A new study based on focus groups with 60 lay Muslims in Ottawa, Washington and Britain claims that imams are out of touch with the needs of Western Muslims, and divorced from the struggles their congregants face in secular society.
Karim Karim, director of Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication, is the author of the report to be published by the Montreal-based Institute for Research on Public Policy.
Some Muslims in the survey complained about “the cultural illiteracy” of imported imams. Others expressed the desire for a more elevated discourse in the mosque and a critical approach to dogma. To counter the power of conservative imams, some Muslim institutions in Britain and the United States are training imams to develop a more critical approach to traditional religious issues.
The report also recommends that Canadian policy-makers target “Islamophobia” through anti-discrimination programs and by supporting cross-cultural initiatives, such as the twinning of mosques and synagogues.
