By DANIEL E. SLOTNIK
Most of Khairul Kabir’s customers at the Madison Deli and Grocery in East Harlem do not realize that his jovial smile masks a lingering sense of shame.
Mr. Kabir, 49, an immigrant from Bangladesh and a Muslim, is chagrined because he sells pork and alcohol, which are prohibited by the Koran. He also sells lottery tickets, a form of gambling that is banned. Devout Muslims are not supposed to indulge in, sell or even handle any of these “haram,” or forbidden, goods.
Mr. Kabir’s dilemma is widespread among Muslim immigrants in New York and other American cities, where religious beliefs, the pursuit of prosperity and pressures to assimilate are in conflict.
But the spiritual struggle is especially acute in diverse neighborhoods like East Harlem, where Muslim businesses must compete for customers who expect that a deli will make them a ham sandwich or sell them beer.
Opinions regarding the sale of haram items are diverse , but Mr. Kabir is unequivocal about his distaste for the practice.
“Selling haram is the same as eating haram,” he said . “I feel guilty, totally guilty. I want to sell the business and go home and not sell haram .
” Mr. Kabir said he had to sell goods he disapproved of to survive the recession. “I am doing a lot of bad things,” he said. “I pray to Allah to forgive me.”
Ahmed Ibrahim, a 25-year-old from Egypt who works at 3-S Deli, was concerned because the store could not sell beer not due to religion but because the last owner had lost his liquor license.
“For me, I come over here to make money and stuff,” he said. “If I come over here and try to run a halal business, only Muslims will go there. You have to sell to Americans.”
Some imams say they understand the pressures faced by Muslims trying to make a living in such a competitive city.
Mr. Kabir’s imam, Mohammad Fayek Uddin, leader of the Jackson Heights Islamic Center in Queens, said that while he might chide someone personally for selling haram, he was not required to get involved.
“In this country everyone has to do something. I deliver my speech in front of the people, it depends on their choice,” Mr. Uddin said . “No punishment, not here,” said Mr. Uddin . “Allah will give punishment on the day of judgment; I do not have an authority to do that.”
Despite the temptations America presents, he said he believed that life was better here. “In this country I saw the infinite independence,” he said. “That’s better than in our country.”
Ahmed Ibrahim, 25, from Egypt, works at the 3-S Deli in East Harlem. He believes the store should sell alcohol. / OZIER MUHAMMAD/THE NEW YORK TIMES
