ISLAMABAD, Aug 18: Muslims in America are creating a new cultural zone of Islam, a leading professor from the United States said here on Saturday. “The role of mosques in the US has become a strange phenomenon” Dr Zahid H. Bukhari, director American Muslim Studies Programme, Centre for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown University, Washington DC, said while speaking at a seminar on ‘Muslims in the West’ organised by the Institute of Policy Studies.

He said mosques had become hub of all Muslim activities whether social, economic, political, sports and youth affairs. Dr Bukhari said there were Muslims from 80 different countries living as minority in the US and Europe on voluntary basis. These Muslims are of three types: immigrants, second generation and indigenous.

Dr Bukhari said that American Muslims experienced both nightmare and sweet dreams. “Nightmares are because of structural confinement and sweet dreams of the opportunity they got after 9/11 where they now appear in mainstream media,” he explained.

The American scholar said that there was a difference between the Muslim community in the West and the America. Americans do not impose structure from the top while European countries do so, he claimed, adding that it, however, does not mean that Americans do not meddle with the Muslims.

Dr Bukhari observed that there was a serious and intellectual debate going on among the Muslims of America about different issues like role of minorities in the larger non-Muslim societies and how they could become productive citizens of the society.

He hoped that Islam will emerge as a strong religion in the US and said that new concerns were discussed in the mosques, and it was impossible to see Friday prayers without women in the mosque.