Allah in the West: Islamic Movements in Europe and America

By: Gilles Kepel and Susan Milner

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Synopsis: From the book's introduction: "Reaching beyond such stereotypes, the present book seeks to analyse and contextualize the assertions of Islamic identity we see in the West today, of which the Rushdie affair, the 'veil' incidents in France, or the 'Islamization' of American black ghettos under the banner of the Black Muslims are the most spectacular and controversial expression. Behind the headline events, new social, cultural, political and religious fault-lines have emerged around a specific version of Islam activism which functions right at the heart of postindustrial modernity. These changes operate at various levels of meaning. As we might expect, the new Islamist movements reflect wider changes affecting contemporary Islam throughout the world. Establishing themselves outside the areas where Islam has traditionally been present, using universal Western languages (primarily English), having ready access to radio and television and evolving in a democratic political system, the proselytizing Islamist movements of Europe and America form the avant-garde of the faith's international expansion."