What does it mean to be white in America when whiteness is now defined as anyone who can trace their ancestry back to the original inhabitants of Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia. The Middle East constitutes North Africa and Western Asia, so for most Arab Americans, according to this definition, they would be deemed white by the US Census Bureau regardless of actual skin phenotype.
But whiteness in America at least socially means that one adheres to social norms and customs that are derivatives of Northern and Western European customs and the dominant ethnic groups that are present in America's current salad bowl. Most Americans would find the Muslim practice of separate male and female worship areas in the mosque foreign, most would find the emphasis on female veiling and modesty as a little "out-dated" and foreign, and many would find that women lacking roles as imams well a little backyards and archaic in thinking. Some would be floored by the permissibility of plural marriage for men and men having the allowance to "lightly beat a disobedient wife."
For Muslims and issues of race, news outlets and even Muslims have focused on tensions concerning the "Muslim immigrant elite" and "indigenous Black Muslims" but what about the other, smaller segment of indigenous Muslims, those who are white and for purposes of my article, that would be anyone whose ancestry is primarily European in origin.
Do "immigrant" Muslims really like white Muslims? I ask and propose this question for several reasons, Blacks are not the only ones to assume Arabic names upon conversion to Islam and adopt the wearing of a beard and the hijab, many white converts also undergo outward manifestations of religious identity through grooming and choice of dress. Many white converts can become over-zealous in denigrating cultural Muslims for their adherence to culture over the practice of "true and authentic Islam" but how can one be a practicing Muslim without engaging in culture?
Culture is merely the combination of things that make us human from language, cuisine, social organization, residential settings, family structures, and this includes the realm of religious practice and spirituality.
I admitted once on MWU! that I initially did not like white converts to Islam, to see them don on a shalwar kamiz and a Noorastani wool cap imported from Afghanistan, was for me a form of "cultural appropriation" and I saw this as an exercise of their white privilege. I also noted that white converts were shown affection and acceptance where other reverts be they non-white were written off or ignored. To me I find this situation amusing, I found their "moral high horse" attitude about Islam too off-putting and annoying, and at best I ignored them and even failed to exchanged the obligatory salaams.
But was I alone in my feelings about white converts? Apparently in talking to other cultural Muslims, my feelings and opinions were not unique. I was not alone afterall, but such topics are generally shunned for purposes of maintaining a veneer of unity.
I think these discussions of race in the American ummah are necessary and should be discussed at the various Muslim conferences usually held in Chicago. We live in a society where race still matters, to ignore the fact that race does not affect American Muslims, is to be dishonest with ourselves.
The funny thing is, now I find myself pursuing a relationship with a white convert to Islam. I guess people can overcome their bias and anxiety.
I think we can sort out who is white and who is not like this:
24/7 white
workweek white
drive while white
If you pass for white at work, on the weekends, and you drive while white, you are white.
If you pass for white at work, but not when being yourself at home on the weekends, well you are kind of white.
If you can only pass for white while driving because once you open your mouth you have an accent or your clothes give you away, then you are barely white at all. But driving while white has clear advantages, so you should be grateful.
But of course the higher degree of white privilege, the higher degree of resentment among non-whites. The higher degree of white naivete and foolish appropriation of cultures, the higher degree of resentment among non-whites.
Ya know, though, some of us do get along. Maybe its the love thing. Maybe the love thing, and not just romantic love, can do it.
I became close friends with an African American woman who hated whites and told me so. She was only trying to be my friend because I am her sister in Islam. She felt she had to try. We learned a lot from each other, we respected each other, we came to care about each other deeply, and love overcame the divide.
But you're Jewish, and in some circles, Jewish ethnicity excludes you from totally being white since Western civilization is still grappling with anti-Semiticism and the charge of deicide that was the basis and rationale for Jewish hatred in Western Christendom.
But since some Christians feel the Jews must return to Palestine in order for the second coming of Christ to commence, it is ironic, that Christians can be some of the staunchest supporters of political Zionism.
Yah, but I look Irish.
You mean if I press down on your skin long enough, it will turn rosey red.
You know more conservative Muslims would shun ringing in St. Patty's Day, since they would say the Irish are prone to public drunkenness.
Hahahahahahaha, but this Tuesday is Noruz. I am looking forward to that.
