@aleena_anas said in So, she's not really American?:

For white Americans, the hijab is a symbol of otherness which is therefore seen as a symbol of foreignness which is in opposition of American identity and homogeneity.

I think this is a really interesting discussion to have, and I wanted to share a funny encounter my mom had when we were living in North Carolina in the early 2000's. My mom is fully Palestinian and a hijabi, she's from an area in Palestine (Lifta, Jerusalem), where they're known to have more "European" features as light skin, coloured eyes and light hair colour and a small nose. My dad is the complete opposite, he's from a district in the port city of Yaffa (Yibna) and he has darker skin, brown eyes, and thick hair. One Sunday afternoon in North Carolina, my parents were walking together and my mom was wearing an all-black abaya set. A woman approaches my mother assuming she's a nun and asks my mom to bless her. This is unsurprising for North Carolina as it's a Christian white-majority state so seeing a white hijabi woman, they didn't think to connect it to anything foreign but except to connect it with what they can recognize. However, I'm sure that when the woman later realized my mother wasn't a nun (my mom didn't tell her--I'm hoping that she found out herself) she immediately became a foreigner in their eyes.

Moreover, the concept of internalized racism among Muslims reveals complex layers of identity struggle, especially when markers like the hijab come into play. The societal pressure to conform to Western norms often intensifies after significant events such as 9/11, which cast a spotlight on Muslim communities in ways that heightened scrutiny and suspicion. This results in an internal tension where Muslims may subconsciously view Western standards—embodied by whiteness—as superior or as a benchmark for acceptance and success. This internalized sense of 'otherness' can lead to compromises in cultural expression and self-presentation, as Muslims may feel compelled to downplay or abandon visible aspects of their faith to fit into a society that values whiteness as the normative ideal.

This dichotomy between white Muslims who choose to embrace visible aspects of their religion to distance themselves from whiteness, and those who avoid public displays of their Muslim identity to align with societal norms, is fascinating. While I hadn’t previously considered the former, the latter is a more familiar and prevalent dynamic.

Guialtieri also touches upon the limits of whiteness . When many Syrians were fighting for the right to naturalization in the United States they used a myriad of arguments including cultural history. Much like what you describe with Iranians occurred. Syrians referenced their contributions to civilization as if to “prove” they were worthy of being/ living among the white race.

Interestingly however this differs from Iranians and Maghbouleh’s argument because their “brag list” of cultural achievements are not melancholic but rather they are evidence. A means to an end that supposedly secures their whiteness. Gualtieri argues Syrians don’t want to prove they are better than everyone else, just that they are good enough to be considered white, or at least superior to those who are certainly non-white, such as black people. WEB du Bois describes whiteness as more alluring with“wages of whiteness” which is the psychological compensation of being “not black” in a racist, exploitative society.

Another similarity I found is the “model immigrant” narrative. Gualtieri describes that when Syrians weren’t granted nationality they interpreted this to mean they were deemed uncultured and unwelcome by white society. This is why their arguments revolved around contributions. But to further this they also became closer to Christianity which was inextricably linked with whiteness and colonialism. I think this was a method to remove Islam from the narrative, and with it, all associations to Orientalism. They chose claim their genetic roots and not their culture, even though the culture technically shaped so much of who they are.

Honestly this was a sad read, as I assume Maghbouleh’s was as well. It’s mindblowing to comprehend the internal racism and the extent individuals were willing to go to “fit in” even if realistically a legal ruling doesn’t change much in the challenges of daily life. As you mention the collective whiteness is what matters when feeling including in white spaces.

woww ça c'est tellement cringe