusive unity of Allah
(tawhid).
2. understand the imperfections, injustices and moral poverty of
jahiliyya.
3. empower themselves by realizing the meaning of
ashhadu-anna-muhammadur-rasoolullah (bearing witness that Muhammad is
Allah's messenger) -- internalizing his method of da'wah and
submitting to the will and laws of Allah.
4. Through this Islamic methodology, as articulated in the Quran and
manifested in the practices of Prophet Muhammad, which does not
separate theory from practice, and discourse from action, establish an
Islamic order. The Islamic order, which is Allah's most significant
gift to the entire humanity.
5. The most remarkable aspect of Qutb's book is his insistence on an
approach in ‘stages' and the repeated assertion that the need for
implementing Islamic law would not arise until every member of the
community had completely submitted to the sovereignty of Allah and by
that agreed to live under Allah's laws. Laws would then be framed
merely to serve the needs of this ‘living community of Islam'. A far
cry from the perception that a handful of Islamists are out to impose
an essentialized shariah on all Muslims and non-Muslims living in
Muslim lands.
Jahiliyya, as used in the traditional Islamic sense suggests ignorance
in the ways of God. However, Qutb gives an interesting twist to the
idea of jahiliyya. Jahiliyya for Qutb is the sovereignty of man over
man. Socio-political orders where men have power over other men, to
institute legislation and determine principles of right and wrong
conduct. The Quran is explicit in postulating Islam as the antithesis
of jahiliyya. Qutb, by redefining jahiliyya to encompass modern
secular systems of political organization, is basically decreeing that
all existing systems are unacceptable and even antithetical to the
spirit of Islam. Thus the dichotomy, Islam and jahiliyya includes both
the Islamic and the anthropocentric way of doing things, and Islamic
regimes and the existing unIslamic regimes in Muslim lands. A clever
ploy that uses Islamic reasoning to indirectly condemn contemporary
political organizations as antithetical to Islam.
His notion of the sovereignty of Allah as opposed to the sovereignty
of man is basically a restating of the meaning of Islamic faith --
submission to the will of God. It clearly suggests, that any principle
of organization that is not premised on God's supreme and sole
prerogative as a legislative source, is shirk. Shirk, in Islam is the
only unforgivable sin. It means to associate other Gods with Allah
thereby denying the fundamental article of faith, la laha illalah,
there is no deity but Allah. He also uses it to declare the ‘universal
declaration of the freedom of man on earth from a every authority
except Allah' (p. 48). I have already discussed his idea of the
Islamic concept which basically emphasizes the inseparability of
knowledge and practice. It is an important insight which means that
one cannot really understand Islam fully unless one is also practicing
it. Islamic methodology is his interpretation of how Prophet Muhammad
realized the Islamic ideal. He believes that any other way of
approaching Islamization is destined to fail.
His understanding of the obligation of jihad -- struggle in the path
of Allah -- is also a significant departure from traditional
understanding. He understands jihad as taking many different forms
depending upon the stage of development of the Muslim community. Thus
at the earliest stage it implies struggling to assert the principle of
tawhid against all odds. Further along the journey of Islamization it
means defending the communities right to ‘freely practice Islamic
beliefs' even if it entails the use of arms. He challenges the
‘defensive' constitution of the duty of jihad and argues that jihad is
a mandatory proactive activity that seeks to establish Allah's
sovereignty on earth. He is however careful to emphasize that it does
not necessarily mean the use of violence, it includes preaching use of
service and wealth in the way of Allah. He is also careful to remind
his readers that there is no compulsion in Islam. But if someone has
chosen to live by it then no one has the right to prevent him from
doing so. Jihad, for Qutb is both, the defense of the right to believe
and live by Islam and also the struggle to establish Allah's
sovereignty. Qutb, true to his preachings died for the values he
espoused. He was sentenced to death and hanged by a military court
established by Nasser. I think, and Qutb would agree, writing
Milestones was his jihad against the jahiliyya that he saw all around
him.
(This review is based on the ATP edition, Indianapolis, 1990.)
Dr. Muqtedar Khan is Assistant professor of political science at a
liberal arts college in Michigan. He writes on International
Relations, Globalization, Foreign Policy and Islam. Dr. Khan also
maintains an E-zine on Islam and Global Affairs:
http://www.ijtihad.org
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What is MAS?
