CDZ American Muslim's and Assimilation

[Flopper]

Did you create this thread to be inflammatory or were you serious in asking the questions above? There is nothing about being a member of any religious denomination that is inextricably correlated to or causal to being any kind of American.

There was a thread the day before I created this one, accusing muslims of not assimilating into the American way of life.

So I began to ponder as to what things people think that muslims must change in order to be considered fully assimilated by their fellow citizens. .....

A native born American Muslim, a Chinese Muslim, an Indonesian Muslim, and a Syrian Muslim have a common religion but all other aspects of their culture is different. Becoming a US citizen, getting a drivers licences, and learning English has nothing to do with being a Muslim.

 

[320 Years of History]

Did you create this thread to be inflammatory or were you serious in asking the questions above? There is nothing about being a member of any religious denomination that is inextricably correlated to or causal to being any kind of American.

There was a thread the day before I created this one, accusing muslims of not assimilating into the American way of life.

So I began to ponder as to what things people think that muslims must change in order to be considered fully assimilated by their fellow citizens. .....

A native born American Muslim, a Chinese Muslim, an Indonesian Muslim, and a Syrian Muslim have a common religion but all other aspects of their culture is different. Becoming a US citizen, getting a drivers licences, and learning English has nothing to do with being a Muslim.

In fairness to Sunni Man, he has clarified that his post/thread is a reaction to remarks he encountered in another thread on the forum. I gleaned from his clarification that he is more curious about the extent to which there may be folks who actually hold views of the sort one might infer from his OP questions in this thread.

 

[Sunni Man]

Almost every day someone posts that muslims need to go back where they came from because they don't assimilate into the "American way of life".

When I grew up, America stood for, baseball, apple pie, and Chevrolet. (according to an old radio ad).

Well I am a Boston Red Sox fan.....love home made apple pie.....and late 60"s chevy muscle cars.

But today that doesn't seem to be enough to qualify as an American.

So I ask. "what else do muslims need to do to in order gain acceptance with our fellow citizens"? ......

 

[Holos]

Almost every day someone posts that muslims need to go back where they came from because they don't assimilate into the "American way of life".

When I grew up, America stood for, baseball, apple pie, and Chevrolet. (according to an old radio ad).

Well I am a Boston Red Sox fan.....love home made apple pie.....and late 60"s chevy muscle cars.

But today that doesn't seem to be enough to qualify as an American.

So I ask. "what else do muslims need to do to in order gain acceptance with our fellow citizens"? ......

Teach the Quran.

 

[320 Years of History]

Almost every day someone posts that muslims need to go back where they came from because they don't assimilate into the "American way of life".

When I grew up, America stood for, baseball, apple pie, and Chevrolet. (according to an old radio ad).

Well I am a Boston Red Sox fan.....love home made apple pie.....and late 60"s chevy muscle cars.

But today that doesn't seem to be enough to qualify as an American.

So I ask. "what else do muslims need to do to in order gain acceptance with our fellow citizens"? ......

Teach the Quran.

That sounds like an excellent idea. I would bet that most folks who gripe about Muslims have not actually read the whole Quran. (Of course, I suspect that if the are Christians, they haven't read all of the Bible either.)

Why do I think that? Because they are quite often the same folks who gripe about reading my long posts on USMB and who obviously don't read the research papers I provide as references. The Quran and Bible are far longer than either of those things, but also far more worth their reading them.

 

[Tresha91203]

Acceptance that this country is different. Wear your traditional attire and teach your girls to dress modestly ... great. Harrass or intimidate others to obey your dress requirements ... not good. Eat your food prepared the way your faith requires ... great. Demand that diners take pork off the menu ... not good. Form your own communities (like Chinatown or Little Italy ... great. Bar the public from your community with threats and violence (no go zones) ... not good. Live and let live, I say.

 

[Flopper]

Acceptance that this country is different. Wear your traditional attire and teach your girls to dress modestly ... great. Harrass or intimidate others to obey your dress requirements ... not good. Eat your food prepared the way your faith requires ... great. Demand that diners take pork off the menu ... not good. Form your own communities (like Chinatown or Little Italy ... great. Bar the public from your community with threats and violence (no go zones) ... not good. Live and let live, I say.

We tend to notice people that show obvious cultural differences such as language, dress, diet, etc and assume all people of that culture share those characteristics. However research shows that is not the case. Pew Research did a study of how American Muslims dress. They found 48% of Muslim women in the US do not cover their head in public and 40% dress no differently than other Americans. Over 90% of Muslim men in America dress no differently than other Americans. In regard to diet, Muslims in America general adhere to Muslim dietary laws about the same as Jews adhere to the rules of Kosher, that is their adherence varies widely. The existence of Muslim communities are exaggerated. There are Pakistani, Indian, Iraqi, Lebanese, Syrian, and other ethnic groups that are Muslim that live in the same community because they speak the same language, share the same culture, and come from the same region.

 

[Tresha91203]

Acceptance that this country is different. Wear your traditional attire and teach your girls to dress modestly ... great. Harrass or intimidate others to obey your dress requirements ... not good. Eat your food prepared the way your faith requires ... great. Demand that diners take pork off the menu ... not good. Form your own communities (like Chinatown or Little Italy ... great. Bar the public from your community with threats and violence (no go zones) ... not good. Live and let live, I say.

