"In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue..." So we were taught in primary school. But, did you know that the captains of two of the three small Spanish ships comprising Columbus's fleet were in fact Muslim?
Martin Alonso Pinzon the captain of the Pinta and his brother Vicente Yanex Pinzon the captain of the Nina helped organize Columbus' voyages which introduced Europeans to the New World. The Pinzon brothers were in fact Muslims related to Abuzayan Muhammad III, a Moroccan Sultan.
I note this because American Muslims are often mispercieved as foreigners unwilling to assimilate. Yet, a survey of modern Islamic history and early American religious history reveals a uniquely different reality: the presence of Muslims in what would become the United States of America dates back to the earliest arrivals of Europeans in the Americas.
Some Muslims, such as Estevanico de Dorantes, arrived here as explorers. Originally from Morocco, in the 1550's Estevanico was the first Muslim and the first African to travel to the continental U.S.
Many Muslims arrived here as slaves from Africa. In fact, scholars estimate that "tens of thousands" of African Muslims lived in colonial and antebellum America. During the 1730s, several such Muslims who were taken into slavery became well known.
Among them was Yarrow Mamout, for instance, an indentured servant in the South who was set free after he finished making all the bricks for a house his master planned to build. Mamout became a property owner, held stock in the Bank of Columbia, and even had his likeness painted by the famed artist Charles Wilson Peale in 1819 and again in 1822 by James Alexander Simpson.
Peter (Saleem) Salem is another such prominent American Muslim slave. Born into slavery in Massachusetts, Salem fought in the Revolutionary War and was subsequently honored for his valor. Specifically, he shot and killed British Major John Pitcairn when the colonial troops were near defeat and Pitcairn ordered them to surrender. In 1882, a gravestone monument was erected in his memory and he is also depicted in John Trumbull's famous painting of the Battle of Bunker Hill.
Other Muslim slaves never had their likeness painted in such an illustrious fashion but they were featured in runaway slave advertisements. In fact, in September 1774, one such advertisement in the Savannah Georgia Gazette called for the capture of "Mahomet." Another advertisement in the Gazette which ran in April 1789 sought the capture of "Amer." In 1790, the Gazette also advertised about "Osman."
An inextricable aspect of the American Muslim slave experience was their Islamic practice. Indeed, a number of Muslim slaves continued to worship the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob while toiling on plantations.
Job Ben Soliman, for example, was a Muslim slave who was known to "often leave the Cattle, and withdraw into the Woods to pray; but a white Boy frequently watched him, and whilst he was at his Devotion would mock him, and throw Dirt in his Face."
Salih Bilali was a Muslim slave on a Georgia plantation who was described by his Master as a "strict Mahometan; [who] abstains from spirituous liquors, and keeps the various fasts, particularly that of the Rhamadan. He is singularly exempt from all feeling of superstition; and holds in great contempt, the African belief in fetishes and evil spirits."
American Muslims have historically practiced their faith peacefully in the U.S.
Even more Muslims arrived in America in the 1700s, occupying diverse professions as teachers, cavalry leaders, religious leaders and students of law. Consider, for instance, Paul Cuffe who was a Muslim shipbuilder, captain and philanthropist. Cuffe's family was originally from Ghana; his father's name was Haiz (Saiz) Kofi. Cuffe was the first African American man to petition the U.S. government to free the slaves and to allow every African man desiring to leave America the opportunity to do so.
Ponder Hajj Ali, a native of Syria who was hired by The United States Cavalry in 1856 to experiment with raising camels in Arizona. He experimented with breeding camels in the desert and was a local folk hero in Quartzsite, Arizona, where he died in 1902.
Mohammed Ali ben Said, also known as Nicholas Said, is similarly worth referencing. Said fought in the American Civil War as a Union solider. Serving in Company 1 with the "55th Regiment of Massachusetts Colored Volunteers," Said quickly rose from corporal to sergeant. According to his army records, he died in Brownsville, Tennessee in 1882.
And, then there is ... well, I am sure you get the picture: American Muslims are an inextricable part of early American history even before our nation's founding -- an apt reminder to all those who use religion to sow hatred and division among us.
Islam in the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
History of Islam in America - Islam in America During the Slavery Years
Islam in America: From African Slaves to Malcolm X, The Twentieth ...
http://www.muslimsinamerica.org/
I think it's a shame to see Americans not practice ANY religion. We are one of the few countries where there is no state sponsered church. I find it disgusting to see apathetic athiest live their lives with no meaning and purpose (almost like robots).
I don't know why today religion/faith/spirtuality is so frowned upon....it's a damn shame...
Try talking to us, instead just making dimwitted assumptions.
I was atheist for many years, and found it incredibly difficult to justify anything beyond "this benefits me" or "this doesn't hurt anyone else." There's no guarantee in this world that you'll be rewarded or punished for your deeds. There's no "universal truth" to live by, so to speak- something true for everyone.
However, religion (even if you disagree with it) has a universal assumption that all believers can take for their life's purpose/meaning: living a certain way in this life will be rewarded/punished in another.
Sami
Again, site credible sources. And what does the word Sherif have to do with anything? Muslims had been in Spain since the conquest of 712. So the idea of an Arabic word being adopted hardly seems surprising. Furthermore the etymology of Shariff also can be attributed to english origens. But so what? My point is that making fantasticly false claims like this hurts the dignity of the Muslim people. Muslims have many historic things to be proud of .. say the building of the Taj Mahal as just one example. This easily refuted article simply demeans the actual historical accomplishements of the Muslim people. Focusing on the real accomplishments of the Muslim people is vastly superior to fabricating a false history.
http://blog.newhumanist.org.uk/2012/01/student-organised-talk-on-sharia-law-at.html
Indeed, Paul Cuffe helped to build the current Quaker Meeting House on Main Road in Westport. He and his wife, Alice, are buried in the back of the property with a monument dedicated to him in the front at street side near the entrance.
Rather than refer to my own 214-page thesis on Captain Paul Cuffe, here is one article of many from the local newspaper commemorating Cuffe, http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20020208/LIFE/302089956&cid=sitesearch.
Thankfully, in recent times, institutions like the New Bedford Whaling Museum and New Bedford Historical Society, in New Bedford, Mass. have begun to more fully recognize and celebrate Captain Cuffe, his life, and legacy. In 2009, Governor Deval Patrick declared January 17 to be "Paul Cuffe Day" in honor of his 250th birthday.
I am not sure if he includes much on the treaty of Tripoli, 1807, in which Article XI explicitly and emphatically states that the US is NOT a Christian Foundation. He also wrote a book on the Corsairs of N Africa-PIRATE UTOPIAS
They will blame Israel, and Americans etc., but it started with Mohammed.
Of the sword, by the sword and for the sword.
I also would love to know where you heard this- please enlighten us!