Islam in the United States
- From: "Muslims Are Good Folks" <la_ilaha_illa_lah@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 29 May 2008 08:25:00 -0400
Islam in the United States
It is almost impossible to generalize about American Muslims: converts,
immigrants, factory workers, doctors; all are making their own contribution
to America's future. This complex community is unified by a common faith,
underpinned by a countrywide network of a thousand mosques.
Muslims were early arrivals in North America. By the eighteenth century
there were many thousands of them, working as slaves on plantations. These
early communities, cut off from their heritage and families, inevitably lost
their Islamic identity as time went by. Today many Afro-American Muslims
play an important role in the Islamic community.
The nineteenth century, however, saw the beginnings of an influx of Arab
Muslims, most of whom settled in the major industrial centers where they
worshipped in hired rooms. The early twentieth century witnessed the arrival
of several hundred thousand Muslims from Eastern Europe: the first Albanian
mosque was opened in Maine in 1915; others soon followed, and a group of
Polish Muslims opened a mosque in Brooklyn in 1928.
In 1947 the Washington Islamic Center was founded during the term of
President Truman, and several nationwide organizations were set up in the
fifties. The same period saw the establishment of other communities whose
lives were in many ways modeled after Islam. More recently, numerous members
of these groups have entered the fold of Muslim orthodoxy. Today there are
about five million Muslims in America.
? The Muslim World
The Muslim population of the world is around one billion. 30% of Muslims
live in the Indian subcontinent, 20% in Sub-Saharan Africa, 17% in Southeast
Asia, 18% in the Arab World, 10% in the Soviet Union and China. Turkey, Iran
and Afghanistan comprise 10% of the non-Arab Middle East. Although there are
Muslim minorities in almost every area, including Latin America and
Australia, they are most numerous in the Soviet Union, India, and central
Africa. There are 5 million Muslims in the United States.
O mankind! We created you from a single soul, male and female, and made you
into nations and tribes, so that you may come to know one another. Truly,
the most honored of you in God's sight is the greatest of you in piety. God
is All-Knowing, All-Aware. (Quran 49:13)
http://www.islamicbulletin.com/intro.htm#a28
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