What is wrong with US, American Muslims? When we see open anti-Muslim bigotry in this country, what do we do? We do nothing!! Jews on the other hand would and have crippled bigots.
According to several studies, there are about the same number of Muslims in the U.S. now as there are Jews. To be precise the Council on American-Islamic Relations says there are 7 million Muslims, Pew Research has the population arround 2.5 Million. There are however, something like 6 Million American Jews; and yesterday the Israeli embassy provided details on an additional 500,000 Israeli’s that have immigrated to the US – but do not carry American passports (there are something like 4 million dual nationality American-Israeli’s included in the 6 Million American Jew population figure given).
But that is not the end of the story. 6 Million American-Jews, roughly 2% of America’s population, control 65% of wealth in the U.S. Yes its true, 1% of Americans control 43% of the wealth, but the second 1% control an additional 30% of wealth. But who are these 2% of Americans …yes, they are mainly Jews. There are roughly 100 jewish billionaires, over 1 Million Jewish millionaires. Jewish average household wealth is 10x the national average. Median education levels in Jewish households is significantly higher than the U.S. national average; and there is a very high density of Jewish proffesionals in key roles in the U.S. Over 60% of law partners in America’s top law firms,.. I could go on and on with major Wall Street Investment Banking firms, in University tenured professorships, major hospital medical professionals etc. To put it bluntly Jews have power.
(By-the-way, this is NOT an anti-semetic statement, its just a statement of fact. In the U.S. everyone – of any religious persuasion, of any ethnicity – has the opportunity and the priviledge to rise. There is nothing, absolutely nothing wrong with Jewish prosperity).
And Jews use it. When Glenn Beck started even hinting at anti-Israeli posture; Beck was removed from Fox News. It did not even matter that he went to Jerusalem and repented…he was off. AIPAC and other jewish lobbying groups are vigilant and spend literally billions of dollars to ensure only pro-Israeli, pro-Jewish politicians are elected. The stories of how they have systematically purged anyone out of the Senate or House that has opposing views are legendary… Its actually unbelievable.
(And by-the-way, I do think that American strategic interests and Israeli strategic interests – at this point in history do not coincide. During the cold war against the Soviets, Israel was a useful ally to the U.S.; not it is not so. My greater point is that there is something wrong with a minority in the U.S. dictating U.S. foreign policy)
Contrast that to American Muslims that are also roughly 2% of America’s but control roughly 12% of US national wealth. Its still good, but obviously not as high as the jewish community. American-Muslims are also highly educated. Iranians immigrants in the U.S. are the most prosperous and highest educated group of immigrants the U.S. has ever had. The Iranian population – for its size – is actually ‘on par’ with the U.S. jewish population in terms of net worth, average household net worth and education level…it just turns out that there are also roughly 25% of the American-Muslim population that live in inner city ghetto’s that skew American-Muslim community’s stats. But NOTE, on average, American-Muslims have 5x the average net worth as average Americans. American-Muslims may NOT be as powerful as the jewish community in the U.S.; but trust me; there is a lot of financial power here. You are more powerful than you give yourself credit. You can make a difference.
Anyway, Lowes, as well as Bank of America, the Campbell Soup Co., Dell, Estee Lauder, General Motors, Goodyear, Green Mountain Coffee, McDonalds, Sears, and Wal-Mart all pulled their ads from TLC network during the American-Muslim reality TV show this week after pressure to remove these ads from a Florida based Christian lobby group.
And what are we going to do about it? I will leave it up to you. But, from today onwards, I will boycott these companies. I will close my BOA account today. I will make sure I visit Home Depot instead of Lowes. Not stop at McDonalds. Let them figure out why their revenues have dropped.
By the way, I have not pumped gas at a BP or Shell gas station for years. After the screw over Iranians have had at the hands of the Brits…and with BP being the major oil company in Iranian territory in the Caspian Sea (now extracting oil exported through Azerbaijan) …I simply WILL NOT buy gas from them.
If you think this is crazy, let me just tell you that marginal revenue is critical to profitability. A 1% drop in sales can reduce profits by 10% or more. Every single customer is critical. Your actions ABSOLUTELY make a difference. American-Muslims may not be as powerful as the Jewish community, but your purchasing decisions do matter. You have much more power than you might think.
Now the question is, can you or will you do something? Can American-Muslims unite against bigotry like the Jewish community?
I am telling you, American-Muslims have more power than you might think. This Lowe’s ad pullout situation is a good test of what the Muslim-American community will or can do! All the power to you!!!
