The Muslim Brotherhood
Allegation: the Muslim Brotherhood is a radical organization, with affiliates such as the terrorist organization HAMAS, who are anti-western and anti-Israel. All the mainstream Muslim organizations in the US have apparent historical ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.
Mainstream Muslim organizations today have repeatedly declared that they have no communication, affiliation, or involvement with the Muslim Brotherhood (see links below). Mainstream Muslim organizations in the US have consistently renounced any existing relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood (MB). Yet, it is important to remember that MB is not designated as a terrorist organization in the US. US Congressmen met with representatives of the brotherhood in Egypt in 2007. Researchers have debated the pros and cons of dealing with the MB.
History of MB:
Toward the end of colonialism, the Muslim Brotherhood evolved in many Arab countries (in many different flavors) as a grassroots opposition to colonization, to decadence, and to distance from Islamic values. As dictatorial regimes came to power, the Muslim Brotherhood became the only substantive grassroots opposition to the authoritarian regimes. To this day, other groups are either fairly small, or entirely secular (and hence unpopular), or extremist (use violence). Thus anyone who had an activist inclination and was motivated to get involved in grassroots efforts to improve their country and be in opposition to dictatorial regimes was likely to either join the Brotherhood, or be influenced by its wide-reaching programs. The Muslim Brotherhood, which is found in many countries, is not a single monolithic entity. MB takes a violent approach in Israel – as they are represented by HAMAS in the occupied territories. In other countries, like in Egypt and Jordan, they take an explicitly non-violent approach, although often a more conservative one.
In the 1960’s and 70’s, many of these who traveled to the US as students and continued to have activist inclinations in the US, not surprisingly, played a role in establishing organizations in the US (for example, ISNA, MSA, others). So many organizations that were established early on would likely have had some founders who formerly had some involvement or even membership in the Brotherhood. However, these organizations were not established as “branches of the Brotherhood”. In particular, the establishment of new organizations such as MAS, MPAC, MANA and others, by definition, was an ideological declaration of an American Muslim agenda – that is, a recognition that Muslims need organizations that are strictly native to the US, whose agenda is to organize and integrate Muslims to be a contributing part of American society, to see themselves as American Muslim – with their interests, stake, loyalty all lying in America. Indeed, the bulk of mainstream Muslim organizations membership today were either born in the US or has spent a significant amount of time in the US.
The Muslim Brotherhood has been a very influential part of 20th century, post-colonial Muslim history, and has given rise to some prominent Muslim thinkers, and so Muslim writers of many scholarly works are likely to be influenced by some Muslim Brotherhood authors. When these are read by American Muslims, they are read with a critical eye as would be works by any author. Reading some books by these authors is not an adoption of all their views.
For example, scholars such as Tariq Ramadan, the grandson of Hassan Al-Banna (founder of the Muslim Brotherhood) continue to inspire many American Muslims.
The Extremist Muslim Brotherhood?
Below is a Scholarly work on the Muslim Brotherhood, their ideology, and their influence in the west. The work was published in “Foreign affairs”. The article is authored by Robert S. Leiken, who is the Director of the Immigration and National Security Programs at the Nixon Center and the author of the forthcoming “Europe’s Angry Muslims”. The research, titled “The Moderate Muslim Brotherhood”, argues that the MB comes in different flavors, many of which are moderate and should be engaged.
Other Resources
Almost every mainstream Muslim organization in America has been accused of having MB links : ISNA, ICNA, MPAC, MSA, MANA, MAS, and many others. During the election, Islamophobes (falsely) accused Obama’s representative to the Muslim community of ties to MB, causing him to resign. The article below is especially interesting as it explains how, using their il(logic), every Muslim in America can be tied to “terrorism” through the 6 degree separation argument (x knew y who referenced z who once prayed in the same mosque with T, who is a Terrorist. Therefore x is a potential terrorist sympathizer):
All Muslim organizations refuted any extremist relations, including with MB (here is a sample: ISNA, MAS, CAIR)
Most Mainstream Muslim leaders have some connection to the national organizations listed above, and therefore are immediately discredited as extremists. For instance, check the MB-link allegation against Ingrid Mattson, ISNA’s president, who was invited to President Obama’s inauguration. Islamophobes continue to argue about Obama’s terrorist connection. Surprisingly, they stop short of calling Obama an MB-sympathizer (although by their “logic” he should be, since Obama hired a guy who is). Or wait, according to them, he is even worse! Obama is a hidden Muslim!