U.S. Muslims continue to reject Islamic extremism by much larger margins than Muslims in other countries, yet a significant minority, 21 percent, report seeing some support for it in their Muslim-American community, according to a new survey released late Monday.
As the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks approaches, a comprehensive public-opinion survey by the Pew Research Center found no indication of increased anger or alienation among American Muslims in response to concerns about Islamic terrorists and controversies about new mosques at Ground Zero in New York and elsewhere in the U.S.
U.S. Muslims themselves, about 61 percent, express concern about the rise of Islamic extremism.
However, 40 percent of the general U.S. population perceives a fair amount or great deal of support for extremism among U.S. Muslims. And while nearly a quarter of the general public believes such support for extemists is increasing, only 4 percent of Muslims agree.
About 38 percent of U.S. Muslims report they are bothered by a sense that American Muslims are singled out for increased government surveillance (airport security, law enforcement, etc.). A 2007 Pew survey found the percentage of those believing that four years ago was 39 percent.
Yet, about 82 precent of American Muslims said they are overwhelmingly satisfied with the way things are going in their lives and 79 percent rate their communities as good or excellent places to live.
The survey of 1,033 American Muslims conducted April 14 through July 22 in English, Arabic, Farsi and Urdu, has a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points.
Pew demographers estimate there are about 1.8 million Muslim adults and a total of 2.75 million American Muslims of all ages. About 63 percent of American Muslims are first-generation immigrants to the U.S., with 45 percent having arrived since 1990. Slightly more than one-third, 37 percent, were born in America.
The survey’s other findings:
More than half of Muslims, 56 percent, said that most most Muslims who come to the U.S. want to adopt American ways of life.
Nearly half of American Muslims, 48 percent, said Muslim leaders in the U.S. have not done enough to speak out against extremism.
About 72 percent of those who were aware of the plan to build a mosque and Islamic center near the World Trade Center said it should be allowed.
A quarter of U.S. Muslims said that mosques or centers in their communities have been the targets of controversy or hostility.
Of U.S. Muslims, who lean strongly Democratic, 76 percent approve of President Barack Obama’s job performance, compared with the 2007 survey, in which 69 percent disapproved of the way then-President George W. Bush handled the job.
Electa Draper: 303-954-1276 or edraper@denverpost.com
