By Daniel Nardini
In the late 1970’s, I regularly went to a place called Kazi Bookstore. Almost every week, I went there to try and learn as much as I could about Islam. I found this religion quite fascinating, and the owners of the bookstore were very kind and did their best to answer my questions. No, I never did convert to Islam, but I came to appreciate this faith, and I gained a real respect for those who practice this faith. I came to respect a faith that has had a great influence on history, culture, art and architecture, medicine, and society.. Since I had been to Kazi Bookstore, Islam has been growing in this state. Peoples from many countries in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and northern Africa have come to live in the United States. The one thing they have brought with them among other things is their faith Islam. There are now mosques (or Islamic centers) appearing in many places in the Chicago area and in major cities in Illinois. According to statistical data, Islam is the fastest growing religion in the state.
This all said, the distribution of where the majority of Muslims live is skewed to being primarily in the Chicago area. The vast majority live in Cook, Du Page, and Will counties. Muslims account for anywhere between 2.8 and 3.7 percent of the entire state’s population. At this time, they remain below ten percent, and most remain in the urban and suburban areas of Illinois. However, things are slowly changing in this regards. Some have moved out into the deeper countryside. I have found two examples of this in northwest Illinois—particularly Dixon and Morrison. Dixon is the county seat for Lee County. There is an Islamic center in town, so yes there are enough Muslims for this to exist. Just outside the town limits of Morrison is also an Islamic center. Morrison is the county seat for Whiteside County. So the number of Muslims in these two counties are large enough for at least an Islamic center to exist in both. Dixon is both a transportation hub and major tourist center in northwest Illinois (boyhood home of former U.S. President Ronald Reagan), and Morrison is the transit point between Illinois and the Mississippi River leading into Iowa.
As important as these two places may be, they are still in many ways out-of-the-way destinations. What it means is that Islam is finding its way into the Illinois hinterland in one form or another. In less than a generation, it is projected that Muslims may make-up ten percent or more of the state’s population. The impact of Islam will definitely influence the culture, politics, and society of the state. In the decades to come, there is the possibility that there will be cities in Illinois that are majority Muslim. We have already seen this in Michigan where cities like Dearborn and Hamtramck are majority Muslim. No one of course can predict the future, but as Islam puts down more roots in Illinois, the state will become ever more diverse and rich in the peoples that call this state home.
And the Fastest Growing Religion in Illinois Is…….
By Daniel Nardini
This all said, the distribution of where the majority of Muslims live is skewed to being primarily in the Chicago area. The vast majority live in Cook, Du Page, and Will counties. Muslims account for anywhere between 2.8 and 3.7 percent of the entire state’s population. At this time, they remain below ten percent, and most remain in the urban and suburban areas of Illinois. However, things are slowly changing in this regards. Some have moved out into the deeper countryside. I have found two examples of this in northwest Illinois—particularly Dixon and Morrison. Dixon is the county seat for Lee County. There is an Islamic center in town, so yes there are enough Muslims for this to exist. Just outside the town limits of Morrison is also an Islamic center. Morrison is the county seat for Whiteside County. So the number of Muslims in these two counties are large enough for at least an Islamic center to exist in both. Dixon is both a transportation hub and major tourist center in northwest Illinois (boyhood home of former U.S. President Ronald Reagan), and Morrison is the transit point between Illinois and the Mississippi River leading into Iowa.
As important as these two places may be, they are still in many ways out-of-the-way destinations. What it means is that Islam is finding its way into the Illinois hinterland in one form or another. In less than a generation, it is projected that Muslims may make-up ten percent or more of the state’s population. The impact of Islam will definitely influence the culture, politics, and society of the state. In the decades to come, there is the possibility that there will be cities in Illinois that are majority Muslim. We have already seen this in Michigan where cities like Dearborn and Hamtramck are majority Muslim. No one of course can predict the future, but as Islam puts down more roots in Illinois, the state will become ever more diverse and rich in the peoples that call this state home.