Islam in the 21st century: Can the Islamic belief system and the ethics of social work be reconciled?

ABSTRACT

National tragedies such as the September 11th attacks (also known as “911”), the San Bernardino attack on December 2, 2014 and the Orlando murders at Pulse nightclub on June 13, 2016, which were all committed by sympathizers of Islamic terrorist groups, have fueled anti-Muslim sentiment and have led to a spike in hate attacks on Muslims (Siemaszko, 2015). Sadly, these acts of terrorism have created a climate of Islamophobia, or “an exaggerated fear, hatred, and hostility toward Islam and Muslims that is perpetuated by negative stereotypes resulting in bias, discrimination, and the marginalization and exclusion of Muslims from social, political, and civic life” (Gallup, 2015). Since the results of a 2015 Gallup report found 43% of Americans have some degree of prejudice toward Muslims, this manuscript will address the following question: “Can the Islamic belief system and the ethics of social work be reconciled?” To respond to the primary research question, we will address the following three questions: (a) How has anti-Islamic bigotry impacted Islamic communities? (b) How does the Islamic belief system align with the ethics of the social work profession? and (c) What are the key Islamic beliefs and values which are central to ensuring spiritual competence among social work professionals working with Muslim clients? Since social workers “pursue social change, particularly with and on behalf of vulnerable and oppressed individuals and groups of people” (National Association of Social Workers, 2016), this manuscript will provide parallels between the Islamic belief system and ethics of the social work profession.

KEYWORDS:

• belief systems
• community
• ethics
• Islam
• Islamophobia
• Muslim
• prejudice
• religion
• social work
• spirituality