History of Immigration and Ethnicity in America Focusing on Muslims
America is one of the countries in the world with the highest number of immigrants. Based on the population report that was released in 2014, there are more than 42.4 million immigrants in the USA, and they account for about 13.3% of the country's total population. Muslims are part of the many immigrants in the USA. Currently, Muslims represent 0.9% of the total US population, and the percentage has increased from 0.4% in 2007. This indicates that the number of Muslims migrating in the USA is increasing despite some hostility associated with the Islam religion. Muslims are part of minority groups in the USA. However, unlike other religious or ethnic groups in the country, Muslim face a lot of hostility and hatred from the dominants groups, especially whites. Although hostility against dates years back, it was enhanced in 2001 after the September 11th terrorist attack that killed thousands of people and destroyed massive properties in the USA. Muslims are now associated with terrorism, and they are perceived to be major threats to Americans, which led to the formation of Islamophobia. Muslims have lived in the USA for years, and their population keeps on increasing (Gualtieri, 2009). Even though Muslims have lived in America for centuries and they have contributed to the socio-economic development, anti-Muslim racism and movements are still common in the USA and were intensified after the September 11th terrorist attack.
The first wave of Muslim immigration to America can be traced back in 1876 when the World's Fair was organized in Philadelphia. The practice of World Fair continued in other parts of the USA such as Chicago and St. Louis in late 1890s. According to Gualtieri (2009), the practice attracted immigrants from Syria, specifically Ottoman Empire as Muslims in Syria crossed sea to go and participate in the fairs where they had the opportunity to sell wares to people from various parts of the world. Consequently, Syrians started moving to America to sell their wares that sparkled trade between the two countries. The people who were selling wares to America became successful and were envied by their friends and community members who had never set foot in America. As a result, thousands of young people in Syria were motivated to travel to American in search of wealth and to be rich as the early pioneers of the ware trade. Many Syrians who were selling wares to World Fairs that were organized in America came from Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Exhibits were part of the World Fair. The Ottoman Exhibit was characterized by of Orientals and reproduction from the mosque of the Hagia Sofia.
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Therefore, the first Muslim immigrants in America came from Ottoman Empire in Syria and some parts of Middle East. The immigrants were mainly attracted by the cultural activities that were taking place in the World Fair that were being organized in Philadelphia, Chicago, and St, Louis (Gualtieri, 2009). Further, Gualtieri (2009) points out that trade also contributed to the first wave of immigrants to America. Particularly, Syrians were selling their wares to the rest of the world through World Fair that was organized in various parts of USA. The need to make money made some Muslim Syrians move to America as they were looking for fortunes in life. Syrian who participated in the fair, even though they were promoting their home traditions and culture, their primary goals was to boost international trade as well as the economic transaction between countries. The success of fairs that were organized in America influenced the ideology of Syrians, and they started believing that American was the land for economic opportunities.
Early Muslim immigrants did not only come from Syria, but also other parts Asia, Middle East, and European countries. Syrians immigrants in the USA were the majority between the 1890s and 1900s. However, the trend changed in 1905 when immigration from Argentina to the USA surpassed that of Syrian. Muslim Argentines who were migrating to America were far much larger than Syrians at the beginning of 1905. Hence, Muslims across the globe migrated to America in the 1800s and 1900s as they tried to look for opportunities and spread their culture and traditions (Gualtieri, 2009).
Early Muslim immigrants in America believed that they would one day return to their home mother countries after acquiring some wealth. However, there were others who decided to permanently settle in America once they reached the land of opportunities. Many Muslim peasants were encouraged to move to America. They believed that they could get wealth and live a decent life in America (Gualtieri, 2009). The desire to move to the USA was so strong that some Muslims relied on smugglers to move out of their respective countries. For instance, after realizing that many people were migrating to America, the Ottoman Empire authorities banned emigration and people were forced to depend on smugglers to take them out of Syria.
