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Post-Conversion Experiences of African-American Male Sunni Muslims: Community Integration and Masculinity in Twenty-First Century Philadelphia

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Post-Conversion Experiences of African-American Male Sunni Muslims: Community Integration and Masculinity in Twenty-First Century Philadelphia University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations Fall 2009 Post-Conversion Experiences of African-American Male Sunni Muslims: Community Integration and Masculinity in Twenty-First Century Philadelphia Brian L. Coleman University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations Part of the Social Welfare Commons Recommended Citation Coleman, Brian L., "Post-Conversion Experiences of African-American Male Sunni Muslims: Community Integration and Masculinity in Twenty-First Century Philadelphia" (2009). Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations. 54. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/54 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/54 For more information, please contact [email protected]. Post-Conversion Experiences of African-American Male Sunni Muslims: Community Integration and Masculinity in Twenty-First Century Philadelphia Abstract African American males form the largest category of converts to Sunni Islam in the US. This study aimed at understanding the ways in which the conversion process impacted social connections, both preexisting connections and creation and fostering of new ones post-conversion. This study sought to capture this understanding from the perspective of the converts themselves, in their own voices. Specifically, this study explored the ways in which conversion to Sunni Islam among African American men living in Philadelphia impacted their relationships with family members, friends, neighborhood members, those in the broader African American community, and in places of employment. This study was exploratory in nature and consisted of a total of 26 in-depth interviews. The primary data consisted of 21 interviews conducted with converts. An additional 5 interviews, conducted with key informants, formed a second data source and served to contextualize the findings that emerged from the primary data source. Efforts were made to interview participants representing a diversity of ages, lengths of time converted, and denominational affiliations. Several key findings emerged from this data. In light of the processual nature of religious conversion, the degree of religious intensification was found ot be associated with the degree to which converts had traversed the boundary of their faith. Denominational affiliation was foundo t be important for understanding post-conversion experiences as adherents from different theological perspectives oriented their day-to-day lives in notable ways in respect to different criteria. The primary line of demarcation was found to be between fundamentalist and more moderate groups. Finally, it was found that prolonged exposure to Muslims in the city has led to nonpersonalized-acceptance, the acceptance of Muslims in the physical space of Philadelphia; this has served to curtail excessively negative reactions towards Muslims by non-Muslims in the various domains of community life, yet it appears that this acceptance has been limited to the physical realm and that true acceptance and integration are relatively speaking, lacking. The acceptance and integration to date however is suggestive of a process by which marginalized organizations with rigid boundaries began to diffuse into their broader communities and gain full acceptance. Degree Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Graduate Group Social Welfare First Advisor Ram Cnaan Second Advisor Roberta Sands Third Advisor Jamal Elias Subject Categories Social Welfare This dissertation is available at ScholarlyCommons: https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/54 POST-CONVERSION EXPERIENCES OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN MALE SUNNI MUSLIMS: COMMUNITY INTEGRATION AND MASCULINITY IN TWENTY- FIRST CENTURY PHILADELPHIA Brian L. Coleman A DISSERTATION in Social Welfare Presented to the Faculties of the University of Pennsylvania in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2009 _________________________________________________ Ram A. Cnaan, Professor, School of Social Policy and Practice Supervisor of Dissertation _________________________________________________ Ram A. Cnaan, Professor, School of Social Policy and Practice Graduate Group Chairperson Dissertation Committee: Ram A. Cnaan, Professor, School of Social Policy & Practice Roberta G. Sands, Professor, School of Social Policy & Practice Jamal J. Elias, Professor, Department of Religious Studies POST-CONVERSION EXPERIENCES OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN MALE SUNNI MUSLIMS: COMMUNITY INTEGRATION AND MASCULINITY IN TWENTY- FIRST CENTURY PHILADELPHIA COPYRIGHT 2009 Brian L. Coleman To my parents for their love, support, and encouragement. iii Acknowledgements I would like to thank the members of my dissertation committee, Ram Cnaan, Roberta Sands, and Jamal Elias, for their invaluable comments and assistance in helping me bring this project to fruition. I also have to thank all of my colleagues in the School of Social Policy and Practice at the University of Pennsylvania for providing feedback over the past few years which was invaluable in helping me to narrow my focus and develop my ideas. Additionally, I’d like to acknowledge the support of colleagues and friends from throughout the university community. My time at the university would not have been as meaningful or fulfilling without these interactions. Finally, to the participants who took time out of their schedules to share their stories and experiences with me, as well as countless other individuals in the Philadelphia Muslim community that shared their time, information, and resources that aided me in the completion of this project, I am grateful. iv ABSTRACT POST-CONVERSION EXPERIENCES OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN MALE SUNNI MUSLIMS: COMMUNITY INTEGRATION AND MASCULINITY IN TWENTY- FIRST CENTURY PHILADELPHIA Brian L. Coleman Ram A. Cnaan African American males form the largest category of converts to Sunni Islam in the US. This study aimed at understanding the ways in which the conversion process impacted social connections, both preexisting connections and creation and fostering of new ones post-conversion. This study sought to capture this understanding from the perspective of the converts themselves, in their own voices. Specifically, this study explored the ways in which conversion to Sunni Islam among African American men living in Philadelphia impacted their relationships with family members, friends, neighborhood members, those in the broader African American community, and in places of employment. This study was exploratory in nature and consisted of a total of 26 in-depth interviews. The primary data consisted of 21 interviews conducted with converts. An additional 5 interviews, conducted with key informants, formed a second data source and served to contextualize the findings that emerged from the primary data source. Efforts v were made to interview participants representing a diversity of ages, lengths of time converted, and denominational affiliations. Several key findings emerged from this data. In light of the processual nature of religious conversion, the degree of religious intensification was found to be associated with the degree to which converts had traversed the boundary of their faith. Denominational affiliation was found to be important for understanding post-conversion experiences as adherents from different theological perspectives oriented their day-to-day lives in notable ways in respect to different criteria. The primary line of demarcation was found to be between fundamentalist and more moderate groups. Finally, it was found that prolonged exposure to Muslims in the city has led to nonpersonalized-acceptance, the acceptance of Muslims in the physical space of Philadelphia; this has served to curtail excessively negative reactions towards Muslims by non-Muslims in the various domains of community life, yet it appears that this acceptance has been limited to the physical realm and that true acceptance and integration are relatively speaking, lacking. The acceptance and integration to date however is suggestive of a process by which marginalized organizations with rigid boundaries began to diffuse into their broader communities and gain full acceptance. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT...................................................................................................................... V CHAPTER 1 FROM MECCA TO AMERICA: AFRICAN AMERICAN SUNNI MUSLIMS: AN INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................ 1 HISTORY, STRUCTURE, AND PRESENCE OF ISLAM ............................................................ 6 Islam: History and Belief............................................................................................ 6 Structure of Global Islamic Community ................................................................... 10 Islam’s Presence in Countries Around the Globe..................................................... 12 RACE AND RELIGION IN AMERICA ................................................................................. 17 Religion in the African American Community.......................................................... 18 Moorish Science Temple ...................................................................................... 20 Nation of Islam ..................................................................................................... 22 African American Sunni Muslims .......................................................................
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