The Muslim community in Los Angeles constitutes a distinctive group within the larger population, a group shaped around its religious beliefs and ethnic background. Given the volatility of relations in the Middle East, the Muslim community is often faced with the need to respond to different events, and a network of groups, organizations, and spokespersons has developed for this purpose. The Muslim community in Los Angeles has established itself as an important part of the larger community, though at the same time it is not as visible a community as some. The Muslim community does not have a central business district the way the Korean, Japanese, or Chinese communities have or even a cultural center the way the Jewish community has with the Fairfax district. In this sense, the Muslim community has remained more invisible, perhaps from a concern about any backlash that might develop because of actions taken by Middle Eastern countries which would reflect detrimentally on Arab-Americans. Arab-Americans already fight against stereotypes of what Arabs are like in any setting, and part of the social and political effort of Muslims in the United States is to counter such stereotypes and to promote the reality of the diversity within the Muslim community.
Arab-Americans fight against the stereotypes offered in the media and elsewhere concerning the nature of the Arab in the Middle East and in the United States. This becomes a particular concern for the Muslim community in Los Angeles given the proximity of the media centers of power. Among the Arab-Americans cited as suggesting a very different image by El-Badry (1994) are consumer advocate Ralph Nader, singer Paula Abdul, disc jockey Casey Kasem, heart surgeon Michael De Bakey, athlete Doug Flutie, Senator George Mitchell, and Secretary of Health Donna Shalala. Arab-Americans are defined by the Census Bureau as people who trace their ancestry to the northern African countries of M...