Shi‘ism in the American Diaspora: Challenges and Opportunities

Abstract

This paper examines the new diasporic jurisprudence or jurisprudence of minorities (fiqh al-aqalliyyāt) that has emerged within Shi‘i juridical circles. Shi‘i jurists (maraji‘) have responded to the needs of Shi‘i communities that live as minorities in the West by recasting Islamic legal discourse on Muslim minorities and reconciling Islamic legal categories to the demands of the times. New situations and contingencies have prompted the experts in the field to delve into the sources and to devise methodological devices in usul al-fiqh to enable them to deduce fresh juridical rulings in order to deal with novel problems and issues. The article will also argue that when facing new situations that cannot be located in the revelatory sources and do not have legal precedents, jurists can formulate judgments that will best protect the interests of the community while remaining faithful to the Islamic frame of reference. The paper also examines the various challenges that American Shi‘is encounter as they navigate their ways in the American socio-political milieu. These include the construction of ethnic borders within the community, political engagement, the community’s attempts at acculturation in the post-9/11 era and its engagement in academic discourse.