Initially, only Muslim men were migrating to America from Syria. However, by the beginning of 1908, the number of women migrating to American increased significantly. Women accounted for 32% of immigrants moving to America in 1914 (Gualtieri, 2009). Even the World War II did not deter women from migrating to America. The wave of Muslim women who were migrating to America was influenced by the large number who were following their husbands or fiancée who had moved to America. At the same time, many parents were sending their daughters to America to get married to men who had migrated or white Americans. Many women from Syria were sent to meet their marriage partners in America. Hence, sometimes Muslim women migration to America was influenced by family interest. Nevertheless, some single and single women pioneered the immigration to America, and they were mainly motivated by the desire to get wealth or to participate in the international trade (Gualtieri, 2009).
The first Syrian immigrants, including Muslims, settled in Northeast and Midwest part of USA. Specifically, Syrian immigrants dominated New York City (NYC), which they nicknamed "mother colony." They started establishing supply shops along streets of NYC, especially Washington Street as well as Lower West Side. Syrian immigrants in NYC were mainly selling household items, and later they started selling manufactured textile materials to people living in the city. As the Syrian immigrant community was expanding regarding numbers in NYC, they started spreading to other parts of USA. They were spreading from Lower West Side to Brooklyn where they brought home and established different types of businesses. Syrian immigrants, therefore, became the first Muslims to settle in various parts of USA. They were followed by Muslims from other parts of Middle East that are dominated by Islam religion. Many Americans were fascinated with the orients that were sold by Syrian immigrants, which enhance the interaction between immigrants and local Americans (Gualtieri, 2009).
Gualtieri (2009) points out that the distinction between Americans and Syrian American was mainly based on the color of their skins. Their dark complexion identified Syrian Muslim immigrants in American. At the same time, Syrian immigrants were distinguished from the locals by their black hairs. Therefore, due to their color, Syrian Muslim immigrants were marked as foreigners in America and they were mainly associated with negative things. They were associated with poverty, poor health, and unattractiveness. Muslim immigrants were perceived by the local whites to be ugly and dirty. The fact that Muslim Syrian immigrants were making orients that were loved by many white people did not change how they were perceived by the local. Syrian immigrants were always inferior while white Americans were superior. Nonetheless, the negative perception did not stop the spread of Muslim immigrants in various parts of America. By the second decade of the 20th century, the immigrants had settled in almost all parts of USA.
According to Rana (2007), the demand for a large pool of labor in the mid-20th century prompted the second wave of Muslim immigrants to the USA. The large pool of labor reserves in the USA attracted Muslims from various parts of the world, especially the Middle East. Besides, Rana argues that the constant armed civil conflict in the Middle East motivated many Muslims to migrate to America due to safety and security concerns and the need to live a decent life. For instance, the war between Israel and Palestine forced many Muslims in the two countries to move to the USA. The need to seek refuge in safe countries encouraged Muslims to migrate to the USA.
America is currently involved in the controversial debate over Muslim immigration mainly because the group is believed to be posing a lot of threat to American people. However, the number of Muslim migrating to the USA continues to rise annually (Rana, 2007). As a result, the migration of Muslim to American continues even in the modern times when many countries are economically and politically stable. The war in many parts of Middle East is facilitating the current Muslim Immigration to America.
Currently, there is a controversial debate on whether Islam is an ethnic or racial group. The race is mainly based on innate physical features such as the color of the skin or hair. On the contrary, Islam is only based on religion and not an innate feature of a human being (Rana, 2007). As a result, a person can decide to be a Muslim today, and the following day he or she converts to Christianity. Therefore, people are still sharply divided on whether Islam is an ethnic group or not. The controversial debate is mainly based on the fact that any person can decide to be a Muslim regardless of his or her race and the country of origin. In many parts of Europe, the discrimination against Muslim is referred to as xenophobia while in the USA it is known as anti-Muslim racism.
