Enslaved Muslims’ literacy threatened white enslavers’ claimed monopoly on knowledge

Evidence

Their Muslim names and attire distinguished them to the extent that some Whites called them “Mohammadens” or “Moors,” whom Whites considered superior to Blacks but nonetheless still heathen. — Sahar F. Aziz, The Racial Muslim, 572 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Islamic emphasis on literacy made enslaved West African Muslims literate in Arabic — Sahar F. Aziz, The Racial Muslim: When Racism Quashes…, 571; Muslim slaves who read Arabic were reclassified as Arabs, superior to Blacks; White Americans ranked literate Muslims above other Black slaves while still heathenizing them — Sahar F. Aziz, The Racial Muslim: When Racism Quashes…, 572

Broader Connections

• White Americans ranked literate Muslims above other Black slaves while still heathenizing them #complicates (0.82) — Sahar F. Aziz, The Racial Muslim, 572
• Muslim slaves who read Arabic were reclassified as Arabs, superior to Blacks #complicates (0.78)