When the question "Is Islamophobia growing?" came up, the answer, from James Zogby, was yes and no; divisiveness has grown since 2010; politicians are exploiting fear for their personal advantage; fear of Sharia is spreading; people call Obama a Muslim; we need strong support to combat this systematic discrimination.
Said Amardeep Singh, Islamophobia is more hidden and hence more insidious. In San Francisco 80 percent of Muslim youth have suffered from it; it is their generation that is bearing the brunt of this disease. Added Amber Khan, there is the misconception that Islam teaches and promotes violence. Fully 45 percent of American Muslims are black and so disadvantaged by two forms of discrimination.
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The second panel, oriented toward the future, was introduced by information from the Pew Survey on Muslim Americans. Dr. Scott Keeter, director of survey research, and Gregory A. Smith, senior researcher for the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, were the presenters.
According to Keeter, 1,033 American Muslims were surveyed from April 14 to July 22, 2011 in four different languages (English, Arabic, Farsi, and Urdu). Sixty-three percent were first-generation Americans, 15 percent second generation, and 22 percent third generation, the victimized youth mentioned above.
Seventy percent of those surveyed were U.S. citizens; many watch as much television as do Americans on average; that is, 58 percent watch one hour or more each day. They thrive on social networks and enjoy sports and videogames. American flags are displayed by 44 percent of their homes--defensively, it was added later.
In terms of degree of happiness in this country, the majority were happy here; 15 percent were dissatisfied, a higher figure than that characterizing the general public. Fifty-six percent say they don't want to assimilate; 33 percent say that they are assimilated; 66 percent say that the quality of life is better here than in their former countries of residence, and 23 percent find the two experiences roughly the same.
Said Gregory Smith, Muslims who are well integrated and assimilated still face problems. Thirty percent attribute these to negativity, 20 percent, to ignorance and prejudice, 15 percent to plain ignorance, and 7 percent to religious or cultural issues.
They did not want to discuss any economic difficulties affecting them. The overarching priority was understanding between Muslims and non-Muslims.
But in terms of the quantity of discrimination, the figure for the last twelve months hasn't changed from that measured in 2007. (In a way the current measurement is positive, said Smith, but the downside is that the negatives have not improved.) Five percent experienced assault in both time periods.
As stated above, younger Muslims experience more abuse than do older Muslims, and very religious Muslims are more abused than their less observant co-religionists. The media do not treat them fairly, governmental policies are discriminatory and, obviously, it is far more difficult to be a Muslim American since 9/11.
On the other than question of whether or not a mosque should be built near ground zero, 80 percent of American Muslims were aware of the issue, 72 percent said it should be allowed, and one-third of them were dubious on the subject.
Fully 80 percent live in areas that do not object to the building of mosques, but controversies exist all over the country. Few Muslims perceive Americans as friendly, but "friendly/neutral" was a descriptor used by many. One-third say non-Muslims have reached out to them.
Among foreign-born American Muslims, 41 percent are Middle Eastern, 14 percent Pakistani, and 5 percent Iranians. The American public is more wary of Muslims in general than of Muslim Americans (the difference is 5 percent).
Finally, Bush's protective stance positively influenced his fellow Republicans after 9/11. I would say, on the basis of the narrative, that Republican Islamophobia or hostility has worsened since then.
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