Obama and Islam

Religion and race were obviously going to be two sore points in Barack Obama's road to President. The fact he is black may have hindered his chances, and it was debated endlessly. His religion was also a cause for concern, maybe not for the media, but more for the ordinary US citizen, who took his name as evidence of him being a Muslim.

Newsweek says:

"For the past few months, not a day went by without the words "Muslim" and "Obama" being mentioned in the same sentence. From the divisive shouts and jeers at McCain rallies to the Op-Ed pages of The New York Times to an interview with Colin Powell on NBC's "Meet the Press," Muslims—or at least the mention of them—have been more prevalent this campaign year than "Joe the Plumber."

Of course, Obama has consistently said he is a Christian, and the media barrage over the comments of his pastor should have confirmed that.

Although Obama is not a muslim, I think what he has done is raise awareness about African-American muslims. In my view, African-Americans seem to be a very spiritual people. Their culture, or that which is transmitted through pop culture, is heavily revolved around church. But there have also been several pop culture references to black muslims. I can name several movies that present African-American muslims. In fact, some of the most famous African Americans were muslim. Think Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali.


Malcolm X

But they are often forgotten in the grand scheme of things, even though they shouldn't be. If you can imagine the prejudice that has been wrought upon black Americans in the past and the prejudice that has been wrought upon Muslim Americans.... imagine what happens when you combine them.

Faheem Shuaibe from Altmuslim.com, a wonderful source for Muslim commentary, has done a piece highlighting the unique experience of African-American Muslims and the part they can play in defeating Islamophobia:

Ironically, the solution to Islamophobia in the United States could very well come from African American Muslims – those who converted to Islam beginning in the Civil Rights Era, rejected the character traits and cultural mores that American culture had imposed upon the "ex-slave", and are playing a significant role in American society.

What role can African American Muslims play?

First, in order to mine this group for the cure, there must be more interaction overall in order that we may get to know one another – as Americans and as Muslims.

Second, the key is to gain insight into the world-view that governs the African American Muslim disposition and actions. Namely, the fact that true African American Muslims hold sacred the absolute equality of all human beings and embrace the timeless, universal values of the Qur'an – values which disapprove of jealousy, vengeance and prejudice.

Highlighting the unique African American Muslim experience should lead the western world to ask, "If this is what Islam can produce, even from a people whose culture was so utterly decimated, then what in Islam do we really have to fear?"

The rights and entitlements afforded African American Muslims are unparalleled anywhere in the Muslim world today. African American Muslims, at one time arguably the most dehumanised population in history, are productive and patriotic American citizens who play a role, through their social and political participation, in shaping American society.

African American Muslims are therefore in a unique position to embrace such American symbols as the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States while still striving to defeat Islamophobia.

African American Muslims are a sign of how Islam can take a vanquished people and turn them into productive and active participants who help to shape their political and social environment. They are a people that have faced discrimination and fear before and are equipped to play a significant role in pushing back against a new incarnation of cultural discrimination and misunderstanding – Islamophobia.

Can the election of a black president with a muslim name also have an effect?

Maybe many Muslims from all sects, countries and ethnicities think so. Read this Newsweek report about how Muslims overwhelmingly voted for Obama:

Many Muslim Americans also changed their party affiliations for this election. The country's Muslim population, estimated at between 7 to 8 million, has traditionally voted along conservative, Republican lines. Today, more than two thirds of American Muslims polled say they consider themselves to be Democrats, while only 4 percent see themselves as Republicans (29 percent identified themselves as Independents.)

The shift began in 2004—in part because of the GOP's mishandling of civil liberties, from wiretapping American citizens to detaining Muslims in the United States and Guantanamo without trial, and because of the war in Iraq.

This year, many more were drawn into the Democratic party by Obama himself. Muslims across the country were captivated by the senator's promise of unity and hope.

On the Muslim-Americans for Obama Web site (Mafo2008.com), their mission statement includes the following: "That we support Barack Obama because, among other reasons, he rejects the politics of fear, challenging our nation to embrace its collective identity, where each American has a stake in the success and well-being of every American."