Prometheus 6   

WASHINGTON — Muslims in America. American Muslims. The difference between these two labels may seem a matter of semantics, but making the transition from the first to the second represents a profound, if somewhat silent, revolution that many of us in the Muslim community have been undergoing in the two years since Sept. 11.

On its face, this shift would seem to threaten the very core of Muslim identity and empowerment. After all, in the decade before the events of Sept. 11, Islam was one of the fastest-growing religions in North America. Mosques and Islamic schools were going up in every major city. Groups like the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the American Muslim Alliance established chapters in nearly every area with a Muslim population.

Muslim leaders, once a frustrated and marginal group, found themselves being courted by politicians, the news media and foreign governments seeking their support and influence. Indeed, many Muslims believe it was their votes that made the difference in Florida, making them primarily responsible for placing President Bush in the White House.

At the time, the word that best summed up the Muslim sense of self was "fateh" — a conqueror. Many religious and community leaders were convinced that Islam would not only manifest itself in its truest form in this country, but would also make America — already a great power — into a great society. Some even proclaimed that one day America would be an Islamic state.

On Sept. 11, of course, that dream evaporated. Today, the civil rights environment has declined drastically with the passage of the USA Patriot Act and other antiterrorism measures. Both sources of Islam's growth — immigration and conversion — are now in jeopardy, and we continue to face hostility and prejudice in many corners of society. There is no more talk of making America an Islamic state. Any reminder of this pre-9/11 vision generates sheepish giggles and snorts from Muslim audiences.

Yet adjusting to the new political and social realities of life in the United States these past two years has also had unexpected and positive effects for many Muslims. We have been compelled to transform ourselves to connect more intimately with American mainstream society.

Today, many Muslims realize that it is not their Islamic identity but their American citizenship that is fragile. Before Sept. 11, Muslims in America focused primarily on changing United States policy toward Palestine, Kashmir and Iraq. Since Sept. 11, the attempt to reconstitute our identity as American Muslims is making domestic relations — and civil rights and interfaith relations — more important.