Islam In America

The Qu’ran doesn’t label dogs as untouchable (in fact, there’s quite a nice vignette of the Prophet Muhammad setting a guard for a dog with a litter of puppies). According to Mohammed Hanif, writing in The New York Times, “[m]ost of Muslims’ dog hate comes to us via the Hadith.” Which makes one wonder (yet…

There’s a nuanced discussion of one of our favorite topics: Islamophobia, by Massimo Pigliucci on the website Scientia Salon. One snippet: “While the statistics on international terrorism are complex and can be read in a number of ways, there is little doubt even in the mind of sympathetic commentators like CNN’s Fared Zakaria that contemporary…

As the 21st Century rolls along, American Muslims are dealing with ever more complicated questions regarding religious observance and personal behavior. Here’s what one Muslima has to say: “Yes, it’s possible to be queer and Muslim” “I don’t need to defend why I keep going back to my mosque, don’t need to name the spiritual…

Yet another gunman with an Arabic name has opened fire in an American city. This time the gunman was born in Kuwait and the city was Chattanooga, Tennessee. Those killed: four United States Marines. According to the New York Times: “The Federal Bureau of Investigation identified the gunman, who also died Thursday, as Mohammod Youssuf…

As the Independence Day celebrations draw near, it’s time to talk (once again) about the role of women in American Islam. Yes, this blog (despite digressions abroad) centers on Muslims in the United States. Women here are regarded differently than they are in Muslim-majority countries. In many ways, American Muslim women are forging a new…

Theme for the 52nd annual convention of the Islamic Society of North America is “Stories of Resilience: Strengthening the American Muslim Narrative”. The confab takes place September 4 through 7, 2015, in the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, 9291 Bryn Mawr Avenue, Rosemont, Illinois. For registration and more information, go online.

“Four Muslim men who have accused FBI agents of putting them on a no-fly list because they refused to become informants want to pursue damages against the agents even though the travel ban has been lifted, the men’s lawyers told a federal judge [12 June 2015]. “Earlier this week the men received letters notifying them…

“Every time I walk into the room, the first thought is, ‘There’s a Muslim,’ ” said Ms. [Zahra] Cheema, 25, the American-born daughter of Pakistani immigrants, describing that moment when she meets with a potential employer or argues a case in court. “I worry that essentially the hijab will override all my other merits.” That’s…

“The Supreme Court ruled 8-1 on Monday that retailer Abercrombie & Fitch may have violated workplace discrimination law when it turned down a Muslim job applicant because she wore a hijab, even though her religious beliefs never came up in the interview,” writes Dave Jamieson in The Huffington Post. Although Abercrombie & Fitch requires that…

United Airlines has a firestorm on its hands courtesy of a short-tempered flight attendant. You all know the story by now: a woman in hijab was refused an unopened can of Diet Coke because, she was told, she could use it as a weapon. Oh, sure. What United does with the resultant uproar will speak…

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