We tend to notice people that show obvious cultural differences such as language, dress, diet, etc and assume all people of that culture share those characteristics. However research shows that is not the case. Pew Research did a study of how American Muslims dress. They found 48% of Muslim women in the US do not cover their head in public and 40% dress no differently than other Americans. Over 90% of Muslim men in America dress no differently than other Americans. In regard to diet, Muslims in America general adhere to Muslim dietary laws about the same as Jews adhere to the rules of Kosher, that is their adherence varies widely. The existence of Muslim communities are exaggerated. There are Pakistani, Indian, Iraqi, Lebanese, Syrian, and other ethnic groups that are Muslim that live in the same community because they speak the same language, share the same culture, and come from the same region.

Yes, agreed. We are free here to live our faiths as we will, within the law of course.

 

[MarathonMike]

Don't demand changes in the workplace or public venues to accommodate your religion. Dress in clothes that don't resemble shiny sheets. Stop building mosques that look so mosqueee. That swirly ice cream cone thing on the top bugs me. That would be a good start.

 

[FA_Q2]

So far no one has given any real specific's on what muslims need to do to assimilate better?

Maybe we are already doing a good job. .......

It took till page 6 for someone to actually give you the answer:

America is just a geographical location, a continent. There is no necessary conduct to be considered American except taking care of the land and all living creatures.

Wrong

What is wrong? Would you care to expand on your statement?

America has never been just a place. It is an idea, and being an American means embracing American principles and ideals.

And there it is. That is all that you have to do if you want to assimilate with the US. We do not all share the same ideals, of course, but the general gist of it is embracing the rule of law, freedom, democracy and individualism.

 

[Flopper]

Don't demand changes in the workplace or public venues to accommodate your religion. Dress in clothes that don't resemble shiny sheets. Stop building mosques that look so mosqueee. That swirly ice cream cone thing on the top bugs me. That would be a good start.

Cultural assimilation is merging of cultures. Religious assimilation would be the merging of doctrines. I think Christianity is a good example. The merging of Christian and Islamic doctrine seems unlikely.

 

[richstacy]

What should muslims in America do in your opinion to be considered fully assimilated?

Become citizens?
Dress differently?
Build more mosques?
Get a CCW permit?
Vote?

1. Put the United States Constitution and laws ahead of sharia.
2. band together to help destroy Islamic terrorism

 

[Sunni Man]

1. Put the United States Constitution and laws ahead of sharia.
2. band together to help destroy Islamic terrorism

1. God's law always trumps man's law.......even in Christianity.
2. I'm not aware of amy Islamic terrorism in America to help destroy?

 

[Sunni Man]

And there it is. That is all that you have to do if you want to assimilate with the US. We do not all share the same ideals, of course, but the general gist of it is embracing the rule of law, freedom, democracy and individualism.

Most muslims have no problem living in a Democracy.

We view it as a transitory political ideology that will eventually run its course and then fade into history. Much like communism did; and several other failed man made governments. ......

 

[FA_Q2]

And there it is. That is all that you have to do if you want to assimilate with the US. We do not all share the same ideals, of course, but the general gist of it is embracing the rule of law, freedom, democracy and individualism.

Most muslims have no problem living in a Democracy.

We view it as a transitory political ideology that will eventually run its course and then fade into history. Much like communism did; and several other failed man made governments. ......

You ignore the rest and then tell us how you have not ascribed to one of the core values of this society - democracy - all the while telling us in this thread that Muslims have assimilated.

I would actually agree - most Muslims have assimilated into our culture quite well, you simply have not.

 

[Flopper]

And there it is. That is all that you have to do if you want to assimilate with the US. We do not all share the same ideals, of course, but the general gist of it is embracing the rule of law, freedom, democracy and individualism.

Most muslims have no problem living in a Democracy.

We view it as a transitory political ideology that will eventually run its course and then fade into history. Much like communism did; and several other failed man made governments. ......

Christianity has been around about 700 years longer than Islam. Judaism, Buddhism, and Hinduism have been around for several thousand year. Islam is a relativity young religion and will mature over time just as all religions do. They all become a bit more humanistic and adapt to the world as it is.

 

[Coyote]

Interesting facts.

Muslim immigrants to America are considered to be among the most assimilated of muslim immigrants.

In addition, American Muslims include people who have been American citizens for generations.

Why do they have to prove anything? Why do they have to prove they are more assimilated then any other American?

 

[Coyote]

Don't demand changes in the workplace or public venues to accommodate your religion. Dress in clothes that don't resemble shiny sheets. Stop building mosques that look so mosqueee. That swirly ice cream cone thing on the top bugs me. That would be a good start.

Why not? Every other religion does. Why can't Islam?

 

[Flopper]

Interesting facts.

Muslim immigrants to America are considered to be among the most assimilated of muslim immigrants.

In addition, American Muslims include people who have been American citizens for generations.

Why do they have to prove anything? Why do they have to prove they are more assimilated then any other American?

They don't. The idea that to become an American one must give up all that you bring to this country is nonsense created by racists and xenophobes. All of our culture with the exception of native american culture was exported from other countries or grew out of those cultures.

 

[PK1]

1. Put the United States Constitution and laws ahead of sharia.
2. band together to help destroy Islamic terrorism

1. God's law always trumps man's law.......even in Christianity.

---
So called "God's law" is man's sexist law from particular cultures.
.