Muslims in Milwaukee
Placemaking, Belonging, and Activism

Anna Mansson McGinty (Author), Caroline Seymour-Jorn (Author), Kristin M. Sziarto (Author)

9780815612162

Paperback / softback, published 29 April 2026

310 pages, 9 Illustrations, black and white - 1 Maps
22.9 x 15.2 x 2.1 cm, 0.444 kg

"Focusing on social activism, artistic practices, political participation, institution building and more, this book challenges readers to think anew about the longstanding contributions of Muslim Americans to the diversity and dynamism of the American heartland." —Sally Howell, author of Old Islam in Detroit: Rediscovering the Muslim American Past.

Muslims in Milwaukee explores the everyday lives, identities, and activism of Muslims in a midsized Midwestern city. Milwaukee is one of America’s most segregated cities, yet within its boundaries, a vibrant Muslim community is reshaping narratives and embodied practices of belonging, civic engagement, and urban placemaking. While considerable scholarship on Muslim Americans has concentrated on larger metropolitan centers like New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago, or on Detroit’s historic Arab neighborhoods, this book turns our attention to an understudied city where Muslim communities are small but rapidly growing, and where their experiences unfold within distinct local landscapes of race, segregation, and opportunity.

Drawing on over a decade of ethnographic fieldwork, surveys, and extensive interviews with community members, students, artists, activists, and leaders, the authors examine how local political, economic, and historical structures shape Muslim American experiences and civic participation, situating their analysis within the dual dynamics of belonging on one hand and exclusion and discrimination on the other.