Chihiro Tsukamoto
Middle-Eastern Americans & the 1st Amendment
KEYWORDS: heterogeneity, religion, ethnicity, freedom of expression, Islamophobia
DESCRIPTION: This issue brief addresses some of the common concerns that
Middle-Eastern Americans face regarding the 1st Amendment.
KEY POINTS:
1. Middle-Eastern Americans are ethnically and religiously heterogeneous.
2. The USA Patriot Act (2001) may have violated the First Amendment rights of
Middle-Eastern Americans disproportionately higher than those of other minority
groups.
3. Despite the U.S. Census counting them as “white”, Middle-Eastern Americans have
been the subjects of racial profiling.
4. Large-spread cultural misconceptions and ignorance have endangered the rights
to freedom of religion and expression for Middle-Eastern Americans.
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ISSUE BRIEF:
Ethnic Diversity
Middle-Easterners and Middle-Eastern Americans are defined as those who
are of Middle-Eastern descent. This area spans a wide geographic range of countries,
including, but not limited to, Turkey and Cyprus in the west, Georgia to the north,
Yemen to the South, and spreading to Afghanistan in the east. Thus, Middle-Eastern
Americans are a highly heterogeneous group, comprising of numerous ethnicities
from multiple countries. This diversity is reflected in the languages that they may
speak, which includes Greek, Persian, Hebrew, Turkish, Armenian, Aramaic,
Georgian, and Azerbaijani in addition to English and Arabic. This diversity shatters
the common assumption that Middle-Eastern Americans are a homogeneous group
sharing one ethnicity and culture. As a group, they are among the fastest-growing
demographics in the U.S., with the 2010 U.S. Census estimating the number of ArabAmericans to be around 2 million. In ten years, the population of Americans with
Middle-Eastern heritage is expected to increase to be over 3.5 million.
However, such estimates are complicated by the fact that the U.S. Census
currently counts them as white. This not only deprives Middle-Eastern Americans of
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a collective identity, but also causes the Census to undercount them as a group by a
factor of 3. Thus, the actual number of Middle-Eastern immigrants and Americans
may be far greater. Ironically, despite this classification, Middle-Eastern Americans
are frequently the targets of racial profiling. As racial profiling depends greatly upon
external appearances, Muslim Middle-Eastern Americans may be disproportionately
affected if they choose to wear any kind of head coverings. Such discrimination and
targeting infringes upon their right of freedom of expression and religion.
Religious Diversity
Much of this discrimination is due to misconceptions about Islam and the
Middle-Eastern American population. In actuality, the majority of Middle-Eastern
Americans adhere to some denomination of Christianity. A 2002 survey estimated
the figures as being 35% Roman Catholic, 18% Eastern Orthodox, and 10%
Protestant, thus being around 63% of the total Middle-Eastern American population.
Some 24% responded as being Muslim, with the remaining 13% as adhering to
another faith, or as having no religion.
Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, a wave of Islamophobia
swept across the country, with many Middle-Eastern Americans mistakenly being
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associated with Islam and/or holding terrorist connections. The USA Patriot Act of
2001, passed as a response to 9/11, afforded law enforcement agencies greater
freedom in gathering intelligence. This has led to further violations of freedom of
expression and religion, as “Muslim-looking” Americans became increasingly
harassed, targeted, and monitored by law officers backed with legal authority. The
vague umbrella term of “surveillance” protected them from conducting such
invasive activities as following a woman wearing an innocuous headscarf, to sending
undercover agents to observe religious sermons. As a consequence, many
Americans felt unable to follow their faith due to threats to their safety and societal
pressures.
Issues with Free Speech
First Amendment issues concerning Middle-Eastern Americans not only
apply to those regarding the prohibition of freedom of religion and expression, but
also of protecting inflammatory hate speech spoken against them. The most extreme
example is that of Pastor Terry Jones’ Qur’an burning in Florida that was scheduled
for September 11, 2010. While such displays of hate and intolerance are protected
under the First Amendment’s right to freedom of speech and expression, many
Muslim Americans felt unable to defend their religion as they felt that their rights to
defend themselves and educate the public were discouraged or ignored.
However, more encouragingly, despite these large spread demonstrations of
ignorance, there is evidence that public opinion of Middle-Eastern Americans may
improve with increased education. A 2014 poll indicated that those who were
personally acquainted with a Middle-Eastern American had 33% more favorable
views of members of the group than those who did not. Thus, education and
increased awareness may be the keys to solving the current violations of First
Amendment rights against Middle-Eastern Americans.
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Works Cited
De la Cruz, G. Patricia, and Angela Brittingham. “The Arab Population: 2000 – Census
2000 Brief.” U.S. Census Bureau. Dec. 2003. Web.
<http://www.census.gov/prod/2003pubs/c2kbr-23.pdf>. Feb. 15, 2013.
Devereaux, Ryan. “NYPD intelligence chief wanted sources in every mosque within
240 miles.” The Guardian. Feb. 23, 2012. Web.
<http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/feb/24/nypd-intelligence-chiefagents-mosque>. Mar. 2, 2015.
Harb, Ali. “Civil rights groups say religious freedom act can lead to discrimination.”
Arab American News. Dec. 12, 2014. Web.
<http://www.arabamericannews.com/news/news/id_9829/rp_0/act_print/rf_1/Pr
int.html>. Feb. 15, 2015.
“Religious Affiliations of Arab Americans.” Arab American Institute Foundation.
2002. Web.
<http://www.aaiusa.org/page/file/b8bad613905570ea97_mghwmvb2d.pdf/ancest
ry.pdf>. Mar. 1, 2015.
Image Sources
Alami, Faris. “Leadership in Culture Presentation The Arab World GCC Gulf
Countries.” Oct. 13, 2014. Web.
<http://www.slideshare.net/FarisAlami1/leadership-in-culture-presentation-arabworld-gcc-medc-2014-handout-book-final>. Apr. 15, 2015.
Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee. “Facts about Arabs and the Arab
World.” 2015.
<http://www.adc.org/education/facts-about-arabs-and-the-arab-world/>. Apr. 16.
2015.
Samhan, Helen Hatab. “By The Numbers.” Allied Media Corp.
<http://www.allied-media.com/Arab-American/AAnumbers.htm>. Apr. 15, 2015.
Relevant Websites
Arab American Institute Foundation: www.aaiusa.org
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United States Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov/
Zogby International: www.zogby.com
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