US Pakistanis lament 9/11 fallout

By Salim Rizvi
In New York

When the two hijacked planes struck the twin towers of the World Trade Center on 11 September, 2001, it changed the world forever.

Muslim businesses are feeling the pinch

But it also changed the way Muslims, who live in large numbers across the United States, were looked upon by Americans.

Muslims in the US were arrested in large numbers after the attacks.

And the community has since borne the brunt of new measures, which the authorities say are essential for national security.

The US Government launched an immigration programme earlier this year, requiring males from 25 predominantly Muslim countries to register with the authorities.

The men are interviewed about their stay in the US, then fingerprinted and photographed.

As a result, many Muslims were found to be living illegally in the United States, and thousands face being deported. Hundreds already have been. Most of them are Pakistanis.

Such was the fear in the community that even Pakistani Muslims holding valid visas panicked and thousands headed for Canada or returned to Pakistan.

Hate crimes

Two years after the 11 September attacks, Khalid Azam, an attorney in New York, says things are looking up slightly.

"The US Government and the people have realised that it is not correct to blame all the Muslims for the horrible crimes against Americans.

"And also because Muslims began to open up and started to assimilate the culture more than before.

MAQSOOD AHMED When people ask me 'where are you from?' I don't tell them that I am a Pakistani Big troubles in little Pakistan

"This helps bridge the gap between them and the American mainstream and creates an atmosphere of trust."

But he says the community needs to do more in order to be better understood.

One particular feature of life for Muslims in the US has been the sharp rise in race-related attacks against them since the attacks two years ago.

According to Human Rights Watch, most of the victims of hate crimes between September 2001 and September 2002 were Muslims.

Jagjit Singh is from India, but is the programme director of a Pakistani non-governmental organisation based in Brooklyn.

He has helped many Muslims get legal help when they faced arrest or deportation, and says many do not report attacks against them.

"When we checked the records, we were surprised to see that the majority of victims listed were Jews," he says.

"I mean, it was funny, we were being hit and the Jews were listed as victims.

"The reason was that the majority of Muslims just did not categorise attacks on them as hate crimes while reporting them to the police."

Economic cost

Maqsood Ahmed is a construction worker in New York. He says he hides his national and religious identity from people at work.

"When people ask me 'where are you from?' I don't tell them that I am a Pakistani," he says.

My children were born here, they went to school here and are now working - they would be a disaster in Pakistan Mohammad Sadiq

"I say I have roots in India or that I am an American from Brooklyn.

Some Muslims have changed the way they dress, quit jobs due to discrimination and even changed their names to avoid reprisals.

There has also been an economic cost.

Businesses owned by Muslims suffered losses as people from the community left the US for good.

Some sold off their shops and businesses cheaply and left in a hurry.

Shah Abbas Raza, who owns a Brooklyn grocery store and has stayed in the area for the last 30 years, says businesses have suffered badly.

"Many shops have been shut down. In this area alone, 30 out 150 have closed. Many restaurants owned by Muslims are being sold off."

Staying put

But there are many Pakistanis who do not want to return to their mother country.

Many are staying for the children's sake

They reason that their children were born in the US and would be misfits in Pakistan.

Mohammad Sadiq, originally from Lahore, says, he didn't give the idea a moment's thought.

"My children were born here, they went to school here and are now working. They would be a disaster in Pakistan," he says.

But if Muslims are to stay in the United States they will have to come to terms with reality - and the reality is that things have undergone massive changes in the past two years.