On March 2, Gallup’s Center for Muslim Studies published the first-ever nationally representative study of a randomly selected sample of Muslim Americans. With over 300,000 interviews of U.S. households, this study is the largest one to date, providing comparative data on issues from emotional well being, educational achievment, political views and body weight.
It is worth downloading the full report. In the meantime, here are some intriguing findings:
· Muslim Americans are the most racially diverse of American faith communities. The largest subgroup is African Americans at 35%.
43 percent of Muslim-American women hold a college or postgraduate degree, compared with 29 percent of US women overall. They are second only to Jewish women in level of education.
Almost one-half of Muslim Americans identify themselves as Democrats, 37% say they are Independents and 8% Republicans.
· Muslim Americans are more likely than the general public to report feeling negative emotions such as worry and anger, and less likely than other groups to classify themselves as “thriving.”
More than a third (36%) of Muslim Americans are between the ages of 18 and 29, significantly more than the general public (18%).
Interspersed among the statistics are statements from leading Muslims. For example, this comment by Hadia Mubarak, a PhD candidate at Georgetown University in Islamic Studies and the first female elected national president of the Muslim Student Association.
How do we demonstrate our commitment to Islam is integral to our American identity? How do Muslims demonstrate that acts of worship — wearing headscarves, taking off work at noon on Friday to attend congregational prayers, building mosques, etc. — do not undermine our patriotism or pride in being American? The path ahead is arduous and demanding. Through bridge-building, civic participation, and political empowerment, Muslim Americans must define their own identity within
American culture. 
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