Contributions by Muslim-Americans: 2-11-14
February 11, 2014
I still hear angry anti-Muslim voices from both the U.S. and the rest of the world -- voices that tend to lump all Muslims into the violent extremist bin-Laden branch of Islam (though Islam rejects that branch) and that tend to say harsh and unwelcoming things to and about American Muslims.
Most of this claptrap is driven by fear that is fueled by ignorance.
Sometimes -- though not often enough -- Muslims respond to these criticisms not with defensive criticism of the faith of the accusers but with facts that simply kneecap the arguments of the critics.
A good recent example is this piece by Hesham Hassaballa, a Chicago doctor and writer who has written for Beliefnet and for Religion News Service.
Hassaballa quotes a piece asking why Muslims have done so little for the U.S. over the years and then he shares a response to that ignorant question from a Georgetown University researcher. It's well worth a read.
Every faith group, of course, contains people who embarrass their own tradition -- the bin Laden followers in Islam, the Ku Klux Klan and Fred Phelpses in Christianity and on and on.
But anytime you discover someone smearing a whole group and not noting how diverse each group is you can be pretty sure it's not just wrong but meant to inflict damage.
As a member of a 9/11 family, am I angry at certain Muslims? Of course. Those bastards killed my nephew. But would I therefore be justified in lumping all Muslims together with the 9/11 hijackers? Of course not.
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THE MOSQUELESS MUSLIMS OF SOCHI
It turns out things also aren't easy for Muslims in and around Sochi, Russia, site of the Winter Olympics. There are 20,000 of them there, but no mosque, it's reported. And don't hold your breath about Sochi getting such an Islamic worship center -- at least not under the current regime.
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P.S.: My latest Presbyterian Outlook column now is online. To read it, click here.
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