In popular American usage, the terms “Arab” and “Muslim” are conflated so that either word may refer to an individual who belongs to the religion and is necessarily non-Western in ethnicity. Identifying groups by religion presents a problem for officials after September 11. Arabs and Muslims are often lumped together but are fundamentally different identity groups. In fact, the majority of Arabs in the United States are Christian and Arabs constitute a minority of Muslims worldwide (Chon & Artz, 2005). Because census reports do not track religious affiliations, the number of Muslims in the United States is difficult to assess. The best estimate is six to seven million (Chon & Artz, 2005).
The various ethnicities of Muslims also present a challenge. Many records indicate that more than two-thirds of persons of the Muslim faith are African American and a study by the American Muslim Council indicates that Blacks make up as much as one-half of all Muslims in the United States and are the fastest growing segment (Bellinger, 2002). The group’s interpretation of Islam includes nationalistic and separatist theology that boasts of the virtues and superiority of the Black race. For example, many of its followers believe the white race, through its own wickedness, faces impending extinction and that Black men would one day rule the world (Bellinger, 2002). For many of the members of the Nation of Islam, September 11 was a double-edged sword because media now marginalized them for reasons related to their religion, in addition to their race (Eisenberg, 2005). In a January 24, 2005, Newsday article Eisenberg provides this example of sentiments during this period. A young African-American Muslim who was asked what it’s like living in America after September11, responded: “It’s like being black — twice.”
Suggested citation: Moody, M. (2011). Media Stereotyps: the difference between Arabs and Muslims. Media Studies Overview. Accessed via http://miamedia1.blogspot.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment