Muslim Population in USA to Triple by 2030

Fifty percent say they see themselves as Muslims first and Americans second

The Muslim population in the United States is expected to increase by nearly four million in the next 15 years. Immigration and above-average birth rates will cause the current Muslim American population to dramatically expand, according to Time Magazine. As Americans witness tragedies involving Islamic extremists, like the Charlie Hebdo massacre, the thought of "How utterly terrifying. Thank heavens it couldn't happen here," often comes to mind. However, according to Time Magazine, it is important to actually look at the reality of the situation. The number of Muslim Americans is rapidly expanding and the percentage of Muslim Americans who have negative outlooks on America is shocking.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - The news focuses on thousands of Europeans traveling out of their hometowns to join ISIS in Syria and Iraq; the "U.S. media has understandably devoted attention to the problem of radical Islam in Europe."

There are now more than 20 million Muslims living in Europe. In 1990, the number was just 16 million. It is expected to be 40 million by 2030. Some speculate and imagine France will become a Muslim nation with a Muslim president and Sharia law in just under 10 years, according to Michel Houellebecq's novel "Soumission."

In the United States, the Muslim population is estimated to grow faster than any European member state. "The annual growth will be more than double that of France," explains Time Magazine.

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The actual migration, itself, is not expected to be the problem, according to Ayaan Hirsi Ali, with Time Magazine. Many great people have come to America from other countries. The Muslim American integration into American society may come across obstacles as the attitude amongst much of them is potentially threatening.

The majority of Muslim immigrants over the next 15 years will come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Iraq. More than 80 percent of Pakistanis believe sharia law is the word of God and the only way to live. Only tiny fractions accept Christian-integrated marriages. A quarter of Bangladeshis and one in eight Pakistanis believe suicide bombings in defense of Islam is usually justified.

"People with views such as these pose a threat to us all, not because those who hold them will all turn to terrorism. Most will not. But such attitudes imply a readiness to turn a blind eye to the use of violence and intimidation tactics against, say, apostates and dissidents," explained Hirsi Ali.

According to a detailed study of Muslim Americans, 8 percent of those surveyed agree with suicide bombings to defend Islam from enemies.

More than a fifth of Muslim Americans there is a great deal of support for extremism in the Muslim American community.

About 20 percent express the want to remain "distinct from the larger American society."

Fifty percent say they see themselves as Muslims first and Americans second, despite the fact that 81 percent were U.S. citizens.

According to J. Michael Waller of the Institute of World Politics, Muslim inmates compromised between 17 and 20 percent of the U.S. prison population in 2003, but most arrived in jail as non-Muslims.

80 percent of prisoners who find faith while in jail, convert to Islam.

Although many Muslim Americans have strong Islamic views, a 2011, Pew study of Muslim Americans showed 48 percent agreeing that Muslim leaders in the United States were not doing enough to speak out against Islamic extremists.

"It is these Muslims - dissident Muslims, disenchanted with the current 'official' leadership of the American Islamic community, concerned about illiberal views held in their community - in whom I place my hopes for a better future," expressed Hirsi Ali. "The assumption that Europe's problem of failed assimilation 'couldn't happen here' just because American assimilation worked well in the past is much too complacent."

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