muslims in america a short history oct 2009

[...]... 1731, Ayuba Suleiman Diallo was enslaved near the Gambia River in Bundu, in the eastern part of what is now the West African nation of Senegal A slave ship carried this father and husband across the Atlantic Ocean to Annapolis, Maryland, where he was sold to a tobacco farmer In America, Ayuba, who was named after the biblical figure and qur’anic prophet Job, became known by a translation of his name,... contact and sometimes in conflict with one another Telling the story of Muslim America also means tracing the connections of Muslim Americans to Muslims abroad American Islam is a drama that has unfolded on a global stage marked by international crossings Few know about the Muslim American slave Job Ben Solomon, who traveled from his native West Africa to North America, then from America to England, and... have suggested that a patient place an amulet containing passages of the Qur’an around his neck or recite certain litanies using his prayer beads Such practices virtually defined Muslim piety in West Africa during this time For African American Muslims and African American slaves more generally, however, Salih Bilali’s criticism of African traditional religion as magic and superstition was probably a. .. the Harriet for Liberia, the African American colony in West Africa More than four decades had passed since he had been 9 MUSLIMS IN AMERICA forced to leave his native land Abd al-Rahman’s plan was to wait for the rainy season to finish, and then to make the journey from Liberia to Timbo But after arriving safely in Monrovia, the country’s capital, he fell ill with fever and diarrhea, and in early July... Then, in 1807, as Abd alRahman was selling vegetables in Natchez, he was recognized by John Coates Cox, a white man who had stayed in Timbo, and who, it was said, actually knew Abd al-Rahman’s father Though there is no way to confirm Cox’s claims, he maintained that Abd al-Rahman’s father had cared for him when he was sick and had provided him with guides so that he might make his way along the Gambia River... finally back to his African home—all decades before the American Revolution His global trek illustrates an important theme in the history of Muslim Americans Islam in America has been international and cross-cultural from its very beginning Like most Americans in the New xii PREFACE World, Muslim Americans have never known a world that was not affected by contact, exchange, and confrontation across racial,... decades later, in 1826, Abd al-Rahman penned a letter in Arabic requesting his freedom The letter, unusual since it was written in Arabic, was passed along from a U.S senator to the U.S consul in Morocco, and finally to Secretary of State Henry Clay With the support of President John Quincy Adams, Clay personally intervened in the case of Abd 7 MUSLIMS IN AMERICA al-Rahman, and on behalf of the federal... 1762, Abd al-Rahman benefited from an extensive Islamic education in Timbuktu and Jenne, two of the great centers of learning in West Africa He learned to speak several West African languages, and like Job Ben Solomon, could also read and write Arabic After completing his education, Abd al-Rahman became a warrior, and he served as a military leader around the same time that that the ruling Muslim class... Muhammad The fact that Bilali used a long string of beads may indicate that he owned the same kind of beads popular among the Qadiriyya, a Sufi order, or pietistic group that had a profound impact on West African politics and society in this era The Muslims of the coastal region also preserved some African holidays, especially the annual celebration of sadaka or saraka During this festival, which was... Gambia, and Guinea, buoyed by family networks of Muslim scholars, 5 MUSLIMS IN AMERICA political and military leaders, and mystics who played prominent roles in Muslim West African societies Perhaps the most powerful of these elite Muslims captured in West Africa and brought to the Americas was Abd al-Rahman Ibrahima, a Muslim noble and military leader from Futa Jalon, a mountainous region located in . theme in the history of Muslim Americans. Islam in America has been international and cross-cultural from its very beginning. Like most Americans in the New PREFACE World, Muslim Americans have. car- ried this father and husband across the Atlantic Ocean to Annapolis, Maryland, where he was sold to a tobacco farmer. In America, Ayuba, who was named after the biblical fi gure and qur’anic prophet. Mus- lims among explorers and settlers from the Iberian peninsula. By the late 1500s, common Muslim-sounding names such as Hassan, Osman, Amar, Ali, and Ramadan appeared in Spanish language colonial