Civic Participation Unveils Divisions for College Park Muslims

Community News - Community News

Written by Muslim Link Staff

Thursday, 11 March 2010 13:23

For the past 10 years, Muslims in the Dar-us-Salaam community in College Park, Maryland were steadily increasing their level of civil engagement.

Starting with hosting open houses and picnics, the community – which is home to Al-Huda School -- hosted local politicians, invited the city’s mayor to speak, and accepted many invitations to churches and area schools to talk about their faith.

In last years election for city council, a member of Dar-us-Salaam ran for one of two positions. Many Muslims assisted his campaign, and scores of Muslim voted – many for the time first.

But now, some College Park Muslims are learning too much civic engagement can lead to civic estrangement.

Motivated to represent the growing Muslim population around Dar-us-Salaam, community members began attending the monthly meetings of the North College Park Citizen’s Association (NCPCA).. In 2006, the NCPCA created a diverse committee of Muslim and non-Muslim residents to study and recommend solutions to the high volume of traffic around Al-Huda School. The NCPCA voted to adopt the committee’s report, the affirmative vote bolstered by the relatively large number of Muslims attending the meeting. The NCPCA checked that all of the voters were residents of North College Park.

Since then, a few long time residents of the neighborhood began feeling “disenfranchised”, complaining in meetings and on neighborhood email groups that the NCPCA had been “hijacked” by “certain groups”. The emails went so far as Prince George’s County officials and other elected officials who asked that special measures be taken to ensure all the voters are legitimate.

“Some of the mostly older, white residents in North College Park are afraid of the new faces. We are a diverse group, but our women dress in hijab, and many of us are immigrants. But North College Park is our home. Unfortunately, our involvement [in NCPCA] is being seen by some neighbors as a takeover,” said one Muslim neighbor who requested anonymity.

Fears of a Muslim takeover came to head in January when some NCPCA officials pushed an amendment to the association bylaws which would change voting rights from one vote per adult to one vote per household. Area Muslims saw the proposed change as an attempt to disenfranchise their votes; most Muslim households are larger than the average College Park household.

At the January 14, 2010 NCPCA meeting, a packed room voted almost down religious lines, with Muslim residents opposing the proposal and most non-Muslim voting to adopt it. By the sheer numbers of Muslims present, the amendment was voted down 47-15.

For one long-time resident, it seemed like the last straw. Marcia Booth motioned that the NCPCA be dissolved. That motion was tabled in February and will be taken up again at a later meeting.

“It seems like people that have been here the longest are no longer having a voice,” Booth told a local newspaper.

Fazlul Kabir and other Muslims say the divisions are unfortunate, and are probably due to a lack of mutual understanding.

“Pointing fingers to the old and the new generations will only widen the gulf between the two. Recognizing and respecting the needs of these two generations can bring them together,” Kabir wrote on his blog.

The Muslim community in College Park plans to have picnic and other ‘get to know your neighbors’ events this coming Spring and Summer.