November 2014
“Learning to Be Muslim–Transnationally”
by Louise Cainkar (Marquette University)
“Learning to Be Muslim–Transnationally” discusses the religious upbringing experiences and reflections upon them articulated by fifty-three Muslim American youth who were interviewed as part of a larger sociological study of Arab American teenagers living transnationally. On extended sojourns in their parents’ homelands, these youth–most born in the US although some migrated to the US at a young age–were taken “back home” to Palestine and Jordan by their parents so they could learn “their language, culture, and religion.” They were asked about learning to be Muslim in the US and overseas in the context of a much larger set of questions about their transnational life experiences. The data provide insights into the various types of early religious learning experiences Muslims have access to in a US Christian-majority context. The essay then examines how these youth later experienced and interpreted being Muslim in a place where Muslims are a majority.