Well, the Catholics demoted St. Patrick. But you know the Moors say that St. Patrick driving the snakes out of Ireland is a really a cover for the the time when the Moors were driven out of Ireland by the Christians. So St. Patty's day is really an Indigenous Islamic Holiday, but more like a day of mourning I guess. Being Irish makes me originally Moorish in some odd way, so I suppose I am a revert if one lives in an entirely mythic world unaffected by historical data. Uh, so, uh, I think imma just going to be regular Irish, a convert, and wish everyone a Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Yes, I have had very tiresome conversations with Muslims I respect and care for deeply about the holidays issue. I say Merry Christmas, I say Happy Whatever. The whole discussion reminds me of when someone told me not to pray for my father because he had died a non-Muslim. To that I say, "Happy Whatever!"
The Moors reached Ireland, where is the proof for that?
no proof as far as I am aware, just another "poetic fact" in the history of the Moors in America
Nice post. Don't know if I agree with all of it, though…
Why are ‘culture’ and religion synonymous? I think they’re two different things entirely. One might even go so far as to say that certain cultural artifacts interfere with the practice of religion…
I really don’t agree with this. I don’t think culture has to - or even should - include the realm of religious practice and spirituality. In truth, they ought to be different; I don’t want the cultural elements of Arabia insinuating themselves in the practice of my faith here in America.
I guess what you see as an exercise of white privilege, I see as a (sometimes amusing) sign of cultural integration, not “appropriation”. If we adhere to the argument that this is “cultural appropriation”, and that this is a ‘bad’ or ‘undesirable’ thing, then we ourselves are guilty of this. By your argument about what culture consists of, If, as an immigrant, you speak idiomatic American English with an American accent, you’re appropriating their culture (language). If you eat pizza, you’re appropriating another culture (cuisine). If you are part of your child’s PTA at the local public school, you’re guilty (social organization). If you live in a mostly white or black or hispanic neighborhood, you’re guilty (residential setting).
I just don’t buy that.
I do agree that this discussion of race in the American Ummah needs to be had, not just to deal with attitudes about white converts, or black converts, or whatever, but to deal with racism from within the Ummah towards people outside it. I have far too many stories of white friends or black friends who have gone into Muslim-owned businesses and have been treated with suspicion, distrust and even outright aggression. That really needs to stop.
Heh. You need to watch episode 7 (or 6 - can’t remember) of “Little Mosque on the Prairie”. I totally agree with you about the “moral high horse” thing in certain situations…
claudia hassan I have been amost totally shunned in my new community for 5 yrs now for several things I am white , i wear lipstick and eyeshadow(horrors) , i smile when i say salaam alikum(horrors) and i laugh out loud and talk to men(horrors) i wear hijab which satisfies some, but then i don't wear niqab which incenses others, I guess you cant please anyone so I choose to praise Allah(swt) and I still say 'salaam alikum" to my detractors, just because i feel like it -- i dont remember Islam being an Arab -exclusive religion but apparently there are many here who think so( wrongly so) but I am not the one to judge them Allah(swt) can only do this ...and I don't feel i am better than them , just I feel i am as good (or as bad) far from perfect as anyone else of any other religion besides Islam as well
I'm part Persian, not Arab, so even among the cultural Muslim folk, there is some major divisions.
Just a few things to throw in.
1) Laurie is hot! Sorry, not to be a cack, just sayin.
2) It's hard to tell crackers apart. People mistake me for Irish all the time when I'm mainly Dutch, possibly due to my red beard. I take no offense at this which is why it kinda surprises me when, say, a Peruvian gets pissed off that someone thinks they're Mexican.
3) I'd feel like a phony walking around in Shalwar Kameez, so I don't. However, I don't see anything inherently worse about westerners adopting an eastern custom than the other way around. I don't get pissed when Arabs or desis wear jeans and t-shirts, why should they care if I'm sporting a thobe?
4) I consider Jews to be white for purposes of day to day life in most of America. My Jewish friends, even those with names ending in -vitz and-berg seem to blend in with, and be treated identically to, other white people. I'm aware that there are non-white Jews but in most of America the Ashkenazim are the clear majority. I'm also aware that there's the odd person who meets a Jenny Meyer and knows that the surname is Jewish and immediately thinks of the protocols, but it's nothing like being black or brown in terms of social effect.
