Of course, it’s not the fault of the extremists in Islam. It’s been said that just 1% of Muslims are the hardcore violent jihadis. That would mean there are 16 million worldwide. Some estimates of Muslims who are radicalized, meaning they believe in a hardcore version of Islam (meaning they are following what the Quran says, things like stoning women for adultery, executing gays, implementing Sharia law, a Caliphate, etc), put the number at 10-25% of the 1.6 billion Muslim population. Even Democrat Loretta Sanchez admitted a similar number. But, hey, it’s those who are concerned over this that are apparently the problem, as Mubeen Shakir tells us at the Washington Post in an op-ed
Walking in fear as a Muslim
A 12-year-old girl is beaten at school in New York, is called “ISIS†and nearly has her hijab torn off by her classmates. A 16-year-old Somali American dies in a fall from a six-story building in Seattle that his family and the Muslim community in the city suspect was the result of foul play. Rocks are thrown through the windows of a Muslim family’s home in Plano, Tex. A shop owner in Queens, N.Y., is attacked at his business by a man shouting, “I’ll kill Muslims.†This is only a small sampling of the recent violence and hate crimes against Muslims, which have reached record highs.
While all disgraceful actions, which should be condemned, two Islamists shot up a center in California. Two others used bombs at the Boston Marathon. Many others attacked a Free Speech convention in Texas. Two gays were murdered in Seattle. A Muslim man shot his lesbian daughter and her lover in Texas. There are many, many more. Not too mention 9/11. And all the attacks and attitudes of Muslims around the world.
Oh, and as far as the one who fell of the building? Where’s the proof of foul play? What about all the gays thrown off buildings in ISIS controlled areas?
These days, sermons at mosques in the United States, rather than focusing on community and religion, conclude with advice about how Muslims can protect themselves from attack. The fear that any non-Muslim American feels about his or her safety in the face of terrorism is felt tenfold by Muslim Americans. I am 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds, a Rhodes scholar and student at Harvard Medical School. I am not used to feeling so afraid for my body.
I am afraid that on the train home from the hospital, someone will think my backpack contains a bomb. When I walk through a crowd, I fear being accosted by young men calling me “Arab†or “terrorist.†I am afraid that all the talk of Muslim registries, rabid dogs and closing mosques will lead to someone shooting at the mosque that my mother attends every day. If I feel this way walking down the streets of Boston, with the privileges of a well-educated, English-speaking male, I can only imagine the fear of the many people who share my religion without such privileges.
I certainly feel for Mr. Shakir and the Muslim community that is non-violent and not intent on implementing political Islam within the United States. They shouldn’t be harrassed or worse because of what others in Islam believe. But, this fear is self-induced. While some Muslims speak out against the extremists, denounce them (no, they do not need to apologize for the behavior of the extremists, though, interestingly, every White person in the US is supposed to apologize and grovel for slavery for which they had no part of), rarely do we hear about it happening. Nowhere within this opinion piece do we read anything along the lines of “most of us have nothing to do with the extremists”.
In fact, right after a paragraph mentioning the Paris attacks, for which Mr. Shakir expresses no remorse or condemnation…they hold special importance, though, because they occurred near the time of his father’s passing anniversary…we read
Muslim leaders should indeed answer the calls to work to improve our communities. But to suggest that the solution lies solely with Muslims is deeply unfair. There are no calls to reform white Christian communities after mass shootings such as the one allegedly carried out by Robert Dear at Planned Parenthood in Colorado Springs. Of course we must ensure our youth are not attracted to radicalization and that all members of our community have sufficient mental-health resources. The same should be said of all religious groups, of any community.
No, there are no calls, because we’ve said we do not support nutballs like Dear nor his actions. We denounce his actions. There will always be nutballs within just about every segment of communities, whether religious, political, national, environmental, etc. There aren’t 16 million anti-abortion terrorists willing to murder in the name of Jesus, especially since this against the teachings of Jesus. The 16 million jihadis are just following the example of Mohammad.
It is cute how Mr. Shakir attempts to say “all religious groups.” Other religions aren’t attempting to force their religion on people at the end of a sword in modern times.
What we, as Americans, need now is solidarity. The physical and political violence perpetrated against Muslims in this country will only worsen unless we stand together against this fear-mongering. No one should be a bystander on a train or at a school as Muslims are assaulted and our rights questioned. We need others to speak out and stand with us.
Interestingly, this is the same thing that many hardcore, extremist, fundamentalist Muslims say as they are pushing their hardcore, extremist, fundamentalist view of Islam, crying Islamophobia all the while. This is not to say that Mr. Shakir or his congregation is extremist, but, instead of the poor me act, maybe he should recognize exactly why people are concerned and fearful. They are trying to paint themselves as victims, and the solution should start with Muslims who do want peace, who aren’t practicing political Islam, who do not want to implement Sharia law, etc. and so on.
In the WP comments, we read
Instead of whining about your “fear,” why don’t you tell us all about what you are doing to address the rabid behavior of your co-religionists?
Yes, please do.
Read: Muslims Are Totally Walking In Fear Or Something »
