164 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 21:3

Pride, Faith, and Fear: Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa
Charlotte A. Quinn and Frederick Quinn

USA: Oxford University Press, 2003. 175 pages.

If the real value of a book – any book – comes from its ability to present
itself as a subject of various, but not contradictory, readings, this book
undoubtedly fulfils that value. From the point of view of a Muslim and non-
western reader, the book reflects the western fear of Islam as a power in cri-
sis but adopts a line of argument against mainstream western writings on



Islam. In other words, it argues against the prevalent claim that Islam, espe-
cially after the collapse of communism, represents the most dangerous threat
to western values. Further, the book suggests that “opportunities for positive
engagement with Africa’s Muslim communities and states abound on the
political, social, religious, economic, and cultural level” (p. 150). 

Motivated by the need “to find a reasonable avenue of exploration and
accommodation with countries and cultures that differ from our own (the
Western culture),” the book unveils the mutual misunderstanding between
the West and the Muslim world. Thus, it argues that the “Muslim world is
treated (by the West) as having a single dimension, as if Muslims in gen-
eral had bonded with Osama bin Laden” (p. 4). It also argues that the West
sees Muslims as “stubbornly holding the idea that Christians have not aban-
doned the Crusaders’ mentality, zealously trying to destroy all traces of
Muslim civilizations in their entirety” (p. 4). Being aware of the harmful
impacts of these misleading images not only on the media, but also – and
this is the most dangerous – on the “contemporary (academic) analysis,”
the book invites the People of the Book (ahl al-kitab) to work together
toward peace and reconciliation, emphasizing that “it will be a difficult but
not impossible road.” Without this effort to make peace, the book suggests,
there will be chaos and violence.

Addressing the crisis of Islam or of Muslims, in fact, the book does
not neglect the glorious past of Islam in Africa. For the authors of the
book, it was Islam, or rather Muslim trade, “that linked Africa (earlier in
the eleventh century) to the wider world and put it on the maps of time”
(p. 18).

One of the main goals of the book is to draw our attention to the fact that
the attempts made by the reformists and jihadists of the eighteenth and nine-
teenth centuries to solve their societies’ problems were failures. Their
recipes could neither respond creatively to modern challenges  nor absorb
the most human and progressive implications of recent world developments.

In practical terms, the book focuses on the problems that Muslims are
facing in five African countries, problems that might develop into a suitable
environment for violence and disorder. The main characteristics of these
problems are seen to be economic in nature, for all African countries (not
only the five countries being analyzed) suffer from an economic decline that
the authors assert is linked to governmental corruption and inefficiency. This
justifies the happy solution adopted by authors: These problems can be
solved by replacing corrupt regimes with uncorrupted ones. Within this con-
text, the West’s only responsibilities are to provide economic and technical

Book Reviews 165



assistance to the African people and improve economic conditions by creat-
ing jobs so that unemployed youths will not become the fuel for terrorism. 

Speaking of terrorism, the West, after long centuries of plundering and
exploiting Africa’s resources is now, supposedly, going to see Africa
through sympathetic and helpful eyes. But that is only because of its own
fear of terrorism. In my judgement, insofar as relations between the current
western interest in Africa and the fear of terrorism can be established, it can
be said that Islam also brings Africa to our maps once again. But while
Islam in the past was a means to civilize and urbanize Africa, it is now an
instrument to create violence and protest. 

The book asserts that violent protests in Africa must be seen as the
product of its local circumstances and not as an extension of Middle
Eastern violence. But in doing this, the book tries to isolate African
Muslims (“black” Islam) from its Arabic source. Paradoxically, it seems
that Africa is beginning to resemble the Middle East as an arena of con-
frontation between Islam and the West. So, the book calls for a strategy to
“save Africa” through economic and technical aid programs  devised and
funded by the West. Such an undertaking, the authors claim, will help
Africa fight the penetration of so-called “Arab” terrorism. 

The five countries analyzed, except for South Africa, continue to suf-
fer from political and economic decline. Muslims, especially in countries
where they are the majority, believe that the only way to remove this prob-
lem is to implement the Shari`ah. This has led to the emergence of  trans-
forming the Shari`ah into a political program. By applying Islamic law,
Sudan, for example, has established benchmarks for peace and stability,
which, in turn, has encouraged trade and the enrichment of its domain (p.
19). However, in many countries, among them Nigeria and Sudan, the
Shari`ah has been politicized, while elsewhere (e.g., Kenya and South
Africa), it was only implemented as a personal family law (p. 11). In both
cases, however, the Shari`ah can be seen as a political ideology or a sign
of identity that “assumes a major importance for Muslims, representing
the glue that holds society (or community) together.” 

Finally, speaking historically, the book contends that Islam was the reli-
gion that linked Africa to the wider world and put it on the maps of the time
(p. 18). 

Ali Mabrook
Department of Religious Studies

The University of Cape Town
Rondebosch, South Africa

166 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 21:3