5) I'm not even hanging with other Muslims much these days. I hang with a few but it's almost incidental that they are Muslims. I don't feel any longer I can say with any confidence who is or is not a believer so I just give everyone the benefit of the doubt on that score but avoid people who are just going to piss me off even (especially?) if they do profess Islam.
6) Immigrant Muslims can be some of the most straight up racists you'll ever meet. I've heard with my own ears Arabs referring to Blacks as "abed", and been told many times that Arabs received the Qu'ran because they were the people most suited for it.
7) Nobody has to accept me, I've become more or less disinterested. People want to look down their noses at white converts, I'm quite alright with that. Fuck em. If I wanted to be loved I wouldn't have become a Muslim. They just shouldn't expect me to care when Americans look down their noses at them. It's like my attitude towards Salafis; you don't care that those who share my beliefs are being locked up in Saudi, why should I give a shit when you're wearing an orange jumpsuit in gitmo?
I actually do care, but it's still a good point.
Claudia Hassan and Dave (Daood),
My bias has been extinguished in the progress of my practice with Islam. I'm seeing a white revert, I love his Southern accent when he says "ishallah" or "mashallah."
For the most part, I have little interaction with Muslims except for East African immigrant Muslims in San Diego.
I may be a cultural Muslim revert, but I find that I am culturally American. I am bold, assertive, and for too many Muslims, "arrogant" and "too Persian."
See, Persians are noticeably underrepresented in the mosque. The one sizeable "immigrant elite" missing in the "mosque scene" are Persians. Why this is the case is hard to answer at times. It seems Persians are less religious in America, only practicing Islam during moments of crisis. Persians are very secular, and my take on Islam is quite secular and inter-faith in approach.
This is deemed for some too "Western" in the practice of Islam, but Muslims will practice Islam in their own cultural context. Since now in America, multiculturalism and sensitivity is promoted, my practice of Islam will reflect American values and norms, and not the norms of the "old country."
What's wrong with eye shadow?
Muslim men in tribal areas of Pakistan wear kohl eyeliner, talk about metrosexuality!
Iranian women are some of the "most fashionable hijabis around." I guess when I see a hijabi, I want to see her look pleasant and feminine.
Some women walk around as if wearing an oversized tent, modesty does not have to mandate being a walking fashion disaster.
And the niqab, those things trap heat, since most are now made of synthetic fibers, if you're going to wear the niqab it has to made of natural fibers.
But niqabs are impractical for working women. In North American work culture, face to face contact is crucial for communication and establishing trust and professionalism. Masks in Western cultures are viewed with suspicion, as if the person is hiding something, and therefore non-Muslim Westerners are less likely to engage in conversation with a masked Muslim woman.
I think we need to realize, Islam is going to be different from place to place based on prevailing cultural attitudes and education and levels of societal prejudice and tolerance. What is often deemed "Islamic" is nothing more than cultural trappings that may work in say Peshawar, Pakistan but will be extremely dysfunctional in Flagstaff, AZ.
As long as your cosmetic enhancements Claudia is tasteful, rock your Clinique and L'oreal and Sephora.
ppp
Honestly, some reverts annoy me. I see them trying to memorize the entire Qur'an, or "date" Muslims, wear clothes that come entirely from outside of their culture, as if they have to change theit culture to believe in and worship God, and I think sometimes we'd be better off without them. Even worse are the ones who convert BACK out of Islam. I don't know, maybe I'm just in a mood lately.
Does it annoy anyone else that people who don't speak Arabic say "Allah"? When I am speaking Arabic, I say "Allah". When I'm speaking English, I say "God". Same fo inshallah/God Willing. Grr.
You sound very bitter and i cant fanthom why? Calm down and accept people the way they are and respect their decisions/choices. We are all different and i see nothing wrong when another tries to conform to something different. We adapt to our surrroundings and Islam is a positive influence. Arabic is the language of Islam not just for arabs. So chill. Otherwise if u r an arab then y speak english? or y wear western clothes? dnt u dare say u dnt wear western clothes coz am sure u hv some denims back in ur closet. so what if they wear/dress outside their culture....so what?
