American Muslims, Black and non-Black, are having raw conversations as they grapple with questions of racial equity, tensions and representation in their own faith communities.
Over the years, there have been efforts to build bridges. More recently, some have taken an oath against using the Arabic word for “slaves.”
Sylvia Chan-Malik, who teaches about race and about Islam in America at Rutgers University, said some of the tensions stem from divergent views of America. Many African American Muslims have, historically, engaged Islam as a repudiation of anti-Black racism and “have long viewed the police as a threat to Black communities,” she said. Meanwhile, some immigrants “really want to believe in the promise of America” and have faith in the system, she added.
“Islam entered this country as a religious presence through the bodies, the culture, the voices and perspectives of enslaved Africans,” she said. “You cannot divorce Islam in America from the African American experience.”
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