Towards Debunking the Islam-America “Square Peg-Round Hole” Fallacy

I was recently asked by a fellow academic how did I “assimilate Western values and cultural practices into my religion” and if “there a complete disconnect” or did I “find the process mostly fluid”?

Below is part of my response:

I am not the subject of my final topic, so I will avoid directly injecting my personal life and experiences into it. I find it “muddies” my research, and leads to the idea that answers can be found through just one person or venue. I only included my background in my degree rationale because it was an essential component to readers understanding what drives my research and final project.  The diversity of Islam in America requires deep and consistent exploration, or one may find themselves generalizing and developing a myopic and shallow worldview about a rich and dynamic part of civilization.

As far as assimilating “Western values and cultural practices” into my religion, this is not typically a characteristic of the Native-born American [NbA] Muslim mindset. A driving point for my research is the misconception that American and Islamic values are two distinct conceptualizations that Muslims have to some how cram together, and Islam is this stagnant faith that is misplaced in modern society. The perspectives of NbA Muslims is one as products of a creed and geographic cultural construct in a way that each is intrinsically a part of who they are.  This may differ when considering the social-cultural placement and experiences, but my research thus far demonstrates that the majority of their lifestyles do not involve assimilation, justification, or ideas of “Western” superiority over Islam.  Also, considering the historical presence of Muslims in western societies, the idea that “Western values” are completely void of Islamic influences is incredible. I think the American society has been fed the misnomer “Islam vs The West” for so long that it is difficult to realize that both are cultural productions, with a long historical relationship and communal interactions, with which people navigate their lives in a variety of ways.  

A significant distinction found in NbA Muslims is that their “being” effectively contradicts the fallacy that  the United States belongs to one religion and Islam belongs to one geographic region.