The Muslim American Society (MAS) is a charitable, religious, social, cultural, and educational, not-for-profit organization. It is a pioneering Islamic organization, an Islamic revival, and reform movement that uplifts the individual, family, and society.
When and where it all started?
The Muslim American Society (MAS) traces its historical roots back to the call of the Prophet Muhammad ( Peace be upon him). Its more recent roots, however, can be traced to the Islamic revival movement which evolved at the turn of the twentieth century.
This movement brought the call of Islam to Muslims throughout the globe to reestablish Islam as a total way of life. The call and the spirit of the movement reached the shores of North America with arrival of Muslim students and immigrants in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
These early pioneers and Islamic movement followers established in 1963 the Muslim Student Association (MSA) of the U.S and Canada as a rallying point in their endeavor to serve Islam and Muslims in North America. Other services and outreach organizations soon followed, such as the North American Islamic Trust (NAIT), the Islamic Medical Association (IMA), the Muslim Arab Youth Association (MAYA) and the Muslim Youth of North America (MYNA), to name a few.
Twenty years later, Islamic movement followers and sympathizers in North America launched the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) as an outgrowth of the Muslim Students Association (MSA) to serve the needs of the ever-growing number of indigenous and immigrant Muslims who had opted to reside permanently in North America.
Since its inception, ISNA, and other organizations affiliated with it, worked diligently with those who were to become the founding members and future leadership of MAS, towards the advancement of the cause of Islam and Muslims in North America.
Mindful of the dynamic changes that are taking place within the Muslim community and its surroundings, and keeping an eye on the future, a number of Islamic workers and Islamic movement followers decided in 1992, after a painstaking measured and tedious process of soul-searching and consultation, to launch the Muslim American Society (MAS) in order to complement the work accomplished over the last three decades, and to lay the ground for the Islamic effort needed to face the next century's challenges.
Objectives
Contact Information:
P.O. Box 1896
Falls Church, VA 22041
Telephone: (703) 998-6525
FAX: (703) 998-6526
Electronic mail:
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MIM: An ICNA MAS joint conference theme was intended to help Muslims "face the challenges of Da'wah work and life in North America", in order to help them "live, act , and behave as concious Muslims in the sea of liberal America".
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THOUSANDS OF MUSLIMS TO CONVENE IN HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT FOR THE ANNUAL JOINT CONVENTION OF THE ISLAMIC CIRCLE OF NORTH AMERICA (ICNA) AND THE MUSLIM AMERICAN SOCIETY (MAS)
Insha Allah, the gathering is expected to be one of the largest Islamic conventions of the year, it will draw Muslims from across America.
This year's theme is Family: The Foundation of Our Society.
Various national and international Islamic scholars will address the convention attendees. Their presentations will focus on topics ranging from 'building strong families in the changing times' to 'establishing family friendly society'.
Other highlights include:
lectures and interactive workshops on Islamic life
parallel youth conference
interfaith programs
ethnic food
special children events
extensive marketplace with over 250 vendors
This is the meeting where Islamic workers get their stimulation for another year to face the challenges of Dawah work in North America.
This is the place where Young Muslims come together to share their experiences of one whole year and learn some more tools to face the challenges of the life in North America.
This is the occasion when Muslim sisters join each others hands once again to strengthen their bond of Islamic sisterhood and make sure not to give in to the so called 'glamorous' and 'independent' life of North America.
This is the place where Muslim brothers/sisters bring their resources together to strengthen the community.
In organizing this convention, as in all our work, we are committed to fostering an environment which reflects, supports, and celebrates our collective diversity in terms of age, gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, class, ability, spirituality, life experience, and point of view. In this diversity, ICNA creates a rainbow of unity of thoughts and actions, as how to live, act and behave like conscious Muslims in the vast ocean of liberal America.
BE THERE! Do Not Miss It!
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http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/muslimlife/education1.htm
Taking part in Cleveland, Ohio's pioneering tax-funded school voucher program, the first-grade class at Islamic School of Oasis learns about geography. (Photo by Steve Liss/TimePix)
This item is available on the Militant Islam Monitor website, at http://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/1793