By Syed Amir, Ph.D.
Scientific Review Administrator
Center for Scientific Review, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
The story of the Muslim-Arab immigrants in the United States has been a classic story of success, almost unprecedented. According to latest statistics from the US census bureau, immigrants from the Middle East, including Pakistan, enjoy a prosperous and comfortable lifestyle here, having overall a much better living standard than the rest of the US population. For example, a higher percentage of them (36%) has incomes exceeding $65,000 per year than other Americans (24%). A larger proportion of them belongs to married household (63%) -- compared to others (51%) -- and has college degrees (41%) relative to the general population (22%). Pakistan, with 91,000 immigrants, has only been behind Iran in sending the largest number of legal residents to this country during the brief period from 1990-1998. By all objective measures their move to this country has been remarkably successful.
More significantly, the Muslim/Arab community lately had also been gaining some political influence. During the last elections, various political parties for the first time actively sought their support and solicited their votes. The Muslim religious festivals were recognized and celebrated by both the White House and State Department, giving the community a sense of pride. The US postal service just this year issued a special postage stamp commemorating the Eid holiday.
For a short, fleeting moment it appeared that we had at long last been accepted and integrated into the country’s broad mosaic. Much of this changed abruptly on the morning of September 11, however. The nineteen terrorists, and their sponsors, who blew up the Twin Towers in New York and the Pentagon building in the Washington area, taking thousands of innocent lives, even in their perverted minds could never have imagined the far-reaching repercussions of their actions and the magnitude of calamity they were about to inflict on Muslims world-wide. The Muslim/Arab community in this country became their collateral victim, but victim nevertheless.
The consequences have been catastrophic. In few short weeks, the image of Muslims has been transformed from a law-abiding, professional, highly successful community to one whose loyalty and commitment to this country has become questionable. Religious and political zealots are having a field day, making prejudicial comments in the media against Muslims, many of whom feel too intimidated to respond. In a country that has traditionally taken pride in the rule of law and protection of the rights of the innocent, such extreme measures as military tribunals, secret evidence collection and trials enjoy overwhelming public support. Until recently, it was not even known how many Arabs and Muslims had been secretly detained by the FBI, following the September 11 terrorists’ attacks.
Under some pressure from various human rights groups, on November 27, the Attorney General, John Ashcroft, finally presented some details about the detainees. Of the total 548 being held, by far the largest number, 208, came from Pakistan. Egypt, contributing 74 detainees, is a distant second. Nominally, charges against those in detention arise from such mundane violations of law as overstaying visa limits and entering the country without valid documents, most of which had been routinely overlooked by the FBI in the more tranquil days before the September attack. In reality, it is believed that the interest of the law enforcement agencies in those arrested goes well beyond what has been publicly stated, as their involvement at some level in terror-related activities is suspected.
It seems puzzling, on the face of it, that a large number of Pakistanis are included among those detained by the FBI, especially as none of the terrorists originated in that country. The fact is that South Asian Muslims, for the greater part of the past century, have been emotionally, and in some cases practically, involved in many Muslim causes around the world. It is not unexpected that they should feel empathy and identification with the suffering people of Afghanistan. What is sad, however, is that many of us seem to extend unwarranted support to despotic, tyrannical and medieval regimes in the Islamic world. In contrast, the US Government policies are invariably viewed as inimical to Islam. Even worse, while living in America, partaking in all the comforts and benefits that this country has to offer, some of us seem reluctant, almost embarrassed to identify with this country, its triumphs and misfortunes. Some live in a fantasy world of their own, firmly believing that America is destined to soon become an Islamic state. Still others are convinced, without any evidence, that the September tragedy was engineered by Israeli Mossad, and implemented through some dark, sinister conspiracy.
Muslims of South Asia, more than anyone else, have long embraced the philosophy that Muslims constitute one nation, regardless of the geographic boundaries of the countries they might be living. In India, during the greater part of the twentieth century, Muslim political life was fueled and driven by this philosophy, even though there rarely was a reciprocal response from other Muslim countries. Muslims passionately adopted all Islamic causes around the world as their own. A number of incidents from the past can be cited to support this. In the early part of the twentieth century, for example, they launched a fierce campaign to save the remnant of the dying Ottoman Empire, spawning the great Khilafat Movement. Turks themselves, incidentally, had little stamina for or interest in saving it. When Kamal Ataturk, an ardent nationalist, finally abolished the Turkish Caliphate and forced the last Caliph, Abdul Majid, in exile in 1923, Indian Muslims were most aggrieved.
Around the same time and following the capture of Hijaz in 1924 by Sultan Ibn Sa’ud, attention of Muslim leaders was focused for the longest time on events unfolding in this country. A delegation of Indian Muslims was sent to see the Sultan to impress upon him the need to constitute a special structure, with participation of Muslims word-wide, to govern the cities of Mecca and Medina. Eventually, none of these proposal was either accepted or implemented. The anomaly of belonging to a nation that stretches beyond and resides mostly outside the territorial boundaries of the country one is living in has predictably created much complication, especially for Muslims settled in western countries.
Living in the US, we are faced today with the dilemma of undefined and confused loyalties. Logically, should we extend our sympathy and loyalty to countries and nations merely on the basis of a shared faith, then we also have to accept that others, not sharing our faith, will unite against us for the same reason. For its own good and survival, the Muslim community in the United States, in particular, has to learn to fully identify with and progressively become part of this powerful nation. This integration does not imply forsaking the religious traditions or nobler aspects of our heritage. But we also cannot remain isolated islands of aliens in the midst of a vast nation. Only by actively participating in the political processes of this nation and sincerely sharing its joys and sorrows will we be able to help those causes abroad, based on justice and humanity, that are important to us. If the cause is just and if we can carry the might of this nation with us, we shall always prevail.