Muslims' Place in the American Public Square: Hopes, Fears, and Aspirations

Book Overview

This, the first volume from the Muslims in the American Public Square research project, gives theoretical and demographic portraits of Muslims in the American civil landscape.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0759106134
• ISBN13: 9780759106130
• Release Date: May 2004
• Publisher: Altamira Press
• Length: 396 Pages
• Weight: 1.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.9" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Another stage of American Muslim Studies

Reading about Muslims in the American public square has always been an interesting topic. Although their presence on American shore presumably began long years before the coming of Columbus, the presence of Muslim in the American public square has only been perceived in the last 50 years. A number of major literatures such as The Muslim of America (1991) edited by Yvonne Y. Haddad, Islam in America: A Sourcebook (1992) edited by Kõszegi, Michael A. and J. Gordon Melton, Muslims on the Americanization Path? (1998) edited by Yvonne Y. Haddad and John L. Esposito, Sulayman S. Nyang's Islam in the United States of America (1999), or Jane I. Smith's Islam in America (1999) have explained various aspects of Muslims in America, from the history of the coming of Muslims, to the contemporary issues of theology and the social and political aspirations of Muslims. The research on the topic of Muslim communities itself has became urgent particularly after the unprecedented 9/11 tragedy that impacted not only Muslims and American society in general, but also the whole Muslim world. The questions around hope, fear, and the aspirations of Muslims have been necessary to explain the massive changes in demography and the social circumstance of Muslims in the past few years. This is exactly the purpose of the publication of the book Muslims' Place in the American Public Square; Hope, Fear, and Aspirations (2004). The book, which is edited by Zahid H. Bukhari, Sulayman S. Nyang, Mumtaz Ahmad, and John L. Esposito, is an anthology of research conducted by fourteen scholars from various backgrounds and institutions sponsored by The Project MAPS (Muslims in American Public Square), the research project that is based at the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding (CMCU), at Georgetown University, in Washington, DC. The authors of this book, all of them expert in Islamic studies and Muslim society, portray their perspective not only in terms of theoretical analysis but also in critical reflection. As it is also addressed as an effort to synthesize the bulk of literature published by Muslims and non-Muslims, this book has been challenging to read. This is one of the reasons why this book is significant to the on going study of Islam and Muslim societies. In other words, what the authors have expressed in this book is another stage of the development of American Muslim studies, adding up all the efforts and tasks that have been completed by previous literature. The first part of this book, which seems to be the primary message of the book, is addressed to explain the theoretical perspective of Muslims living in America. Four authors, Taha Jabir Al-Alwani, Omar Khalidi, Aminah Beverly McCloud, and M.A. Muqtedar Khan, share their views on how Muslims should live and address their aspirations in the American public square. Taha Jabir Al-Alwani, with his deep experience as a mufti and the president of the Fiqh Council of North America, proposed an idea that Muslims must