Muslims in USA

Ironic as it may sound, among all Western countries, it none other than the much hated USA that has so far done the best job of integrating its Muslim population.

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http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/11/07/news/muslims.php

Unlike European Muslims, many of whom are stuck in poor neighborhoodswith chronic unemployment, U.S. Muslims are both wealthier and moreeducated than many Americans, research has shown. They graduate from college at more than twice the average national rate, with halfearning an annual household income of at least $50,000, a survey byGeorgetown University showed in 2004 - about $3,000 more than the median household income nationwide suggested by the 2004 U.S. Census. They are also more ethnically diverse than Muslims in Europe.

More important, perhaps, this country's estimated six million Muslims blend into the religious and ethnic landscape more easily than their 15 million European counterparts, and not just because there are fewer of them."Being an immigrant and organizing around faith is part of theAmerican experience - it's part of our national identity," Rehab said. "It's much harder to fit into a more homogeneous and secular bloc, like Europe."

European concerns - about mass immigration and national identity,about the colonial past, about secular values - are focused on Muslims. While America has similar concerns, they are spread out over various groups: Mexicans are associated with illegal immigration,blacks with the struggle against slavery. Religious conservatism poses little problem in a country that is itself deeply religious;the debate in Europe over the Muslim head scarf, for example, has not crossed the Atlantic."The unease with Islam is fundamentally different in the United States and Europe," said Olivier Roy, a French expert on Islam. "In the U.S., it's essentially a security issue. In Europe, it's deeper:There is the idea that Islam itself represents a threat to Europe'sidentity."

The United States does not share Europe's long history of clashes with Islam, beginning with the Crusades. Instead, it has a form of indigenous Islam that is unique in the West: African- American Muslims who trace their line of belief back to the arrival of the first West African slaves in the 16th century.Increasing numbers of white converts also help bridge the gap with non- Muslim Americans. Abd-Allah grew up a Protestant in Nebraska.The Islamic Society of North America recently chose Ingrid Mattson,43, a former Catholic from Canada, as its head.