|
GRC
BRIEFS: Comments from the Director
Info on Muslims in the United States
Ever
since the tragedy at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the
Glenmary Resarch Center has received an above-average number of
requests about the number of Muslims and Mosques in the United
States and where they are located.
Churches and
Church Membership 1990,
published by the Glenmary Research Center, is the only source of
data giving the number of churches, members and adherents for over
133 Christian bodies and an estimate of the Jewish population at the
county level and larger geographical units. Unfortunately, we know
of no current comparable data related to the Islamic community,
although such data will be available in Religious Congregations
Membership 2000, which we will publish in early spring
2000. (See below for information about how to obtain this book.)
There appear to be
approximately six million Muslims in the United States with about
two million of these being regular attenders at more than 1,209
mosques (masjids) in the United States. The single best
source on Muslim data similar to ours, can be found in the following
63 page document: The Mosque in America: A National Portrait. A
Report from the Mosque Study Project by Ishan Bagby, Ph.D., Paul
M. Perl, Ph.D., and Bryan T. Froehle, Ph.D. published by the Council
on American-Islamic Relations.
Dr. Bagby has
agreed to respond to questions about the report and Muslim presence
in the U.S. You may reach him at his office at Shaw University:
1-919-546-8333 or by e-Mail at Ibagby@shawu.edu.
The document itself
is available at http://www.cair-net.org/mosquereport/
The full report in
PDF (Adobe) format can be found at:
http://www.cair-net.org/mosquereport/Masjid_Study_Project_2000_Report.pdf
A printed copy of
the report and general information can be obtained from the Council
on American-Islamic Relations. 453 New Jersey Ave., SE, Washington,
DC 20003. 202-488-8787. FAX 202-488-0833. E-Mail cairl@ix.netcom.com.
URL http://www.cair-net.org.
From
time to time, Director Ken Sanchagrin will share some
of his thoughts here concerning recent developments
in research produced outside the GRC. Please check back
for this ongoing dialogue and feel free to e-mail
Dr. Sanchagrin with your responses and suggestions
for future topics.
|