Some folk who were raised as Muslim irritate me equally. The "more Muslim than thou" game is played by both sides, and it's ridiculous. Especially when played by folk who convert out of Islam, and then try to "prove" how horrible Islam is, and that they know more about it than those who may have studied seriously for years, and the most the ex-Muslims have to counter with is stories about women being treated wretchedly in the Middle East.
Does it tick you off when non-French speakers use words like guarantee, surrender, or beef? When I'm speaking, I use the words that suit the occasion, no matter their origin.
I might be very late with posting this but i was browsing, came across this site with heated discussion about reverts and just couldnt help myself from saying something. I am a muslimah, born muslim. I really dont like phrasing muslims according to whether they were born into Islam or whether they were reverts. To me we are all msulims and we all are the same whether we were born in to Islam or whether just came across it a year ago…..Allah SWT looks into our Iman and not how long we’ve been muslims.
That said, let me talk about culture and race and how it comes to play with Islam, in my opinion. I come from a culture that is so strict and so into tribalism that getting married to a person from the same culture but diffferent tribe is such bad thing let alone getting married to a white muslim or African American. But Islam does not teach racism nor does it encourages it. Good example, look into Bilal AS who used to be a slave before he was muslim and ended up marrying one of the Quraishi (highly valued tribe in pre-historic saudi before Islam). I always thank Allah SWT that even though i come from a very strict culture my immidiate family has always been observant of the right teachings of Islam. My parents were very happy when my sister got married to a white muslim brother due to his taqwa and iman, and his steadfastness in observing the right way of Islam. My dad used to tell me, “marry a man with good Islamic background not cultural back ground. One who observes the teachings of Qura’an and Sunnah, for such a man will never let you down if he believes in Allah SWT”.
When it comes to who marries who; i believe it is all personal prefernces. I have seen how one of my sisters, the one married to the white muslim brother lives; she is happy. The guy would move heaven on earth to make her happy and yet his taqwa never wavers. The same with my other 3 sisters all married to their husbands (the other 3 are not white). It is only natural that a white guy may get attracted to a white, african, arab, latina or indian woman and vice versa for a woman. So what? what is the big deal if you like it dark, light or any kind of shade as long whoever you like is a person who observes Islam as a way of life? I like white guys, shoot! its my preference, is that so wrong? Why even create a thread discussing about race when we could do better and discuss about our deen in depth?
But then again, everyone has an opion and above was mine. No offense intended to anyone.
Waasalaam!
Your sister in Islam.
I might be very late with posting this but i was browsing, came across this site with heated discussion about reverts and just couldnt help myself from saying something. I am a muslimah, born muslim. I really dont like phrasing muslims according to whether they were born into Islam or whether they were reverts. To me we are all msulims and we all are the same whether we were born in to Islam or whether just came across it a year ago…..Allah SWT looks into our Iman and not how long we’ve been muslims.
That said, let me talk about culture and race and how it comes to play with Islam, in my opinion. I come from a culture that is so strict and so into tribalism that getting married to a person from the same culture but diffferent tribe is such bad thing let alone getting married to a white muslim or African American. But Islam does not teach racism nor does it encourages it. Good example, look into Bilal AS who used to be a slave before he was muslim and ended up marrying one of the Quraishi (highly valued tribe in pre-historic saudi before Islam). I always thank Allah SWT that even though i come from a very strict culture my immidiate family has always been observant of the right teachings of Islam. My parents were very happy when my sister got married to a white muslim brother due to his taqwa and iman, and his steadfastness in observing the right way of Islam. My dad used to tell me, “marry a man with good Islamic background not cultural back ground. One who observes the teachings of Qura’an and Sunnah, for such a man will never let you down if he believes in Allah SWT”.
When it comes to who marries who; i believe it is all personal prefernces. I have seen how one of my sisters, the one married to the white muslim brother lives; she is happy. The guy would move heaven on earth to make her happy and yet his taqwa never wavers. The same with my other 3 sisters all married to their husbands (the other 3 are not white). It is only natural that a white guy may get attracted to a white, african, arab, latina or indian woman and vice versa for a woman. So what? what is the big deal if you like it dark, light or any kind of shade as long whoever you like is a person who observes Islam as a way of life? I like white guys, shoot! its my preference, is that so wrong? Why even create a thread discussing about race when we could do better and discuss about our deen in depth?
But then again, everyone has an opion and above was mine. No offense intended to anyone.
Waasalaam!
Your sister in Islam.