Religious and Ethnic Groups

Religious and Ethnic Groups

Islam

Islam is a Monotheistic Religion that is to say it believes that there is only one God and the religious figure is Muhammad (P.B.U.H). Its scripture is called the Quran which was revealed on Muhammad (P.B.U.H). It holds the will of God. The foundation is built on five pillars which are obligatory for all Muslims. The Muslims are required to say their prayers by prostrating five times a day. They are expected to fast during the month of Ramadan, they are required to give Zakaat (a form of alms), they are duty bound to be ready to defend their religion (Jihad) and they are required to make a journey at least once to the holy “Kabaa”, in their lifetime.

Islam from the time of its birth has experienced a rapid growth. When making contact with other modern religions when now, in spite of being born the latest, the two largest communities in the world are Christianity first and Islamic second. In spite of preaching tolerance and acceptance, unfortunately due to the turn of events, Islam is considered to be intolerant and aggressive.

Muslims have contributed to the American Culture. The proof of which can be seen in scout troops, rap groups, magazines and comedy groups. Muslims from all 'fiqhas' sects are residing in the U.S and are parts of a few international movements like the Muslim Brotherhood, Salafi, Tablighi Jamaa and the Gulen Movement.

After the 9/11 incident the Muslims are facing extreme discrimination. There is an increased outbreak of hate crimes against the Muslims by the Americans belonging to other faiths, specifically those Muslims who are descendant from South Asian or Middle Eastern ancestry. There has been an increase in the trend of finding violence or discrimination based on religious purposes. The Journal of ASP (Applied Social Psychology) concluded that from 2001, the number of attacks against Muslims have risen from 355 to 1,501 after the 9/11 incident.

In the year 2009 and month of November a Muslim woman Amal Abusmayah faced physical and verbal abuse because she wore a 'Hijab' (traditional covering of the head and body) when she was grocery shopping (pewresearch, 2013). Similarly in the year 2006, a Muslim woman in California was shot while simply taking her child to school. She had donned a headscarf which branded her as a Muslim and is believed to be the reason for the ...