In this study 379 young American Muslims from Massachusetts, New York, Virginia, Maryland, Florida and Michigan defined their identities variously, ranging from single to dual or multiple identities. The interviewees were mostly second-generation 15–30-year-old Muslims. In the process of investigating their identity/identities, I came to realise that the participants framed their identities according to several contexts, such as culture, media and politics. In my research, I was also keen to find out if they were involved in leisure activities, such as music and sport, and the extent to which they had retained their parents' culture and adopted American cultures. I begin with a brief summary of all the chapters, then I discuss the areas that needs to be discussed in both the Muslim community and the wider society. These areas also need the attention of policy makers so they can take necessary action to develop a cohesive society. Finally I discuss the topic of harmony or social cohesion, which is important for American society.

Brief summary of chapters

In Chapter 1, I noted that Muslim contact with the United States began in the eighteenth century when slaves were brought from Africa. Later, in the late nineteenth century, Muslims began to migrate to the United States in small numbers from Arab countries. Muslim numbers expanded in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, to the point when they reached almost 1 per cent of the population in 2011. I also outlined how different developments in the Islamic world (for example, the Iranian hostage crisis) have impacted on America, culminating tragically with the 9/11 Twin Towers attacks, and the ‘othering’ of Muslims generally. In Chapter 1, I also introduced social identity theory and how different categories (emotions, stereotypes and so on) impact on one’s identity. I also described the research method of this study.