A Muslim in Victorian America

Alexander Russell Webb (1846-1916) was a central figure in the early history of Islam in America. He wrote numerous books intended to introduce Islam to Americans, and served as the representative of Islam at the 1893 Worlds Parliament of Religions in Chicago. This biography examines Webbs' life, and explores the early history of Islam in America. In this first-ever biography of Alexander Russell Webb, Umar F. Abd-Allah examines Webb's life and uses it as a window through which to explore the early history of Islam in America. Except for his adopted faith, every aspect of Webb's life was, as Abd-Allah shows, quintessentially characteristic of his place and time. It was because he was so typically American that he was able to serve as Islam's ambassador to America (and vice versa). As America's Muslim community grows and becomes more visible, Webb's life and the virtues he championed - pluralism, liberalism, universal humanity, and a sense of civic and political responsibility - exemplify what it means to be an American Muslim.