jennifer bryan
23
Conclusion
September 11
th
has prompted an urgent call for Muslims in Jersey City to defend,
preserve and represent Islam as a peaceful way of life through reinforcing “the true” religious
practices and Muslim identities. Far from trying to “blend” into American life, many Muslims
have embraced a more traditional adherence to religious practices of Islam. These practices
include covering for Muslim women; studying and following the Qur’an more closely; limiting
social interactions with non-Muslims; and in the case of local leaders, preaching a responsibility
to represent Islam. Although some Muslims have stopped wearing Islamic dress and going to the
mosque, this reflects their precarious positions as illegal immigrants rather than a rejection of
Islam. In upholding their responsibility to be “the true,” most Arab Muslims have opted not to
“cause trouble,” often responding to state practices of racial profiling and detention, and social
harassment and demoralization not with confrontation, but with a dignity, grace and humility that
reflects their sense of “the true” Islam.
The sense that they have to protect and defend themselves by being “true” Muslims has
led many to rely almost exclusively on each other, thereby strengthening in-group community
cohesion. However, the urgent call to construct “true” Muslim identities has created
countervailing, divisive pressures in the form of “backbiting” and gossip about who is and who is
not a good or true Muslim. These pressures have in turn exacerbated an existing rift between
more traditional and Americanized Muslims.
Moreover, the highly publicized FBI investigations linking suspected terrorists to Jersey
City have had significant effects on inter-group relations. While friendships and working
relationships with non-Muslims in Jersey City that were formed before 9/11 have remained more
or less intact, Muslims have felt under the spotlight by constant questions about Osama bin
Laden, the Middle East, FBI investigations, the war, and the “Jersey City connection.” Casual
face-to-face interactions among neighbors have deteriorated in the wake of FBI reports of
“suspicious behavior,” verbal and physical assaults, anthrax scares and rumors. Even more stark,
the possibilities for developing friendships and political alliances with non-Muslims have been
significantly hampered by the heightened “us” vs. “them” dichotomy as well as the restrictions
on interactions across gender and religious lines, dictated by Islamic laws.
How Muslim and non-Muslim relations will develop in Jersey City in the months and
years to come is an open-ended question. What is clear, so far, is that they have suffered a blow
Convention