<nettime> Silicon Valley Muslims

[cisler <cisler@pobox.com>]

I work from home a lot but also in other countries and parts of America. I
have had two distant meetings postponed, so I have not left Silicon Valley
since 9.11.

I have been rather worried about the reaction against Muslims, Arab
Americans, or visitors from the region.  It has been reported extensively,
and many public figures from President Bush on down have spoken out to
prevent bigots and angry ignorant folks from targeting mosques, businesses,
and individuals. As you may have read, the Sikhs have suffered quite a bit
in this respect. One was dragged off a train in Rhode Island last week
because he had a turban and carried a knife (which is ceremonial and part of
their religion, I believe). Another was shot at his gas station in Arizona.
For the ignorant beard + turban = Usama bin Laden.

The area where I live is over-priced (like all of the area) but it is very
diverse.  The school district where my wife works has over 65 languages
represented.  When my son played basketball in high school, his teammates
included several white  and black Americans, an Egyptian, a Lebanese, a
Pakistani, a fellow from Hong Kong, and another from Mexico. I think all of
America will eventually be like this. Right now, it's mainly on the coasts.

Last week I decided to pay a visit to the South Bay Islamic Association
which is located in a big old house in downtown San Jose, but it keeps a
very low profile.  I found the address and a tiny sign (s.b.i.a.) and a
locked door. Peering inside I could see text in Arabic, a sign in English to
remove your shoes, and a large room for prayer.   Later I called to talk to
them but just got a recorded message that deplored the attack and tried to
educate the caller a bit about Islam. I was able to leave a short message.

I then went to the house where the parents of the Egyptian basketball player
lived. He is away at college, but his younger sister goes to school locally.
Both cars were outside, but nobody answered the door. I left a note to
express support and offered them help should they need it.  These are folks
I really do not know.  The next evening I happened to be watching a CBS news
program on how little had been accomplished militarily with the cruise
missile attack on Afghanistan.  My dog's bark is our doorbell, and I looked
outside to see two women, each wearing shawls over their heads approaching
the door. They were silhouetted behind the big American flag I have on our
porch. 

I went outside and kept the dog inside. The visitors turned out to be the
mother of the Egyptian kid (she's from Damascus herself) and her daughter.
They wanted to talk with me since I left the note.  Nothing bad had happened
to them so far. However, at the big mosque in Santa Clara, they had
conducted a prayer service for the victims, and Fox TV was there. Out of all
the general sympathy expressed, Fox showed only a short clip where the imam
talked of the Bangladeshis who died in the WTC, as if the congregation were
only concerned with Muslims who died and not everyone.

We talked for about 45 minutes about Islam, the problems in Pakistan, U.S.
response, the role of Israel, and they invited me to the mosque.  The FBI is
coming this week to talk to the congregation about how to handle threats or
acts of hate.

The newspaper today has a number of items about this: an Indian owned
multiplex theater in Fremont (where thousands of Indians and Afghans live)
has almost no business for the Bollywood movies from India, in spite of the
advertisement that shows all proceeds go to the Red Cross. Not just the
profits but all the money.

Local restaurants that serve Lebanese, Iranian, and Afghan food report
INCREASED business--after fearing the worst.  People are showing their
support, bringing parties and large groups, and in once case the diners ran
off an anti-arab protestor who showed up at one Afghan restaurant. That is
encouraging.

Some groceries and filling stations are having problems. One Pakistani
grocery owners was shown getting training in firearms at a gun shop because
of threats.  Lots of survival gear is being sold (after the non-event of Y2K
made sales slump). One so-called war surplus store sold out of gas masks
last weekend. the owner said he had not had that much activity since the
week before the Seattle WTO mess when activists stocked up before heading
north.

I think that it will be hard for Muslims and Arab Americans to feel
comfortable, especially with the increased profiling, checks, and security
measures that may not be applied in a balanced way. How the federal, state,
and local governments protect these folks will help define the way our
country is transformed, as it surely will be in the years ahead.

Steve Cisler 

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