I moved to US an an eighteen year old in 2001,I suffered the same identity crisis, most immigrants do. I have seen most of my peers undergo severe self-examinations and breakdowns based on one question: am I Pakistani or am I American?
This black-and-white way of looking at one’s identity is greatly effected by the definition of Pakistani. A vast majority of Pakistanis, both at home and abroad, conflate their definition of “being Pakistani” with being Muslim, specifically the Wahabi school of Islam which preaches intolerance and chauvinism.
The hijacking of this definition robs Pakistanis of the immense philosophical and cultural history that has existed in their country outside the scope of conservative Islam. However, one cannot blame Pakistanis abroad for teaching this concept to their children, as they were influenced themselves by the Wahabism spread by Ziaul Haq through education and the media. The efforts of the General and his bearded cohorts were successful in erasing the ideas of Sufi mysticism from the people’s lexicon, and this has trickled out to the communities living abroad.
Without a full exposure to the spiritual traditions of their homeland, many Pakistanis abroad adopt medieval Islamic concepts. These intolerant ideals make them feel alienated in an open and mixed American society. Which brings us to the next conflated definition: what does it mean to be “American”? Those who feel alienated in a mixed society due to their religious intolerance would define being American the same way a person living in Pakistan would - materialistic, war-mongering, and evil.
That is not to say that every Pakistani-American believes in a chauvinistic form of Islam, indeed, there are those who have rebuked both their Islamic and Pakistani identities in order to feel included in their new society. Many of these individuals are agnostic or atheistic and blame Islam for the poor condition of Pakistan, not realizing that they have only been exposed to a small sect of Islam by their parents.
Therefore, one sees that the character of the Pakistani-American is conflicted where the American feels unattached to their cultural heritage, and the Islamist feels uncomfortable in a society with open mixing of genders and religions. This feeling of unease has resulted in many micro-Pakistani communities popping up across the US. Through the power of Dish Satellites and a close social network, these Pakistanis hermetically seal themselves away from interacting with American society on any level. From the food they eat, to the friends they have, to their political beliefs, these individuals detach themselves from the mainstream society and forgo any of its potential benefits.
On the other hand, there are those who reject their Pakistani heritage, which they see as tarnished by chauvinistic Islam, and submit themselves completely to the American way of life. These individuals forsake the stimulating ideals and vibrant culture of their homeland, because all they see is a small form of Islam enacting hate and violence throughout Pakistan, and the world.
The dichotomous us-versus-them mentality supported by Wahabi Islam and its followers has created a stark division of identity amongst the Pakistani community, to the point that the two sides have little interaction or debates. However, the answer is not to rule in favor of one side or the other, but to realize that they have both adopted their ideals based on limited information, which must be supplemented before they consent to following a faith or political ideal.
That is not to say that every Pakistani-American believes in a chauvinistic form of Islam, indeed, there are those who have rebuked both their Islamic and Pakistani identities in order to feel included in their new society. Many of these individuals are agnostic or atheistic and blame Islam for the poor condition of Pakistan, not realizing that they have only been exposed to a small sect of Islam by their parents.
Therefore, one sees that the character of the Pakistani-American is conflicted where the American feels unattached to their cultural heritage, and the Islamist feels uncomfortable in a society with open mixing of genders and religions. This feeling of unease has resulted in many micro-Pakistani communities popping up across the US. Through the power of Dish Satellites and a close social network, these Pakistanis hermetically seal themselves away from interacting with American society on any level. From the food they eat, to the friends they have, to their political beliefs, these individuals detach themselves from the mainstream society and forgo any of its potential benefits.
On the other hand, there are those who reject their Pakistani heritage, which they see as tarnished by chauvinistic Islam, and submit themselves completely to the American way of life. These individuals forsake the stimulating ideals and vibrant culture of their homeland, because all they see is a small form of Islam enacting hate and violence throughout Pakistan, and the world.
The dichotomous us-versus-them mentality supported by Wahabi Islam and its followers has created a stark division of identity amongst the Pakistani community, to the point that the two sides have little interaction or debates. However, the answer is not to rule in favor of one side or the other, but to realize that they have both adopted their ideals based on limited information, which must be supplemented before they consent to following a faith or political ideal.
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