The Council on American-Islamic Relations has produced and released this report to help our nation mark the twentieth anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks.
Titled “Remembrance and Resilience: American Muslims Twenty Years After 9/11,” this educational report reviews and analyzes the ways 9/11 has impacted our country and, in particular, the Muslim community in the United States. The report covers four critical areas:
I. Unconstitutional National Security Policies Post-9/11 (Pages 3 – 7)
After September 11, 2001, the government instituted several programs that eroded civil liberties of all Americans and targeted Muslims in America, including the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS), the Patriot Act, the No-Fly list, the Watchlist, and the Muslim Ban. This report discusses those programs and their unique impact on American Muslims.
II. Hate Crimes Post-9/11 (Pages 8 – 9)
The report analyzes trends in hate crimes after September 11, 2001. We found that hate crimes fluctuated in the years after 9/11, rising and levelling out before sharply increasing a decade after the attacks in response to various current events such as the invasion of Iraq, the mobilization of anti-Muslim hate groups against Park51, the rise of the Tea Party, terrorist attacks by extremist groups, and the presidential campaign of Donald Trump.
III. Survey of American Muslim Perspectives, Experiences, and Key Findings (Pages 10 – 30)
A critical part of this report is our survey of American Muslims. The survey of over 1,000 American Muslims provided insights into the state of the community, including their perspectives on post-9/11 government activities such as wars overseas and surveillance policies here at home, their observations regarding issues such as anti-Muslim discrimination and media coverage of Islam, and how Muslims of different races and genders report different views and experiences.
IV. Meeting and Overcoming Challenges Created by 9/11 (Pages 31 – 32)
Finally, the report notes examples of American Muslim resilience. That is, Muslims working to overcome some of the challenges that September 11th created for the country and the community in particular by engaging in more interfaith activities, civil rights activism, and political engagement.
We encourage journalists, academics, non-profits, and religious institutions to use this report to bolster their understanding of the American Muslim community.