Islam In America

Interesting discussion by Kenan Malik of Pandaemonium on the “how’s” of creating a successful multicultural society.

An excerpt: “The starting point of multicultural policy is the acceptance of societies as diverse. Yet, on the multicultural map, that diversity seems magically to vanish at the edges of minority communities. Multiculturalists tend to treat minority communities as if each was a distinct, singular, homogeneous, authentic whole, each composed of people all speaking with a single voice, each defined primarily by a singular view of culture and faith. In so doing, multiculturalists all too often ignore conflicts within those communities. And they take the most conservative, reactionary figures as the authentic voices of those communities, precisely because they are reactionary and therefore must be authentic.”

What do you think? As a Muslim of a particular ethnic heritage, are you put into a “box” that’s distinct, singular and homogenous?

Or, as Malik writes, “If we want the pleasures of pluralism, we have to accept the pain of being offended.”

Check out the entire article: “The Pleasures of Pluralism, the Pain of Offense”

Yet another wave of Muslim immigration heads West.

Joseph Mayton writes: “Facing discrimination and violence in their home countries, homosexual Muslims are flocking to the U.S. and Britain—where immigration hurdles await.”

Check it out here.

“Police in Dearborn [Michigan] are trying to understand why a pressure cooker was left in the restroom of the Adoba Hotel, forcing the evacuation of guests until the early morning hours. The evacuation also canceled Sunday night’s banquet of the University of Muslim Association of America,” reports CBS Detroit.

“The pressure cooker discovered at the hotel was detonated by police as a precaution, but contained no explosives.”

Sure, after the Boston Marathon bombing, pressure cookers have entered the terrorism lexicon. But, what do you think? Was this a practical joke? A political commentary? An episode of forgetfulness on the part of the cooker’s owner?

According to Slate.com: “In the days following the murder of a British soldier in London [22 May 2013], there has been a huge spike in anti-Muslim incidents, according to an interfaith charity. Faith Matters, an organization that works to reduce extremism, says it has received 162 calls on its helpline since Wednesday’s attack, a sharp increase from the six calls it receives on an average day. The incidents range from name calling and abuse on social media, to the painting of graffiti, attacks against mosques, and pulling off women’s headscarves in the street.”

There’s little question that at least one of those who attacked the British soldier is Muslim. Are actions such as his, which inevitably create a general backlash against co-religionists, merely selfish attempts to gain “15 minutes of fame”? Is there ever a justification for such murderous action?