CLINTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Most American Muslims want to be engaged in U.S. politics, according to a survey released April 6 by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, a Michigan-based U.S. policy think tank.
The study surveyed 1,300 U.S. Muslims in the Detroit area, including mosque attenders and religious leaders. Researchers said the study is an “accurate microcosm” of the overall Muslim community in the United States.
The study examined participants’ views on public policy issues and religion. Most mosque-going Muslims support policies like universal health care, affirmative action and tougher environmental laws.
Most Muslims — 66 percent — cited civil rights as their top policy concern, followed by education and foreign policy. Passage of the Patriot Act helped put civil rights at the top of the list, researchers said. President Bush has an 85 percent disapproval rating among Muslims, despite winning a majority of the Muslim vote in the 2000 election.
More than 93 percent of mosque attenders still said they support political involvement for Muslims. Half of the mosques surveyed had voter registration programs, and 68 percent of Muslims surveyed were registered to vote.
The study also found that only 8 percent of participants described themselves as “Wahhabi” or “Salafi,” two terms used to described very literal, extremist interpretations of Islam. Bagby described an extremist as one who “rejects America, rejects participation in the political system and holds very conservative views of Islam.”
There are more than 3 million Muslims living in the United States today, according to the Center for Immigration Studies.
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