As a Muslim living in the US, I’m asked about my religion a lot. What I have noticed about my conversations with people is that there are many misconceptions regarding Islam. I am always happy to correct these misconceptions and teach people about Islam, but some of them break my heart. It is not their fault that they do not know much about Islam because U.S. schools do not teach much about it. People’s knowledge is limited to what they hear in the media or what they see in movies. Especially because the Muslim population in the US is very small. Here are four common misconceptions about Islam that I have noticed
"Allahu Akbar" is a bad or vulgar phrase
Back in my freshman year of college, I was talking to another student and asked her if she knew any words in Arabic. She responded with “yes, but it is very bad.” I automatically assumed it was a swear word, but she proceeded to whisper the phrase “Allahu Akbar”. It broke my heart hearing that because that specific phrase is portrayed by the media as a violent and horrifying phrase used by terrorists. I explained that this phrase literally means “God is great” and that it is used to praise God. It was not that person’s fault because the only time she heard it being used was by terrorist groups on the media who say it before committing an act of terrorism. This leads me to the second misconception.
Muslims are Terrorists
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Terrorists have nothing to do with Islam. In fact, their acts go against everything Islam and Muslims stand for. Islam is a religion that preaches peace and love. As Muslims, we are obligated to love and respect everyone. Meanwhile, terrorists kill people, which is forbidden to do in Islam, as Islam values human life as mentioned in the Quran 5:32 which says “If anyone murders an innocent person, it will be as if he has murdered the whole of humanity. And if anyone saves a person it will be as if he has saved the whole of humanity.”
All Muslims are Arabs and Vice Versa
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The third and probably the biggest misconception is that all Muslims are Arabs and vice versa. To me, this is just like saying that all Christians are Americans. As big as the Arab world is, only 20% of Muslims are Arabs. The other 80% are scattered across the world. Indonesia, which is the largest Muslim-populated country, makes up about 12.7% of the Muslim population, followed by Pakistan at around 11%. This means that you do not have to be Arab to be Muslim.
Islam teaches us to respect and love everyone and is strictly against racism. Being an individual of a different race or color does not make you inferior to another individual. What unites us as Muslims is that no matter where we come from, we all serve the main purpose of worshipping Allah, the Arabic word for Almighty God, who we believe is the One True God.
Arranged Marriage and Oppression of Women
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It is widely assumed that Muslims must have arranged marriages, and that Islam teaches that women are inferior and should be oppressed. Firstly, marriage is a choice given to us. Men and women both have the right to reject or approve of a potential spouse. Secondly, Islam gives women the utmost honor and respect. Men and women are viewed as equals in Islam and are judged based on their actions, on the day of judgment, by God. These two misconceptions come about because of social and cultural practices in certain countries and have been wrongly associated with Islam.
On a related note, Hijab, the headscarf, is not mandatory under Islamic law. It is a choice for women. My mother is a non-hijabi Muslim. Not wearing a Hijab does not make you a bad Muslim and wearing one does not necessarily mean that you are a good one either because, in the end, your actions determine the person you are and not your appearance.
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While there are other many misconceptions about Islam, these four are the ones that I notice the most. I always love talking to people about Islam and hearing what they know about it. People always end up learning something new and I end up learning new things from them as well about their religion. Over time, I realized that Islam is very similar to other religions and shares many beliefs, values, and ethics that other religions have. At the end of the day, We are all children of God and should love and respect each other despite our race, color, and religious orientations