Society & Culture / Social Issues / Race & Ethnicity
Why Moving to Chicago Made Palestinians More Religious, Not Less
We've all heard the classic melting pot story: immigrants arrive, they assimilate, they become more modern and secular. But what if that narrative is a complete myth? In this deep dive, we explore a groundbreaking study by Dr. Lauren LeBarge, author of 'Palestinians in Chicago,' that shatters this assumption. Through 80 life-history interviews, LeBarge reveals how the Palestinian diaspora in Chicago—from 1948 to today—didn't become more secular as they moved to the heart of the American Midwest. Instead, they became more conservative, more religious, and more politically radical. We trace this transformation from the secular golden age of the 1970s, through the trauma of the Oslo Accords, to the rise of Islamic institutions in the suburbs. Discover how external crises, like war and surveillance, forge identity in unexpected ways, and how a community's religious identity can be a tool for survival, not just tradition.
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