Source: The New York Times

On October 25, 2001 The New York Times reported "Studies Suggest Lower Count for Number of U.S. Muslims." The article noted, "Scholarly estimates, much cited in recent weeks, have put the Muslim population in the United States at as high as six million. But a survey of religious affiliation among American adults, released yesterday by the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, estimated that there were 1.1 million Muslim adults living in the United States." Another study, "commissioned by the American Jewish Committee and confined to the Muslim population in the United States, estimates that there are at most 2.8 million Muslims making up no more than 1 percent of the American population." The article notes that while these numbers remain a source of controversy, "Salam Al-Marayati, director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, said the actual number of Muslims in the United States was far less important than the role that American Muslims played in society."