Globalog is the Gateway to Muqtedar Khan's commentaries on Islam and Global Affairs.
On December 4, 2006, the national leadership of American Muslims met with key senior U.S. government officials to discuss the state of Islamophobia in America and US Muslim relations. To read the entire report and see an audio visual section click here.
Dr. Muqtedar Khan is Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at the University of Delaware. He is also the Director of the Islamic Studies Program. He is a Non-resident Fellow at the Brookings Institution. He is the author of American Muslims: Bridging Faith and Freedom (Amana, 2002), Jihad for Jerusalem: Identity and Strategy in International Relations (Praeger, 2004).
5 Comments:
This is Islamophobia or Islamicphobia; whichever pronunciation is used, is in fact a misuse of the word Islaam and the Islaamic System established by Allah-swt. To connect the word "Islam" with any kind of "fear or fright" in order to attract people’s attention, sense of sorrow, or shame is to merely express desperation on your parts to achieve your own political aims. It is not Al’Islaam that the peoples of the world fear, rather it is the unchecked conduct of those who portray themselves as Believing Muslims, but conduct themselves as though they have another agenda other than that of the Qur’aan and the Example of the Prophet Muhammad-saws. If you have to make media aimed statements I believe it would be more affective to state to the officials or the public, that we are going to start changing the public view of us (Muslimuun) by establishing the proper Islaamic life here and around the world. That would be more aligned with the effective behavior and life of Muhammad the Prophet-saws rather than to continue to complain “woe is we” when a microphone is shoved in your face. The Prophet-saws was not a whiner to the people, he took is all complaints to Allah-swt the only One who could resolve them. We must stop being a people who expect our difficulties and hurts to find some relief by asking others to give us relief or to relate to us in a more accepting manner. The relief we desire is in establishing the proper conduct and being a mercy to the people by living among the people’s of the world in such in a respectful, kind, and generous way that they can see the true Islaamic life with clear vision. They see the vindictive and often extreme behavior of a few who portray themselves as the best Muslims and they don’t find many of us standing up and saying these are not the Muslims of the Qur’aan, they have another agenda that we will work to resolve ourselves. We must and shall “police” ourselves and those who claim to represent us in public arena. Don’t take the path of other people just to find relief, imitating their habits of “whenever I can’t have my way or people are not accepting of me and the way I live, it must be a ‘phobia’ of some kind.” The world is looking and listening to us to be a benefit and solver of dilemmas like the Prophet Muhammad-saws, not to be helpless and pitiful like so many of them are today. My intention is not just criticism but also to appeal to you as your brother to call those who claim to be in the ‘Ummah of the Prophet-saws to be doers of good, and to be selfless and kind to their neighbors, and stop wanting take revenge for every wrong done by misguide people. Then we will begin to change the way we are perceived in the world arena or at least be on our way to improving our own behavior. May Allah-swt guide us all and grant us His Mercy.
Jazaakumullahu Khaira,
Your brother,
Kamara AbdilHaqq Muhammad
Dear Br. Kamran, AA. Thank you for your extensive comments. I did not invent the word Islamophobia, it has been in use in UK for nearly two decades.
In 1997 the British commission on Islamophobia published a white paper that has become the basis for discussion of Islamophobia; see: http://www.runnymedetrust.org/publications/pdfs/islamophobia.pdf.
Islamophobia is a reality and Muslims who live as minorities have to face it everyday in their lives.
Salam alaykum
Dr Khan i have been reading your articles on the net for many years and was very happy to see your blog.
I really appreciate your services for the cause of Islam and urge all to join hands against this Islamphobia.
Good job. Keep up the good work. We need to keep the dialogue going. It is sad that our governments and leadership are currently dominated by brutes who'd rather kill and mame and point fingers at dubious factors than talk about 90% of our shared common values and how we can work to bring security, peace and prosperity to all despite our religous differences. Hopefully these kind of programs will allow cooler heads to prevail on all sides and we all will live out the best of our values rather than continue in our current paths of arrogance and ignorance.
Good job. We need to keep the dialogue going. It is sad that our governments and leadership are currently dominated by brutes who'd rather kill and mame and point fingers at dubious factors than talk about 90% common values and how we can work together despite our religous differences. Hopefully these kind of programs will allow cooler heads to prevail on all sides and we all will live out the best of our values rather than continue in our current path of arrogance and ignorance.
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