must watch: Islam In America

Al-Jazeera made a great mind-opening 2-episodes documentary about muslims in america.

check it out on youtube, or you can just watch the playlist that i made below for easy viewing:

Islam in America: The American Crescent

Islam in America: Islamic Stars & Stripes

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After watching the documentary, I was very intrigued to know that Islam in the United States has flourished and eventually formed a shape of its own; without the heavy influence of Arab culture like in Malaysia, but more in tune with what the Americans held so proudly in their hearts: The rights to basic human freedom.

Instead of opting for idol-worshipping by saying YES to each and every word of several Islamic scholars, the Americans tend to translate and interpret the Quran and Sunnah by themselves to fit their livestyle and the need in spiritual stability that they have found in the teachings of Islam. They regard religions as a personal thing thus enabling them to assimilate with American secularism.

For example, the Muslim Feminists, who has their own translation and understandings of the Quran; which is slightly different in parts where it is thought to be undermining the female and contradicting women’s right. They say that these slight differences of ideas originated because the old translations were made by men who lives in a culture that over-powers women and put men on a way-higher paedestal compared to their fairer-skin partners. The culture of the person who translates the holy text should never influence their translation, and this is what is happening in the Arab world; so the feminists have said.

But is it considered OK to have a moderate, Arab-free interpretation of Islam? Wallahuallam.

Then we have the peaceful Arabs making friends with the Jews. We all know that muslims who doesn’t live in a multi-cultural society, hates the Jews whole heartedly; they were brain-washed to label all the Jews as Zionist and they should be eradicated from the face of this earth; well, at least that’s what I was thought during my childhood in Malaysia. I’m definitely not a Jew-lover, but I don’t want to be arrogant and racist about it.

But in America, where multi-cultural diversity is one of the important issues to be looked upon, this common hatred against certain people cannot be tolerated, and it exists only on the lowest degree. Or maybe they have just accepted the fact that it IS the Jews who controls the American economy; so being friends with the Jews is a smart thing to do. ;).

It is said in the documentary that Islam is the fastest spreading religion in the United States, and they don’t see that trend slowing down, at least for now.

Over are the days of Elijah Muhammad’s Black Panther and Nation of Islam, with his famous Muhammad Ali extravagant; the new wave of multi-cultural Islam in the United States is something big, and should be seen as a tidal wave in waiting to rise and be a powerful and prominent, NEW voice in the Muslim world.

The true conservatives would complain that their American brothers and sister's moderate views of Islam is not what the true teachings is all about; but to the Americans, they have the right to be an American and a Muslim at the same time.