Pew Study: Muslims and Gays Most Discriminated in America

According to a recent September 2009 study completed by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, nearly six-in-ten American adults (58%) say “that Muslims are subject to a lot of discrimination in the United States; far more than say the same about Jews, evangelical Christians, atheists or Mormons…”

In fact, of all the minority demographic groups discussed in the September 2009 Pew Forum study, only “gays and lesbians are seen as facing more discrimination in America than Muslims”, with nearly two-thirds (64%) of the American public saying there is a lot of discrimination against homosexuals in the United States today.

Some of the other key results below from the September 2009 Pew Forum Study revolve around average Americans asked to finish this statement “There is a lot of discrimination against…”

According to the Pew Forum study, the top 5 responses were (in descending order):

  • Gays and lesbians (64%)
  • Muslims (58%)
  • Hispanics (52%)
  • Blacks (49%) and
  • Women (37%)

Thus, along with our American LGBT brothers and sisters, it seems as though our two different demographic groups are joining both our African-American and Latino minority cousins as some of the most currently-discriminated demographic groups within general American public opinion.

Read more…

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

About arsalan.iftikhar

Arsalan Iftikhar is an international human rights lawyer and Contributing Editor for Islamica magazine; a contemporary global affairs magazine headquartered in Los Angeles and with editorial offices in London, Amman and Cambridge, Massachusetts. He is also the founder of www.TheMuslimGuy.com and a regular weekly contributor on the Barbershop segment for the National Public Radio (NPR) show ‘Tell Me More’ with Michel Martin.

His interviews, commentaries and analyses have regularly appeared in virtually every major media outlet in the world including: CNN, BBC World News, The TODAY Show, National Public Radio (NPR), FOX News Channel, MSNBC, Associated Press, C-SPAN,  Voice of America (VOA), Al-Jazeera, Agence France-Presse (AFP), USA TODAY, NBC Nightly News, The Washington Post, ABC World News Tonight, Los Angeles Times, CBS News Up to the Minute, The New York Times, Rolling Stone, TIME, The Economist and Newsweek magazines (among dozens others worldwide).

He is also a regular contributor to CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 blog at AC360.com and his opinion columns have appeared in major publications such as: USA TODAY, CNN.com, Houston Chronicle, Detroit Free Press, The Providence Journal, San Diego Union-Tribune, Charlotte Observer, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Kansas City Star, Miami Herald and many more.

In March 2008, Arsalan was one of four international debaters selected to participate in The Doha Debates on BBC World Television. The Doha Debates are broadcast to over 300 million people worldwide on BBC World Service Television and its stage has been shared with the likes of Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu and former United States President Bill Clinton.

In addition to The Doha Debates, some of Arsalan’s other international speaking venues have included: Harvard University, Stanford University, Georgetown University, Johns Hopkins University, University of Pennsylvania, The George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs, University of Michigan School of Law, The Rockefeller Foundation, The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and The British Museum in London.

Additionally, Arsalan was cast as a Hollywood movie ‘featured extra’ in the Warner Brothers spy movie thriller Body of Lies (October 2008) starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe. He was also a contributing author to Keeping Out the Other (Columbia University Press) and Taking Back Islam (Rodale Press); winner of the 2003 Wilbur Communications Award for Religion Book of the Year. In 2006, the French Ambassador to the United States personally named him to the Personnalités d’Avenir (Personalities of the Future) World Leader Program in Paris sponsored by the French Foreign Ministry.

Arsalan graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 1999 and received his law doctorate from Washington University School of Law in 2003. A native of Chicago, he specializes in international human rights law and is licensed to practice law in Washington DC.

Arsalan's Global Website: www.TheMuslimGuy.com

Arsalan on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/TheMuslimGuy

Arsalan on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/TheMuslimGuy

Comments are closed.