The American Exception

Of course, many Americans would not like some of what they would see or hear in these self-governing institutions-- schoolroom maps of the Middle East with no representation of Israel, expressions of sympathy for groups like Hizballah and, in the wake of 9/11 and the Patriot Act, passionate complaints about being unfairly targeted by government officials. Such claims can get exaggerated. But the point is they are voiced in a way that draws Muslims into the mainstream rather than keeps them out. It is striking how often these grievances are linked with the civil rights struggles of other Americans, including African Americans, Jewish Americans and Japanese Americans during World War II. As Muslims often put it, "This is how America treats its minorities. But they overcame it, and so will we." In other words, Muslims never sound quite so American as when asserting their rights against government policies they consider unjust.

• Skerry, a professor of political science at Boston College and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, is completing a book about Muslims in America