However, based on the argument by Rana (2007), the definition of the concept of racism is changing. It is now possible to have two types of racism that include cultural and biological racism. Similarly, an ethnic group can be defined in term of their cultural or social features. The definition of race or an ethnic group based on culture is now new early years when the concept of anti-Semitic racism against Jews was common. Like in the case of Muslim, anti-Semitic racism was based on religion and not the biological features (Rana, 2007). At the same time, early immigrants were treated as a racial group, even though they came from different parts of the world. Therefore, based on the new definition of race, Muslims is treated as an ethnic group in multiracial countries like the USA. They are treated as a racial group because of their similarities regarding social, cultural, and religious characteristics.
The current profiling and discrimination of Muslims in the USA confirm that people following Islam religion in the country are treated as a racial group. The diversity of Muslims based on their language, nationality, and some physical markers do not prevent them from categorized and treated as a singular racial group. Unlike other racial groups such as African American and Hispanics who their biological characteristics define racial identity, the racial ethnology of Muslims is influenced by the cultural features that differentiate them from non-Muslims. Hence, Muslims are treated as a race in the USA and some of the multiracial countries in various parts of the world (Rana, 2007).
Consequently, the Islamophobia concept emerged in the USA because of the perception that Muslims make up an ethnic group. The term Islamophobia refers to hatred of Islam as well as Muslims. Although terms Islamophobia was first coined in the 1970s, it became popular after the famous September 11th terrorist attack that occurred in USA (Rana, 2007). In the USA, all Muslims are suspected to be terrorists. As a result, they are harassed by law enforcement officers and the public as well. Muslims in the USA are also facing a lot of discrimination in various sectors in the country because they are universally assumed to be terrorists and threat to safety and security of Americans (Rana, 2007). For instance, they pass through harsher and inhumane security checkups than their non-Muslim counterparts in various in various airports in the country. Apart from law enforcement agencies and personnel, the public also discriminate, stereotype, and discriminate Muslims in many parts of USA. Therefore, the anti-Muslim racism is real in American, particularly after the terrorist attack in 2001.
The war on terror is mainly targeting Muslims in America and other parts of the world. The war on terror that was launched after the 2001 terrorist attack in the USA led to the formation of Muslims as a racial group. Rana (2007) argues that there is no significant difference between anti-Muslim racism and anti-immigrant racism, especially as far as the war on terror is concerned. Both groups are targeted on the fight against terrorism that is led by the USA. As a result, both Muslims and immigrants are categorized as racial groups based on their social characteristics.
The USA is one of the countries with the largest number of immigrants from various countries and socio-economic backgrounds. A significant number of immigrants in America are Muslims from various parts of the world. Muslim immigrants in American first came from Ottoman Empire in Syria in the 1870s. Still, a significant number of Muslims are migrating to America due to some reasons such as the war in the Middle East. However, unlike other immigrants and racism groups in the USA, Muslim immigrants face a lot of hostility and discrimination in America. They are collectively associated with terror attacks. Besides, the racial definition of Muslims is based on their social characteristics. The anti-Muslims and anti-immigrants racial discrimination can be stopped by avoiding collection condemnation of the two groups of people.
In conclusion, the number of Muslims in America is significant as they account for 0.9% of the total population in the country. The arrival of Muslims in the USA started way back in 1876 when Muslims from Syria moved to America to participate in the World's Fair that was organized in various cities such as Chicago and Philadelphia. Initially, Muslims from Syria were attracted to the USA to sell their wares to Americans. However, due to economic opportunities, the immigrants decided to permanently settle in America. They first settled in NYC before spreading out to various parts of the country. Muslims in America face some challenges that include discrimination and violence by the locals, including the government agencies. This is due to the perception that Muslims are terrorists who do not deserve to live in the country. The hostility against Muslims was enhanced in 2001 when Al-Qaida terrorist group attacked the USA and killed thousands of Americans. The anti-Muslim racism is rampant in America, and it is significantly affecting millions of innocent Muslims. Collective stereotypes and condemnation are facilitating anti-Muslims racism in America.
References
Gualtieri, S. (2009). Between Arab and White: Race and ethnicity in the early Syrian American diaspora . University of California Press.
Rana, J. (2007). The story of Islamophobia. Souls , 9 (2), 148-161.
